Writers in The Writing Zone publish their work in two books: a digital chapbook of early works, edited by each year’s Program Officer, and an annual TWZ anthology that is edited collaboratively by the TWZ team. The anthology is a collective portfolio of writings that have been workshopped extensively in TWZ. These are polished across 4 months of group conversations and during 1-to-1 mentoring sessions with experienced Australian authors.
The TWZ writers also participate in workshops with SBS Voices, and with WSRC’s flagship publishing ventures, the Sydney Review of Books and independent literary press Giramondo Publishing. An annual Writing Circle mini-festival gives TWZ authors the opportunity to speak publicly about their work and perform live to larger audiences—helping connect them to broader communities of practice. You can download and link to various TWZ publications below.
Twice as Many Stars
November 2023
Edited by Ellen O’Brien, Kate Fagan and Melinda Jewell
Design and Cover Art by Jade Nelson
146 pp
Published November 2023
ISBN: 978-0-6489982-6-6
Contents
Ellen O’Brien, Kate Fagan & Melinda Jewell – Twice as Many Stars
Georgia Chapman – Oranges
Victor Guan Yi Zhou – No Bones
Robert Hoang – Wandering Soul
Sarah Carroll – Five Works
H. May Oxley – 72
Moontana Mohsin – Brahmanbaria
J. Marahuyo – Three Poems
Rebecca Ward – Opportunity Cost
Danny Yazdani – Exile and Return
Mary Stanley – Luda
Dania Roumieh – The Stories of المعمول
Michelle Huynh – Thresholds
For enquiries relating to distribution and availability, please contact TWZ on twz@westernsydney.edu.au.
The Space Between
November 2022
Edited and designed by Ellen O’Brien
Digital chapbook
49pp
Published November 2022
ISBN: 978-0-6489982-5-9
Contents
Ellen O’Brien – The Space Between
Sarah Carroll – from Cherry
Victor Guan Yi Zhou – Maggie in My Arms
Mary Stanley – Don’t Let Them See
Georgia Chapman – Elm
H. May Oxley – The Birth of Misfortune
Robert Hoang – from Big Trouble in Little Saigon
Dania Roumieh – Blood Pressure
Danny Yazdani – IWS: The Iranian Wedding Season
Rebecca Ward – When They Cry
Moontana Mohsin – Just a Cut on the Bottom of My Foot
J. Marahuyo – Express-ination / meeting Amihan
Michelle Huynh – Something Hainanese
The chapbook was launched on 23 November 2022 at an online event featuring readings by the authors, facilitated by editor Ellen O’Brien. Watch the event >>
Ghost Cities
September 2022
Edited by Christina Donoghue, Kate Fagan, Melinda Jewell and Catriona Menzies-Pike
Design and cover art by Jade Nelson
163pp
Published September 2022
ISBN: 978-0-6489982-4-2
Contents
Christina Donoghue, Kate Fagan, Melinda Jewell & Catriona Menzies-Pike – Ghost Cities
Harvey Liu – Demon Days (2006-2016)
Lucia Tưò’ng Vy Nguyễn – Hungry Ghosts, Part I
Grace Roodenrys – Six Poems
James W. Goh – from Severance
Natasha Pontoh-Supit – from STANs: A K-Pop Play
Laneikka Denne – Odus
Anith Mukherjee – from Date Night
Geneva Valek – Hoonbags
Benjamin D. Muir – Only Shadows
Bria McCarthy – Prologue: Dawn of the Season
For enquiries relating to distribution and availability, please contact TWZ on twz@westernsydney.edu.au.
Patient Zero
November 2021
Edited and designed by Christina Donoghue
Digital chapbook
88pp
Published November 2021
ISBN: 978-0-6489982-2-8
Contents
Christina Donoghue – Patient Zero
Anith Mukherjee – Picturesque
Geneva Valek – The Rat
Harvey Liu – An Example of Coping with a High-Pressure Situation
Grace Roodenrys – Six Poems
Laneikka Denne – Oi
James W. Goh – Severance
Brianna McCarthy – Colossus / Pumpkin Sprung! / Caves
Lucia Tưò’ng Vy Nguyễn – A Hill to Lie On
D Vrtaric – from ‘Trust Fall’ and ‘Summer Fade’
Natasha Pontoh-Supit – from Leftover Loss
Katrina Trinh – The Mother’s Wound
Benjamin D. Muir – Final Stages
The book was launched on 19 November 2021 at an online event featuring readings and discussion by the authors and editor, facilitated by Anith Mukherjee. Watch the event »
The Wayward Sky
December 2021
Edited by Ilhan Abdi, Kate Fagan, Melinda Jewell and Catriona Menzies-Pike
Design and cover art by Jade Nelson
167pp
Published December 2021
ISBN: 978-0-6489982-1-1
Contents
Ilhan Abdi, Kate Fagan, Melinda Jewell & Catriona Menzies-Pike – The Wayward Sky
Sophiya Sharma – from The Art of Waiting (or What the Crows Told Us)
Martyn Reyes – Clenched
Duy Quang Mai – Six Poems
Yasir Elgamil – We Are The Birds
Huyen Hac Helen Tran – Fish Gliding in Water
Viniana Rokobili – My Stages
Ryan Bautista – The Latest Buzz
Yasmin Ali – Housewife’s Lament
Kim Pham – from Bird Hands Beaver a Fishmint Bouquet
Nadia Maunsell – Calling You Through a Space Suit
Tina Nyfakos – from Galagoo
Christine Lai – Real Estate
For enquiries relating to distribution and availability, please contact TWZ on twz@westernsydney.edu.au.
Sky Conversations
October 2020
Edited and designed by Ilhan Abdi
Digital chapbook
60pp
Published October 2020
ISBN: 978-0-6489982-0-4
Contents
Ilhan Abdi – Sky Conversations
Viniana Rokobili – May She Know / With Love, The Streets
Sophiya Sharma – from A Boy For All Seasons
Huyen Hac Helen Tran – from Fish Gliding in Water
Christine Lai – the world is way too loud for you and me / the things you love are not random, they are your calling
Yasir Elgamil – from Dawn
Nadia Hirst – The Ghosts of Girls’ Bodies
Kim Pham – from Bird Hands Beaver a Fishmint Bouquet
Martyn Reyes – Cul De Sac
Duy Quang Mai – the you as a subject and everything
Yasmin Ali – from Housewife’s Lament
Ryan Bautista – 4ever and ever
Tina Nyfakos – Roots of Revani
Sky Conversations was launched on 27 November 2020 at an online event featuring readings and discussion by the authors and editor, facilitated by Sophiya Sharma. Watch the event »
Other publications by TWZ writers
We aim to share a wide matrix of publishing opportunities with TWZ authors, and we support our writers to engage with diverse programs and partners, both in our region and beyond. While working with TWZ, our writers have exhibited new works, been commissioned to write for a range of venues, and secured writing residencies and fellowships, including with Writing NSW and WestWords. Here are just a few highlights.
Bankstown Arts Centre + Sydney Review of Books digital residencies
Essays by three TWZ writers—‘Excuse Me, Tabi Tabi Po’ by Martyn Reyes, ‘Arterials’ by Nadia Hirst and ‘Borrowed Time’ by Christine Lai—were published in the Sydney Review of Books ‘Symbiosis’ project, after the writers won digital residencies with Bankstown Arts Centre and the SRB for the 2020 Bankstown Biennale.
Martyn Reyes’ essay was also published in the SRB anthology Second City: Essays from Western Sydney.
Essays by two TWZ writers—‘Severance’ by James W. Goh and ‘Scraps’ by Huyen Hac Helen Tran—were published in the Sydney Review of Books 2021 ‘Incubate’ project, which awarded digital residencies under a partnership between Bankstown Arts Centre and the SRB.
Sydney Review of Books
Additional essays developed through TWZ have been published in the Sydney Review of Books:
‘Other Homes are Possible’ by Sophiya Sharma.
‘The Latest Buzz’ by Ryan Bautista.
SBS Voices
SBS Voices online commissioned essays by TWZ writers:
‘Why I’m Reclaiming My Traditional Name’ by Huyen Hac Helen Tran.
‘I Went Overseas and Had a Panic Attack…’ by Tina Nyfakos.
‘My Mum and Nanna are Polar Opposites…’ by Nadia Hirst.
‘The Venn Diagram of Lesbian Relationships’ by Christine Lai.
‘What Diverse Mental Health Care Should Look Like’ by Martyn Reyes.
‘The Unexpected Grief I’ve Felt During Lockdown’ by Katrina Trinh.
‘I’m A Writer, An Academic And A Trolley Boy’ by Benjamin Muir.
‘What Queer Love Taught Me About Self-Love’ by Laneikka Denne.
'What I learned from buying my first car at 27‘ by Benjamin Muir.
‘I Am Not a Virus’ Project by Diversity Arts Australia
TWZ writers created new work for the ‘I Am Not a Virus’ Project by Diversity Arts Australia, an artist-led initiative to confront the xenophobia of the COVID-19 pandemic through creativity.
Work by TWZ authors Huyen Hac Helen Tran and Christine Lai appears in the Peril magazine’s special issue for the project, while Kim Pham’s collaborative short film Catch Kindness also featured in ‘I Am Not a Virus’.
Other work by TWZ writers
‘Not Your Miss or Madame: A Three-Act Meditation on Love, Opera and Friendship‘ by Lucia Tường Vy Nguyễn and Reina Brigette Takeuchi
‘Bird Hands Beaver A Fishmint Bouquet‘ was produced as a short film through Curiousworks’ Testing Grounds program. Written and directed by Kim Pham.