Queerstories

Lian grapples with the anxiety of meeting a partner's mother for the first time. Lian Low is a writer of fiction and non-fiction. From 2009-2016, Lian was an editor and a board member of  Peril .  Lian is a recipient of The Wheeler Centre's inaugural  Next Chapter scheme  and currently working on a young adult speculative fiction novel.   Queerstories is an LGBTQI+ st...

When Samuel was a kid, the fact his mother was a sex therapist embarrassed him. Now that's he's a grown up, he's so proud of her he wants to talk about it on stage. Samuel Leighton-Dore is a multidisciplinary artist and writer based on the Gold Coast. Sam writes for SBS Life and produces work spanning ceramics, LED neon, illustration, animation and painting. His book of illustrations,  How To...

Sandy reflects on their research into museums, the gays and the gaze, and their place in academia as a queer Indigenous person. Associate Professor Sandy O'Sullivan is a Wiradjuri academic, researcher and creative practitioner. Their research and teaching include queer studies, art and design, built environment, music, performance, and cultural representation, with a particular focus on First Nati...

From home insemination to pregnant dating on Tinder, Holly explores the difficulties of achieving an orgasm as a solo parent by choice. Holly lives with her wild toddler in a log cabin in the bush. She's a filmmaker, freelance writer, performer, and smutty spoken word artist, and is the coordinator of Rainbow Families Queensland. Queerstories is an LGBTQI+ storytelling night programmed by Maeve Ma...

A story about the haunting nature of settler-colonialism and the importance of attending to the memories of ghosts. Natalie Ironfield belongs to the Dharug Nation and has been living on Wurundjeri land since 2013. Natalie is a Lecturer and Tutor at The University of Melbourne, teaching across disciplines of Indigenous studies, criminology and political science. Natalie is a photographer and wannab...

Joan Westenberg talks about her journey to becoming a writer, by overcoming a speech impediment and finding a voice of her own. Joan Westenberg is a Sydney based tech writer. She has been published in Inc.com, the SF Chronicle, Observer, The Saturday Paper, The Big Smoke, Crikey and over 40 other publications. Joan is the author of an open source transgender inclusion policy in use by multiple tec...

Anton remembers his childhood growing up in Durban, South Africa, and reflects on the lessons he learnt from the local drag queens. Anton Enus has been a news broadcaster for three and a half decades. He has worked as a news reporter, producer and presenter on two continents. He has been on assignment to numerous African states, including Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since...

Shaun reflects on their history, on the Hijra community and Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, on colonialism, genocide and queer authenticity. Shaun D'Souza is a Brisbane based youth worker and LGBTIQ+ artivist, as well as a firm enthusiast of naps, books and tea. Shaun is often found dabbling in social artivism via visual media and spoken word poetry. Their current projects include tackling t...

Andrew tells the tale of the search for his birth mother while juggling the effects of HIV,  the demands of drug trials and the perils of microfiche. Andrew has had a long career in social work and pursuing social justice. For eight years, he headed up the first cross London program to support people living with HIV to go back to work, coordinating the support provided by multiple HIV organis...

An update on Queerstories in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. With love, from Maeve See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kristian shares an homage to his mother, his greatest ally as a young boy growing up in Western Sydney. Kristian Reyes is a queer, wog, socialist who grew up south of the Gong. For paid labour, he works in the anti-violence sector and has worked across Sydney in education and youth health for the past 13 years. During this time, he has also volunteered with Twenty10, the Gay and Lesbian Counsellin...

Last year, Eloise rebooted one of the longest running transgender newsletters in Australia - Polare. She reflects on her expectations, what she learnt about her community's history, and whether you really can fight nazis with newsletters. Eloise Brook is a writer, advocate and academic. Her current research projects include; trans people in public health and developing models for media representat...

Three years before she transitioned genders, Cadance was a fat, depressed guy buying weed from bikie gangs and nursing a near killer blood clot. Then came a surprising chat. Cadance Bell is a writer and filmmaker. Her new documentary film The Rainbow Passage, a co-production with Screen Australia, airs next year on Channel Ten. The film, which Cady also directed, follows her and her wiggly bottome...

Felicity considers the stories from her life she could share, but ultimately decides to make her slam poetry debut at Queerstories. Felicity Nicol is an award-winning director. Since graduating from NIDA, her career highlights include directing at The Sydney Opera House, creating a one-on-one performance for audiences in a moving car, directing a non-verbal performative memorial via clowning, beer...

Hajer grew up with fairytales and fantasies, but adullt life brings its own adventures, with speakeasy bars, class exchanges and one confused baby queer.  Hajer is an emerging writer and performer. From short stories to essays to plays, her work flirts with themes of womanhood particularly within Arab diaspora identity formation. She is currently interrogating and experimenting with feminine...

A story of love, loss, and lifelong wounds. Amy Middleton is a Melbourne-based journalist and founder of Archer Magazine . Amy has written and edited for dozens of magazines, produced radio for 3CR and Joy FM, and been nominated for Young Australian of the Year. She also plays AFL footy and collects interesting editions of Alice in Wonderland. Queerstories is an LGBTQI+ storytelling night programm...

A morality tale, or perhaps a fairytale, about Sydney, self-love and manhunt.com AJ Lamarque is a Sydney-based Queer comedian who's performed across Sydney including a solo show, ‘Queerly Beloved', and appearances at a bunch of variety nights. With a mission to increase queer voices in the comedy scene AJ produces popular, queer-storytelling podcast Dungeons & Drag Kweens and the regular...

Fiona Wright ponders the reasons people never seem to know she's queer. Fiona Wright is a writer, editor and critic. Her book of essays Small Acts of Disappearance won the 2016 Kibble Award and the Queensland Literary Award for non-fiction. Her poetry collections are Knuckled , which won the 2012 Dame Mary Gilmore Award, and Domestic Interior, which was shortlisted for the 2018 Prime Minister's Li...

Alison Whittaker pens a queer Aboriginal love letter to Barnaby Joyce and long-standing Gunnedah haven, the Chip Inn. Alison Whittaker is a Gomeroi writer and lawyer born and raised in Gunnedah. She is Senior Researcher at the Jumbunna Institute. From 2017-18, she was a Fulbright recipient at Harvard Law, where she was Dean's Scholar in Race, Gender and Criminal Law. Alison's latest book, BLAKWORK...

Mystery reflects on her family history, on the power of DNA and on her relationship with her mother. Mystery Carnage has recently made the smelter change and moved to Port Kembla with her partner Nellie and cat Queenie. After working at Apple for 5 years and as a graphic artist for 20 years before that, she now spends a fair amount of time gardening, doing woodwork or at ALDI and Bunnings. She was...

Comedian Kirsty Webeck remembers the heady days of high school. Kirsty Webeck entered the Australian comedy circuit in 2013 in an unconventional way. After doing a five minute set at the end of a comedy workshop she, having never heard of an open mic room, launched straight into writing and performing a full length show. She's a regular guest on ABC radio and in 2018, she was the featured comedian...

A teenage Nina Oyama tries her hand at assimilating into white North Shore culture in Sydney. It doesn't work out. Nina Oyama is a stand up comic, writer, actress and worm girl who needs you and loves you and will hold you in her arms, upon request. She has performed all around Australia and has written for radio, stage and TV. She was a writer on Tonightly with Tom Ballard, appeared as Courtney o...

When you have a nemesis, you seek revenge via whatever means you can - according to Patrick Lenton, that's queer culture. Patrick Lenton is a writer and author based in Sydney. He is the Editor of Junkee, and has published a book of short stories called A Man Made Entirely of Bats and a book of essays called Uncle Hercules and Other Lies. Queerstories is an LGBTQI+ storytelling night programmed by...

Roz ponders that great modern conundrum: the problematic fave. Roz Bellamy is a freelance writer, researcher, and educator. Their work has appeared in Archer Magazine, The Big Issue, Daily Life, Huffington Post, Junkee, Kill Your Darlings, Meanjin, and SBS. They won the Stonnington Prize for Poetry in 2016 and their memoir writing was shortlisted for the Scribe Nonfiction Prize. You can read their...

Bastian is trying to understand why they keep taking photos of the stove. So, they decide to write about it. Bastian Fox Phelan is a writer, musician and zinemaker who lives in Newcastle on the land of the Awabakal people. They were shortlisted for the 2017 Scribe Nonfiction Prize, their writing has been published in The Lifted Brow, Runway, Scum Magazine and Tincture Journal, and they're currentl...