Conversations from Byron
Queerstories: Curated by Maeve Marsden
Join some of Australia’s finest writers for a collection of unexpected tales: reflections on lives well lived and battles fought, pride, prejudice, love and humour. The LGBTQI+ community has been sharing stories for centuries, creating their own histories, disrupting and reinventing conventional ideas about narrative, family, love and community. There’s more to being queer than coming out and getting married.
Fast becoming an institution around the country, Queerstories is a national LGBTQI+ storytelling project curated by Maeve Marsden. Over the past 5 years, more than 250 people have shared their stories at live Queerstories events around the country, and many of these readings are now available on the award-winning Queerstories podcast.
This special Conversations from Byron podcast edition brings together a beautiful mix of light, warm, thought-provoking and heartbreaking tales from an exceptional line-up of Queer storytellers, including Ellen van Neerven, Sally Rugg, Michael Sun and Hayley Katzen.
Thanks to Delta Kay, Arakwal Bundjalung woman, for the Welcome to Country on this podcast.
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About the authors
Maeve Marsden
Maeve Marsden is a writer and theatremaker. She curates national storytelling project Queerstories and is a member of Belvoir Theatre’s Writers Lab for Early-Career Playwrights.
Hayley Katzen
Hayley Katzen’s essays have been published in Australian, American and Asian journals and anthologies including Australian Book Review, Griffith Review, Southerly, Fourth Genre and Kenyon Review. Untethered is her debut memoir.
Sally Rugg
Sally Rugg is an LGBTIQ rights activist, writer and public speaker. She is Executive Director at change.org. How Powerful We Are is her first book.
Michael Sun
Michael Sun is a freelance writer with bylines in The Guardian, The Monthly, Vice, ABC Arts, Overland, and more. He is also the incoming Culture Editor for Junkee, working with Netflix. In his spare time, he’s a freelance graphic designer and co-hosts the Saturday Lunch show on FBi Radio.
Ellen van Neerven
Ellen van Neerven is an award-winning writer of Mununjali Yugambeh and Dutch heritage. They write fiction, poetry, plays and non-fiction. Throat is Ellen’s second highly anticipated poetry collection.
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The exchange of stories and ideas sustains us in challenging times. Now more than ever we are relying on your support to help us continue celebrating Australian stories and literature, enhancing the skills of local writers, and nurturing the next generation of readers and writers. As a not-for-profit organisation run with a small team of staff and volunteers, contributions of any size go a long way in enriching the creative culture of our community. Amounts over $2 are tax deductible. Thank you.
Funding Partners
Thank you to our funding partners for making this program possible.
