2026 Authors / Hosts

Nicole Abadee is a freelance journalist and event moderator who writes for the Sydney Morning Herald and Harper’s Bazaar. Nicole is a regular moderator at

Evelyn Araluen is a Goorie and Koori poet, editor and researcher. Born and raised on Dharug Country and in the broader Western Sydney Black community,

Jackie Bailey is an award-winning author, pastoral care practitioner and funeral celebrant. She writes for a number of media outlets and is a regular contributor

Tony Birch is the author of four novels: Women & Children, which won the 2024 The Age Fiction Book of the Year; The White Girl, winner of the 2020

Melissa Browne is an award-winning former accountant and financial advisor who’s spent 20 years building three successful businesses across different industries, and becoming an independent

Suzanne Burdon was the founder and first Artistic Director of the inaugural Berry Writer’s Festival. She is the author of an award-winning novel, Almost Invisible:

Ryan Butta is an Australian author of narrative nonfiction that blends original research, history and literary storytelling. He is the author of The Ballad of

Paul Callaghan is an Aboriginal man belonging to the land of the Worimi people, located on the coast of New South Wales just north of

In a working life of more than fifty years, Mike Carlton was one of Australia’s best-known media figures in radio, television and newspapers. Beginning as a cadet

Bob Carr was the longest-serving NSW Premier, and Foreign Minister in the Gillard and Rudd governments. He is the author of Thoughtlines, My Reading Life,

Clayton Zane Comber is the author of 100 Remarkable Feats of Xander Maze, published by HarperCollins in 2021 and shortlisted for the 2022 Prime Minister’s

Ed Coper is a pioneer of politics in the digital age. A leading political communications expert and authority on the internet and democracy, he built

Paul Daley is a multi-award-winning journalist and an author of nine fiction and non-fiction books. He has been a finalist in major Australian literary awards

Lisa Davies is a journalist, media executive, mentor and author, whose career began as a cadet journalist at Australian Associated Press (AAP) in 2001. She

Jessica Dettmann is author of four novels, including How To Be Second Best and This Has Been Absolutely Lovely and one book for children. She lives in Sydney, Australia,

Kate Dezarnaulds is the founder of WorkLife, an award-winning regional coworking network based in Berry and Coledale, and a passionate advocate for regional communities, social

Anna Downes is the internationally bestselling author of The Safe Place, The Shadow House, and Red River Road (shortlisted for the 2025 ABIA General Fiction

Bradley Dryburgh is a powerful voice for resilience, purpose, and hope. Living with cystic fibrosis, he has defied medical expectations, swapping hospital stays for marathon

Christine Dunstan has spent 60 years working in the Australian theatre industry and is one of the country’s most experienced independent theatre producers. Her vast

Marc Fennell is a Walkley-winning journalist, an AACTA-nominated director and one of Australia’s most recognisable documentary storytellers. He is the creator and host of the

Peter FitzSimons AM is Australia’s bestselling non-fiction writer, and for the past 39 years has also been a journalist and columnist with the Sydney Morning

Kate Forsyth is an award-winning author, poet, and oral storyteller. Her novels include The Changeling, set during Scotland’s first witch-hunt; Psykhe, a reimagining of the ancient Greek

Helena Fox is an author, poet and creative writing mentor living on Dharawal Country in Wollongong, Australia. Helena founded the Young Writers Program at the

Vanessa Fuchs grew up exploring the Australian bush at her family home in Alligator Creek, Queensland. These early adventures with a camcorder, a love of

Richard Glover’s most recent book is How to Ruin a Child – a journey into the alarming, hilarious and ever-changing advice given to Australian parents.

Madeleine Gray is a writer and critic from Sydney. Her first novel, Green Dot, was an acclaimed bestseller in Australia and the UK. In 2024,

Osher Günsberg is a best-selling author whose storytelling talent has anchored his 30-year media career (Australian Idol, The Bachelor, The Masked Singer). His new book,

Tori Haschka is the Artistic Director of Berry Writers’ Festival. She was the Associate Artistic Director in 2024 and is also the author of the

Sally Hepworth is the New York Times bestselling author of ten novels, most recently Mad Mabel. Sally’s novels have sold millions of copies worldwide and been

Kathryn Heyman is the author of seven novels as well as a memoir, a poetry collection and several dramas for stage and BBC radio. Her

Lex Hirst was the Publishing Director of Pantera Press, now an imprint at independent publishing house Hardie Grant. A publisher of award-winning, best-selling, culturally vital

Meredith Jaffé is the author of five adult novels, including The Dressmakers of Yarrandarrah Prison, which was twice voted into the Better Reading Top 100 and

Julie, a Burruberongal woman of the Darug nation, is an award-winning novelist, playwright and poet. Her novels Benevolence and Madukka the River Serpent were longlisted

Matt Jones is a lifelong advocate for the power of story. He’s a former political speechwriter turned brand strategist who co-founded and sold Australia’s leading

Toni Jordan has worked as a molecular biologist, quality control chemist, TAB operator and door-to-door aluminium siding salesperson. She is the author of the international bestseller Addition, which was longlisted

Lauren Keegan is an author and psychologist living on Dharawal and Gundungurra Country (Wollondilly, New South Wales). She has worked in perinatal and infant mental

Paul Kelly is editor-at-large and a former editor-in-chief of The Australian. He writes on Australian politics, policy, history and international relations, and has covered every

George is a writer for stage, page and screen. His critically acclaimed debut novel Soft Serve was published in February by UQP and his work

Rachel Kent is an experienced arts leader, art historian and curator with extensive experience working with international museums and cultural institutions. Prior to joining Bundanon

Natalie is an award-winning environmentalist, presenter, and charity director on a mission to spark curiosity about the natural world. She is the author of Nature’s

Antoinette Lattouf is an award-winning journalist, presenter, podcaster, author and human rights advocate whose surname has now become a verb – Lattoufed: to be sacked or silenced for

Amelia Lester is a journalist who has worked on three continents. She is deputy editor of the Washington, DC-based Foreign Policy magazine and co-host of Australia’s number one podcast, Mamamia

A storyteller at heart, Anthony Levin is an award-winning writer, broadcaster and human rights lawyer whose creative work often examines memory and trauma. He has

Siang Lu is the Miles Franklin-winning author of Ghost Cities and ABIA-winning author of The Whitewash. He is the co-creator of The Beige Index and

Nathan Luff grew up on a farm in rural NSW as one of five boys. His colourful upbringing is often the inspiration for the stories

Jacqueline Maley is a novelist, and a columnist and senior writer for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age newspapers. She has won a Walkley

Kirsty Manning grew up in northern New South Wales. A country girl with wanderlust, her travels and studies have taken her through most of Europe,

Bestselling crime author Fleur McDonald has always had a strong affinity with the land and the vast Australian outback. Raised in Orroroo, South Australia, Fleur

Paula is the author of The One Remaining, Patron and immediate past Deputy Chair of the Stella Prize, and Stella’s NSW Ambassador. She is a

Dervla McTiernan is the number-one internationally bestselling and award-winning author of seven novels, including the much-loved Cormac Reilly series and three number one bestselling standalone thrillers, The Murder

Greg Melleuish is a professorial fellow at the Menzies Institute and a fellow of Campion College.  He has written extensively on Australian political ideas, history, politics and religion,

Kate Mildenhall is the author of four novels – Skylarking, The Mother Fault, The Hummingbird Effect and The Hiding Place. The Hummingbird Effect was longlisted

Rosemarie Milsom is a literary programmer, arts leader and former journalist with 15 years’ experience shaping public conversations centred on books and ideas. As the founding director

Based in Nipaluna/Hobart, Hannah Moloney is a host on ABC TV’s Gardening Australia and best-selling author. She’s spent the past two decades getting her hands

Jennie Orchard has been involved with the world of books and publishing for more than four decades, initially in London, later in Australia and Asia

Aura Parker is a best-selling Australian children’s book author and illustrator with a distinctive voice in words and pictures. Her work is expressive, detailed, inspired

Emma Pei Yin is an Australian-Chinese writer, editor and literary advocate. Her debut novel, When Sleeping Women Wake, has been published internationally and translated into multiple languages. The novel was

Sally Rippin is a best-selling and beloved author for children with over ten million copies of her books sold around the world and translated into

Jennifer Robinson is one of the world’s most respected human rights lawyers and advocates. A barrister at Doughty Street Chambers in London, she has acted

Kirli Saunders (OAM) is a proud Gunai Woman who rarely stays in her lane. She’s an award winning multidisciplinary artist, writer, singer-songwriter and consultant. Kirli

Toby Schmitz is an actor, director and writer. He most recently appeared on stage in ‘Art’ and his first novel ‘The Empress Murders’ was published

Natasha Sholl is a writer and lapsed lawyer from Melbourne, Australia. She graduated from The University of Melbourne, majoring in Creative Writing. Her work has

Inga Simpson is one of Australia’s most beloved nature writers, known for her deep affection for trees and the landscapes they inhabit. At Berry Writers’

Kate Simpson is an engineer and acclaimed children’s author who loves fact and fiction in equal measure. Raised on a diet of classic children’s fiction,

Allison Tait (A. L. Tait) is the internationally published, bestselling author of 13 middle-grade novels, including fantasy-adventure series The Mapmaker Chronicles, The Ateban Cipher novels,

Amanda Tattersall is the co-founder of GetUp, the million-member Australian digital campaign organisation, and the founder of the Sydney Alliance, the country’s largest and most

Kate and Jol Temple are internationally awarded authors of over 40 hilarious books for kids, from smash hit picture book series Bin Chicken to action-adventure illustrated novels Mega Rich

Lenora Thaker is a Meriam and Wagedagam woman from Gimuy (Cairns). She is published in anthologies: On Butterfly Wings, 2023, and Growing up Torres Strait

Dr Amy Thunig-McGregor is a Gamilaroi writer, Research Fellow within Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research at the University of Technology Sydney, and Director

Mark Tredinnick, one of our most esteemed poets, is also a nature writer, essayist, memoirist, creative writing teacher, writing mentor, and book publisher. Once upon

Corey Tutt is a Kamilaroi man who was born on Yuin Country in Nowra on the New South Wales south coast and the author of Before

Holly Wainwright is the author of five novels including the bestselling I Give My Marriage A Year, The Couple Upstairs and He Would Never. She’s

Fiona Weir is the co-owner of Buena Vista Farm, a small mixed farm in Gerringong which operates under organic principles. She has been a dairy

Frances Whiting is one of Australia’s best known and respected writers. As national senior feature writer for News Magazines, she has won many journalism awards,

Lisa Wilkinson AM is one of Australia’s most well-known, admired and respected media identities. An early groundbreaking publishing career – Lisa was the youngest-ever editor

Kaya Wilson is a writer, tsunami scientist, and lover of all things ocean who somehow finds himself living in Canberra. Their first book, As Beautiful as

Jessy Wu is a writer and entrepreneur based in Sydney. She worked for five years in the high-stakes world of venture capital as a partner