Dr Lee Kofman is a Russian-born, Israeli-Australian author based in Melbourne. Lee holds a PhD in social sciences and MA in creative writing. She is the author of three fiction books, and memoirs Imperfect (Affirm Press, 2019), which was shortlisted for the Nib Literary Award 2019, and The Dangerous Bride (Melbourne University Press, 2014), which was included in Best Books 2014 (The Age and Australian Book Review) and 2015 (The Age). Lee is the editor of Split (Ventura Press, 2019), which was longlisted for ABIA Awards 2020, and co-editor of Rebellious Daughters (Ventura Press, 2016), anthologies of personal essays by prominent Australian authors. Her short works have been published in Australia, Scotland, UK, Israel, the USA and Canada. Her blog about writing was a finalist for Best Australian Blogs 2014. She teaches writing and mentors writers. Her most recent book is The Writer Laid Bare (Ventura Press, 2022).
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Website: https://leekofman.com.au/

Originally from Western Australia, Leonie now lives in the Upper Hunter. She is the author of the Frontier Trilogy (glowing cats, aliens, and a dangerous planet) and The Chronicles of Albatar (Kazari defends her homeland against the Gorgone Horde) - all published by Hague Publishing. She also works part time as a physiotherapist. Leonie has a past life as an emergency services volunteer, and once trekked almost six hundred kilometres with eight camels and several other human beings. She is married with one dog and two cats, one of whom frequently handicaps her ability to use a laptop computer.
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Website: http://www.leonierogers.me/

Denise O’Hagan is an editor and poet with a background in commercial book publishing in London and Sydney. Recipient of the Dalkey Poetry Prize, she has been shortlisted in the Robert Graves Poetry Prize, the Bridport Poetry Prize and the Proverse International Poetry Prize. She was Poetry Editor for Australia/New Zealand for Irish literary journal The Blue Nib. Her recent poetry collection, Anamnesis, was a finalist in the Eric Hoffer Book Award (USA) and shortlisted in the International Rubery Book Award (UK). Denise enjoys editing and critiquing individual poems and short fiction as well as manuscript assessment.
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Laura Boon worked in book publishing for over thirty years and is now a writer, editor and tennis coach. The stories she enjoys most include love, adventure and friendship. She has a BA in English Language and Literature and is an accredited editor with the Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd). Laura is the author of two romance novels and three non-fiction books, including Tips from a Book Publishing Industry Insider. She is a hybrid author, both traditionally and indie published. Laura lives in Sydney with Beau and Arrow, a Pekingese and a Shih Tzu who rule her world.
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Website: https://linktr.ee/lauraboon66

Emma Darragh lives and works on Dharawal Country. Her novel in stories, Thanks for Having Me, will be published by Joan Press in March, 2024. She holds a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Wollongong and her thesis, The Short Story Cycle in the Twenty-First Century, received the Examiners’ Commendation for Outstanding Thesis. Her writing has appeared in numerous Australian publications, including Cordite, Westerly, Meniscus, TEXT, and The Big Issue Fiction Edition. Emma is an experienced mentor and teaches Creative Writing at the University of Wollongong.
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Website: https://emmadarragh.com/

Danielle de Valera is an award-winning writer and the author of two novels, MagnifiCat and Those Brisbane Romantics. Her collection of stories, Dropping Out, was a finalist for the Woollahra Digital Literary Award. Her most recent novel Those Brisbane Romantics is listed in Kirkus Reviews’ 100 Best Indie Books of 2022. Formerly an editor for The Jacaranda Press, she taught fiction writing workshops at Byron College and is a member of IPed, the Institute of Professional Editors. She offers a range of manuscript development services and has been helping writers achieve their goals since 1992.
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Website: https://patrickdevalera.com/

Dannielle Viera has been involved in the Australian publishing industry for over 20 years – first as a copywriter and then as an editor, project manager, proofreader and author. Many of her children’s stories and poems have appeared in anthologies, in The School Magazine and on the Australian Children’s Poetry website. In 2021, her first illustrated children’s book, Amazing Grace, was published by Library For All; in 2023, her debut picture book, The Leftover Lemon Dilemma, was published by Loose Parts Press. She is a member of SCBWI, and she reviews children’s books for the Buzz Words website.
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Website: http://www.dannielleviera.com/

Bronwyn Birdsall is a writer and editor. Her first novel Time and Tide in Sarajevo was shortlisted for the 2023 Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction. Bronwyn is passionate about the power of story and supporting storytellers. She has spoken at festivals, at events and on podcasts about her novel and the creative process. Bronwyn’s writing centres around contemporary life and finding meaning in the everyday, and has been selected for development programs and residencies. As well as working as an editor for over fifteen years, she has also assessed entries for mentorship programs and competitions.
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Website: http://www.bronwynbirdsall.com/

Garry McDougall is a former lecturer and Artist-in-Residence at University of Western Sydney, and tutor at WEA. He is the winner of the Art-in-Unusual-Places Grant, 2022, Peter Cowan Short Story Prize, 2015, and editor of Coming Up for Air, Wonoona Storyteller Workshops, 2022. Garry was a feature poet at Sydney Writers Festival, 2017, and has over thirty published works including six novels, travel, poetry, as well as numerous short stories and poems published in international magazines. Garry is the author of Belonging, Knowing Simone, and is a specialist in general fiction, historical fiction, travel and photography, and the world’s most prolific writer on the Camino de Santiago.
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