Upcoming
Tasmanian writers mentorships
Island is offering four mentorships for Tasmanian residents, led by winners of the 2025 Tasmanian Literary Awards: Kate Kruimink (Fiction), Maggie MacKellar (Nonfiction), Pam Schindler (Poetry), and Johanna Bell (Books for Young Readers and Children).
These mentorship are free to apply for and participate in. Successful mentees will receive ten hours of tailored guidance, advice, and support from some of Tasmania’s most accomplished writers.
Thank you to everyone who submitted an Expression of Interest. EOIs are now closed, and successful mentees will be contacted before the end of the year.
Kate Kruimink
Kate is a writer from Lutruwita. Her books have been recognised in various prizes, including the Vogel and the Tasmanian Premier's Literary Award. She writes short stories, poems and essays, which have been published widely, and she also works as the Fiction Editor for Island Magazine.
Genres: short stories and literary fiction
Maggie MacKellar
Maggie is an historian and writer who has published two books on the history of settlement in Australia and Canada and three memoirs, When It Rains, How To Get There and Graft. Maggie lives on the banks of Kanamaluka/River Tamar in Tasmania. She runs the much-loved newsletter The Sit Spot.
Genres: nature writing and life writing/memoir
Pam Schindler
Pam lives by the sea at Blackmans Bay, lutruwita/Tasmania. Her work has appeared in Australian magazines and anthologies and in her two collections, A sky you could fall into (Brisbane: Post Pressed, 2010) and say, a river (Port Adelaide: Ginninderra Press, 2023). Say, a river was awarded the Tim Thorne Prize for Poetry in the 2025 Tasmanian Literary Awards.
Genre: poetry
Johanna Bell
Johanna is the author of seven children's picture books and a verse novel for adults. She has won multiple awards including the CBCA Picture Book of the Year, the Environment Award for Children's Literature and a Tasmanian Literary Award for Writing for Young Readers and Children. Her books are out with Allen & Unwin, UQP and Thames & Hudson and her poetry has appeared in Overland, Griffith Review, Australian Poetry, Borderlands and Island.
Genres: development of a picture book by an author, illustrator or author-illustrator.
Recent
Masterclass with Charlotte Wood
For Deepening and Liberating Your Creative Life
Saturday 20 September 2025 9:30 AM - 1:00 PM (includes a 30 mins break)
Room 309
The University of Tasmania River’s Edge Building
2 Invermay Road
Launceston
Adult $80 and $60 concession (+$0.50 ticket fee)
This workshop explores three central creative strategies Charlotte discovered during her doctoral studies in creativity. Under Charlotte’s guidance, you will try out three experiments: Heat seeking – finding the beating heart of your material; Making surprising connections – bringing unlike ideas together; Disruption & overturning – solving problems and generating energy.
Our thanks to the University of Tasmania for providing the venue for this event.
Proudly part of this year’s Junction Arts Festival.
Charlotte Wood is the author of seven novels and three books of non-fiction. Her last novel Stone Yard Devotional was shortlisted for the 2024 Booker Prize. It was described by the UK Guardian as ‘a quiet novel of immense power’, as ‘extraordinary’ by The Washington Post and ‘an exquisite, wrenching novel’ by The New York Times. It has been praised by authors Anne Enright, Sigrid Nunez, Tim Winton, Karen Joy Fowler, Hannah Kent and Paula Hawkins among others.
Poetry Masterclass with Sarah Holland-Batt
Sat 29 March
10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Vanessa Goodwin City Room
The Hedberg, Hobart
Adult $80 and $60 concession (+$0.50 ticket fee)
Sarah is an award-winning poet, editor and critic. Her books have received a number of Australia’s leading literary awards, including the Stella Prize for her most recent book, The Jaguar, and the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Poetry for her second volume, The Hazards. She is also the author of a book of essays on contemporary Australian poetry, Fishing for Lightning, collecting her poetry columns written for The Australian. She is presently Professor of Creative Writing at QUT.
Photo by John Feder
Our thanks to the University of Tasmania for kindly providing the venue for this event.
This event is part of Tasmania Reads, an annual week-long celebration of reading and stories in all forms.
Sarah Holland-Batt is an award-winning poet, editor and critic. Her books have received a number of Australia’s leading literary awards, including the Stella Prize for her most recent book, The Jaguar, and the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Poetry for her second volume, The Hazards. She is also the author of a book of essays on contemporary Australian poetry, Fishing for Lightning, collecting her poetry columns written for The Australian. She is presently Professor of Creative Writing at QUT.
Photo by John Feder