Australian Writers' Centre Podcast

Steph Bowe is a 19-year-old author and blogger whose second YA novel, All This Could End, has just been published. Her first book, Girl Saves Boy, was published in 2010 – when she was just 16 years old.   Interview by Danielle Williams, course manager of Australian Writers' Centre. www.WritersCentre.com.au

After 15 years working as a paramedic in Sydney, Katherine Howell decided it was high time she pursued her love of writing full time. Her debut novel, Frantic, won the 2008 Davitt Award for best crime fiction, and was followed by The Darkest Hour, Cold Justice (which won the 2011 Davitt Award making Katherine the only author to have won it twice), Violent Exposure and Silent Fear. Her latest novel, Web of Deceit, sees the return of the very popular police detective Ella Marconi. Interview by Andrew Gillman, office manager of Australian Writers' Centre. www.WritersCentre.com.au

The Rosie Project by debut author, Graeme Simsion, is destined to be one of the literary hits of 2013. Developed initially as a film script, Graeme turned his idea into a novel during a novel writing course at Melbourne University in 2012. That manuscript went on to be shortlisted, and win, the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an unpublished manuscript. It was then picked up by Text Publishing and the rights have now been sold to more than 30 countries. Interview by Danielle Williams, course manager of Australian Writers' Centre. www.WritersCentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

Kate Morton is a Brisbane-based author who has enjoyed huge success at home and overseas. Since publishing her first book in 2006 she has become one of Australia’s biggest selling authors internationally and her books have been published in more than 38 countries. Her latest book is The Secret Keeper.   Interview by Danielle Williams, course manager of Australian Writers' Centre. www.WritersCentre.com.au

Richard Gill is an award-winning Australian conductor and music educator. His long career in music started when he was a teacher in Sydney’s western suburbs. He went on to become the dean at the Western Australian Conservatorium of Music, the Director of Chorus at the Australian Opera and, since 2005, he has been the Music Director at Victorian Opera. Richard's memoir is Give Me Excess of It.

This week we talk to journalist and author, Chris Masters. Chris will be well known to ABC audiences for his decades of work on 4 Corners. He’s also the author of 4 books, and he’s here today to speak to us about the latest, Uncommon Soldier.

Ramona Koval has been living a life richly steeped in words since she learned to read and checked out Kafka's "The Trial" at 10 years of age. A writer, journalist and broadcaster, she was Australia's voice of literature for five years as the presenter of the Book Show on the ABC.   Interview by Rose Powell of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au

Kimberley Freeman is an Australian contemporary women’s fiction author who has also published speculative fiction and horror under her real name, Kim Wilkins. She is an award-winning author in her original genre, In 2007 she decided to explore a new genre and published her first women’s fiction novel, Duet. Her fourth book in the genre is Lighthouse Bay. Interview by Danielle Williams, course manager of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au

Joanne Harris is the best-selling author of 14 novels, including Chocolat, Blackberry Wine and Five Quarters of the Orange. Her latest novel is Peaches for Monsieur Le Cure, the third book in the trilogy that started with Chocolat and Lollipop Shoes. Interview by Danielle Williams, course manager of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

Sulari Gentill’s latest novel is Paving the New Road, the fourth book in the Rowland Sinclair historical crime series. It is the second book in the series she’s released in 2012 and has just been awarded the Sisters in Crime Davitt Award for the best crime novel by a woman. The first book in the series, A Few Right Thinking Men, was nominated in 2011 for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Novel in the South Easy Asia and Pacific. <p>&nbsp;</p><p>Interview by Danielle Willams, course manager of Sydney Writers' Centre.</p><p>www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au</p>

Melbourne writer Zane Lovitt’s first book is The Midnight Promise. Told over a collection of 10 crime mysteries, it is the story of private inquiry agent, John Dorn. Its already garnered critical praise and comparisons to Australian crime writer, Peter Temple.   Interview by Danielle Williams, course manager of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au

Nichole Bernier is a feature writer, editor and now novelist. Her debut novel is The Unfinished Journals of Elizabath D. She lives in Boston with her husband and five children. Interview by Daneille Williams, course manager of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au

Elliot Perlman is the author of three novels and a collection of short stories. His debut novel Three Dollars was published in 1998 and won the Age Book of the Year award and the Betty Trask Prize. It was later turned into a film by Elliot and director Robert Connolly, and was released in 2005.   Interview by Rose Powell, Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au

Kim Kyosaki is a successful entrepreneur who was able to retire in 1994 thanks to the success of her business endeavours, But she couldn’t sit still for long, and in 1997 with husband, Robert Kyosaki, author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad, she began travelling the world and imparting the secrets of her financial success. Her particular focus is on empowering women to take control of their financial destiny. It is a theme she has addressed in both her books, Rich Woman, released in 2006, and in her recently published new book, It’s Rising Time! What it really takes for the reward of financial freedom.   Interview by Valerie Khoo, director of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

Brian Thacker’s seventh travel book is Tell Them to Get Lost – Travels with the Lonely Planet guidebook that started it all. Travelling South-East Asia with a copy of the first-ever shoestring guidebook, published in 1975, Brian travels through Portuguese Timor, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos and Burma.   Interview by Valerie Khoo, director of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

Jessica Rudd’s second novel, and sequel to her debut Campaign Ruby, is Ruby Blues. After helping the opposition win government in Campaign Ruby, Ruby Stanhope is now struggling with a PM whose popularity is quickly waning, a luke-warm love life, and her looming 30th birthday.   Interview by Valerie Khoo, director of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

For the 2011 Christmas edition of our podcast, we've done something a little different. Regular listeners will know that we usually interview one author per podcast. This time, we've interviewed two former students of the Sydney Writers' Centre, Heather Smith and Al McKillop, who both have books released this month.   Interview by Valerie Khoo, director of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

Tara Moss is the best-selling author of The Spider Goddess, the second book in her new series of paranormal fiction featuring Pandora English. A heady mix of high fashion and gothic horror set in New York, The Spider Goddess follows Pandora as she goes to live with her great-aunt in a haunted mansion in Spektor, Manhattan.   Interview by Valerie Khoo, director of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

Judy Nunn is an Australian author and actress, known by many of us for her role in Home and Away as Ailsa. Her latest books is Tiger Man, set in Tasmania in the 1850s when ambitious entrepreneurs rapidly built a thriving centre of industry at the expense of the state’s natural resources and environment.   Interview by Valerie Khoo, director of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com

Rich Dad, Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki dropped into the Sydney Writers’ Centre and we chatted to him about his new book Midas Touch: Why Some Entrepreneurs Get Rich – And Why Most Don’t, which he co-authored with Donald Trump. Robert has built an entire empire on his “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” series of books so it was great to be able to chat to him about his writing and book marketing strategies. Interview by Valerie Khoo, director of Sydney Writers' Centre. www.sydneywriterscentre.com.au www.valeriekhoo.com