Anna Broinowski

Anna Broinowski is a filmmaker and writer who documents counter-cultural subjects. Her most recent non-fiction book, Datsun Angel: A True-Story Adventure Inside the Savage Heart of 1980s Australia, was published in March this year. Anna's globally screened films include Hell Bento!! (about Japanese subcultures), Forbidden Lie$ (about hoax-author Norma Khouri), Helen's War (about anti-nuclear crusader Dr Helen Caldicott) and Aim High In Creation! (about North Korean cinema). She has won a Walkley and other gongs but Anna's favourite is the Moscow Film Critic's prize, a carved elephant with a hole in its back for burning bad reviews. A senior lecturer at Sydney University, Anna researches propaganda and deepfakes. Her previous books are Please Explain: The Rise, Fall and Rise Again of Pauline Hanson and The Director is the Commander.

Ryan Butta

Ryan Butta's first book, The Ballad of Abdul Wade: The Incredible True Story of the Afghan Cameleers, was long-listed for the Indie Non-Fiction Book of the Year Award, 2023. His feature writing has appeared in the Good Weekend magazine, and he is a regular contributor to Galah Press. Ryan's works of historical non-fiction look to reveal and understand the hidden and forgotten stories of Australia, and the Australians who came across the seas to make their home here.

Ryan now lives on Dharawal country, on the NSW South Coast.

Sonia Henry

Sonia Henry is a GP and author. Her memoir, Put Your Feet in the Dirt, Girl: A City Doctor Goes Bush, recounts her experiences working as a doctor in some of the remotest parts of Australia. She is passionate about the welfare of doctors and in 2017 wrote an anonymous article titled, "There is something rotten inside the medical profession", that went viral worldwide. She is a council member of the Medical Benevolent Association of NSW which advocates for doctors in distress. She is also a champion for remote medicine and health equity for people who live out of metropolitan Australia, and for First Nations health.

She grew up on a farm in Jamberoo.

Suzanne Leal

Suzanne Leal is the author of novels The Watchful Wife, The Teacher’s Secret and The Deceptions, and winner of the Nib People’s Choice Prize. Her debut novel for junior readers, Running with Ivan, is a 2024 CBCA Notable Book for Younger Readers and was shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s History Awards, and the ARA Historical Novel Prize.

A lawyer experienced in child protection, criminal law and refugee law, Suzanne is an experienced facilitator at community, corporate and literary events. She is the founder of Thursday Book Club, a relaxed book club, connecting readers online.