By Elizabeth Heffernan of South Coast Writers Centre
Submissions are open for the 2023/4 South Coast Writers Centre anthology, CHROMA. Works of poetry and short fiction under 1500 words that include, reference, or respond to some element of the theme ‘in colour’ are invited to enter. Submissions close 7 January 2024.
CHROMA will also include the winners and shortlisted works from the SCWC Poetry Award 2023. These poems responded to the theme ‘in colour’ and Wollongong Art Gallery’s exhibition Thinking Through Pink. Writers selected for the anthology will be invited to read at the launch event next year. For more information, visit southcoastwriters.org/scwc-anthology
The SCWC currently has two writers residencies open for applications. The Writers Studio Residency is open until 20 November 2023, for one residency commencing in 2024. Located in the Wollongong Town Hall, The Writers Studio is a lockable private space available 24/7. It comes with basic furnishings and a small common area. Residents must commit to using the space at least two days per week. Please note: this residency is only available to SCWC members.
The Nan Tien Residency is open for applications until 14 December 2023, to commence in March 2024. Writers on the South Coast, or connected to Nan Tien Temple, are invited to apply for up to twelve residency spots. Applicants must show how the development of their writing would benefit from this residency and submit a proposal for a new work developed during the residency to respond to the Nan Tien Temple, its gardens, buildings and community life, or Master Hsing Yun’s poetry. Residents will appear as part of a public presentation at the temple on Fo Guang Shan Day in May 2024 to read the work created during the residency. More information on both residencies can be found at southcoastwriters.org/residencies
Film Club with Graham Thorburn returns for the final two months of 2023. Film Club is held at Coledale Community Hall on the first Saturday of every month at 7.30pm. November’s film is LOVING, an historical romantic drama starring Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga. The December screening will be Celine Sciamma’s PETITE MAMAN, a heartbreaking but deeply hopeful story. Tickets for Film Club are only available online, visit southcoastwriters.org/upcomingevents
The launch of the latest SCWC poetry anthology, 34 to 37 Degrees South, will be held in November. The anthology is a collection of thirty unique perspectives, ranging from the personal and the intimate to the grand; poems about trauma, change and hope, and some wry humour too. The country launch event will be held on Sunday 12 November at Well Thumbed Books in Cobargo, 2.30pm. The local launch will be held at Coledale Community Hall on Sunday 26 November, 1-3pm. More details coming soon at southcoastwriters.org/34to37south
SCWC will also host the second True Story festival of creative non-fiction at Coledale Community Hall on November 18 & 19.
Fiction gets a lot of attention at other writers and readers festivals - but True Story Festival's focus is on real life, true stories because they have a direct, relatable relevance, and their unique perspectives may help us navigate this increasingly complex world. It’s not just the planet that is overheating, sometimes it’s the temperature of debate.
This year at True Story: Stranger Than Fiction you’ll find memoirs ranging from the humorous to the spiritual, together with voices sharing ideas about community resilience, cultural identity, local media and regional food, Dharawal language and First Nations knowledge sharing, and the courage it takes to become one of our finest investigative journalists.
For the full True Story program and bookings, click here.
