Next date: Thursday, 31 July 2025 | 06:00 PM to 07:00 PM
From the initial spark of inspiration to the final edits, hear from debut authors Joanna Miller, Chloe Adams and Michelle See-Tho as they speak to Penguin Random House publisher Meredith Curnow on their unique journeys to publication including both the challenges and triumphs of bringing a book to life. Whether you're a devoted reader or an aspiring author, this event offers an opportunity to hear from those who have successfully published their first novels in the past year and ask your own questions of the process. Joanna Miller's book, "The Eights", was released in April 2025 and follows the unlikely friendship of four of the first ever women to study at Oxford University: a captivating debut novel about sisterhood, self-determination, courage, and what it means to come of age in a world that has changed forever. Joanna studied English at Oxford University and, after a decade in education, set up an award-winning poetry gift business. Her rhyming verse has been filmed twice by the BBC. Joanna recently graduated from Oxford again, with a diploma in creative writing. Joanna is based in the UK, so will be a long way from home! Chloe Adam's manuscript for "The Occupation" won the Penguin Literary Prize in 2024 and will be released in July 2025. It tells the story of a young woman who travels to Japan in 1948 as part of the Allied occupation force. While there, she is confronted with moral ambiguity and the consequences of her own transgressions. Chloe is a widely published journalist who holds a master's degree in creative writing and a graduate certificate of international and community development. Her love of literature was shaped by her mother, an actress, playwright and passionate second-hand bookstore owner. Michelle See-Tho's novel, "Jade and Emerald" won the 2023 Penguin Literary Prize and was released in July 2024. It is a fierce and deeply felt novel about the joys and pains of growing up, of accepting who you are and where you come from. Michelle is a freelance writer and copywriter. She has had articles and stories published in "Kill Your Darlings", "Meanjin", "Overland" and "The Big Issue Fiction Edition". Meredith Curnow publishes fiction and non-fiction at Penguin Random House. She chairs the editorial advisory group for the Australian Publishers Association and is a member of the board of Varuna – The National Writers’ House. Books will be available for sale on the night.
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