In this episode, Fiona reads Happy Hour from her collection. She then talks about where the idea for this story came from, how she finds writing hard but ultimately satisfying and why she recommends ‘resting’ early drafts of a story before sending them off for publication.

This episode was recorded on the lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people of Magandjin, Brisbane. I would like to pay my respects to the Traditional Owners, to their Elders past and present, and to acknowledge their rich history of storytelling.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

In this episode Laura reads A Sensation of Whirling and a Loss of Balance from her collection, Gunflower. She then discusses the fly-away comment that led her to write this story and talks about why animals are integral to many of her stories. Laura also explains how short story writing helps her to write novels.

This episode was recorded on the lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people of Magandjin, Brisbane. I would like to pay my respects to the Traditional Owners, to their Elders past and present, and to acknowledge their rich history of storytelling.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

In this episode Melanie reads Stone Baby, published in World Literature Today in 2025. Melanie discusses the genesis of this story and how it took two decades to write. She talks about how her work as a doctor influences her writing and vice versa and gives us some tips on what makes a short story stand out in competitions.

This episode was recorded on the lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people of Meanjin, Brisbane, and on the traditional lands of the Kulin Nation in Naarm, Melbourne.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

In this episode, Alex reads The Juansons from his collection and explains why this story took five years to write and how it went from a 30,000-word polished novella to a 3000-word short story. Alex also explains the purpose and potential dangers of satire and reminds us that the harder things to do in art usually lead to better art.

This episode was recorded on the lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people of Magandjin (Brisbane) and on the traditional lands of the Kaurna people (Adelaide).

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

In this episode, Cate reads her story Little Plastic Shipwreck from her collection, Like a House on Fire (Scribe) and talks about why this particular story is still mysterious to her. Cate also discusses many aspects of writing, including the value in capturing the small, ordinary details of our lives, plus fiction’s great superpower: its ability to reveal a character’s sense of interiority. She explains the power of the three layers of a character’s “self” and the richness that the gap between these provides to both reader and writer.

This episode was recorded on the unceded lands of the Yuggera and Turrbul people in Brisbane and the traditional lands of the Dja Dja Wurrung people in Castlemaine, Victoria.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast.

This post is public so feel free to share it.

Hear Jane discuss different types of speculative fiction, the role imagination plays and why she loves this genre. We also discuss her approach to writing, her role as an editor of short stories, and how she views the current publishing status of short stories in Australia.

Learn more about Jane’s writing here

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts. This post is public so feel free to share it.

This episode was recorded on the traditional lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people and on the traditional lands of the Melukerdee people, who did not survive colonisation. I acknowledge the ongoing custodianship of the Palawa people of Lutruwita Tasmania.

In Episode 6 Kate reads her story The Mighty have Fallen published in the Summer 2022 issue of Meanjin. Then we chat about the broad themes influencing her work, the tips she gives when mentoring writers and how reading helps when her writing stalls.

This episode was recorded on the traditional lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people in Meanjin, Brisbane and on the lands of the Wurundjeri people in Naarm, Melbourne.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Anne began writing after a long career as a librarian and advocate for families of premature babies. In 2018, she won the Peter Carey Short Story Award for her story, Being the Mother. Since then, her short stories and poetry have been published in Meanjin, Island, Overland, Westerly, Kill Your Darlings and several anthologies.

Anne’s short story collection Cautionary Tales for Excitable Girls was published by Scribner/Simon & Schuster in September 2022 and was longlisted for the 2023 Indie Book Awards.

Anne lives with her family in Melbourne’s west, on Bunurong land.

In Episode 5, Anne reads her story, Starving in the Land of Plenty.

Hear Anne discuss her views on the origins of status anxiety, laughing at your own funny lines and why she favours the first person POV.

This episode was recorded on the traditional lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people in Meanjin, Brisbane and on the lands of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Laura is the author of two short story collections: Trick of the Light and Ordinary Matter.

She is a past winner of the Josephine Ulrick Prize for Literature, the Margaret River Short Story Competition, the Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize and the Fair Australia Prize for Fiction.

Ordinary Matter won the 2021 USQ Steele Rudd Award for a Short Story Collection. The judges described it as ‘elegant, inventive, and often deeply touching’.

The collection was also shortlisted for the Queensland Premier’s Award for a Work of State Significance and the 2022 Barbara Jefferis Award.

Laura’s first novel, Nightingale, was shortlisted for the Fiction Book Award and won the People’s Choice Queensland Book of the Year Award at the 2025 Queensland Literary Awards.

Laura has a PhD in Creative Writing and Literary Studies from QUT. She lives in Magandjin, Queensland.

In Episode 4 Laura reads Grand Canyon from her second collection. Hear how Laura combined fact with fiction for this story, why she chose to tell it through Frank’s voice, how she feels about beginnings and endings in stories,

how reading your work aloud differs from reading it in your head, and more!

I would like to acknowledge the Yuggera and Turrbal people who are the Traditional Custodians of the land on which this podcast was recorded.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

In Episode 3 Laurie reads The Punch. Then we talk about how this story came into being and Laurie tells us why it’s easier to take risks with short stories and talks about the joys and pitfalls of writing across literary forms, and the long game of writing.

This episode was recorded on the traditional lands of the Yuggera and Turrbal people in Meanjin, Brisbane, and on the lands of the Whadjuk people in Boorloo, Western Australia.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts Podcast. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Mirandi’s short stories have appeared in Best Australian Stories, Meanjin, Review of Australian Fiction, Griffith Review and Best Summer Stories.

Her collection of short stories and novellas, titled The Burnished Sun won the 2022 UQP Quentin Bryce Award. On selecting The Burnished Sun, Dame Quentin Bryce says:

What a remarkable and skilful writer Mirandi Riwoe is … the sheer breadth of talent showcased across this collection of fiction is astounding.

In addition to her short story collection, Mirandi has published a novella, The Fish Girl, and two novels, Stone Sky Gold Mountain and Sunbirds. Her third novel, A Short History of Longans will be available in 2026. Mirandi’s books are published by UQP. She lives in Magandjin, Queensland.

In Episode 2 you’ll hear Mirandi read Invitation from her collection and learn about the real-life events that fed into the creation of this story. We then chat about Mirandi’s writing process and discuss the importance of craft and practice when honing your writing skills. Mirandi also shares insights into selecting winners for short story competitions.

I acknowledge the Yuggera and Turrbal people who are the Traditional Custodians of the land on which this podcast was recorded.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts. This post is public so feel free to share it.

Amanda has written and published many short stories and her fiction has been awarded and shortlisted in numerous contests in Australia, Ireland, and the UK.

Her story collection, This Taste for Silence (UQP), was shortlisted for the Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction and longlisted for the Edge Hill Prize (UK) and described as “a stunning achievement” by Readings’ Ellen Cregan, with stories that maintain “a subtle, compelling sense of intrigue that makes each story highly readable without compromising the quality and detail of her writing.”

In Episode 1 Amanda reads the story Things from her collection. Then we chat about Amanda’s writing process and how writing short stories is different from writing long form and flash fiction.

You will hear Amanda talk about the power that lies in a good short story, the courage it takes to write, “the tea bag process” of writing and why Amanda gets surprised by the stories she puts on the page.

Amanda O’Callaghan lives in Magandjin, Queensland. You can connect with her via her website or Instagram

I acknowledge the Yuggera and Turrbal people who are the Traditional Custodians of the land on which this podcast was recorded.

Thanks for listening to Australian Shorts. This post is public so feel free to share it.