Damian Collins, Dennis Glover, Amelia Lester Geoff Raby, Don Watson Conversation Circle: Navigating the Shifting Global Order BUY TICKETS 2025 PROGRAM < VIEW ALL PROGRAMS Conversation Circle: Navigating the Shifting Global Order DATE: Saturday 29th March LOCATION: Darley Smith Building COST: $30 A thought-provoking discussion that unpacks how pivotal political events—like the rise of autocrats and the shifting power in Eurasia—are transforming geopolitical relationships and the world order as we know it. Our expert panel will delve into the profound implications of these shifts and their drivers. Drawing on their recent books and extensive political and international experience, our panellists will offer unique insights to help make sense of a rapidly changing world. Panel: Damian Collins, Dennis Glover, Amelia Lester, Geoff Raby, Don Watson Host: Geraldine Doogue BUY TICKETS < PREVIOUS NEXT > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

29a0cd03-7330-4e44-80b8-f00a67f23b44 Texi Smith ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Texi Smith Texi Smith is a football fiction writer, reporter, and photographer with The Roar. He is also an active supporter of the Matildas, the Socceroos, and Sydney FC and a lifelong fan of Newcastle United, having grown up in the northeast of England. He still plays in an Over 45s competition, referees in a local league, and has previously coached. Away from football, Texi has an IT consultancy and is a member of the Bridge Club - a group of runners who have run ten or more Sydney Marathons. He has written six football novels, the most recent being Abebi, published in 2024. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: Reading the Game: Inspiring Young Readers through Football DATE: Sunday 30th March TIME: 12.45pm-1.45pm WITH: Niav Owens TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

355b287b-4e06-402e-81b6-7f379c578cd6 Vasiliki Nihas OAM ABOUT < VIEW ALL HOSTS Vasiliki Nihas OAM Vasiliki Nihas is a former senior executive with the Australian Public Service, with extensive experience in the cultural diversity and arts and cultural sectors. She also ran her own consulting company specialising in ethics, values, and cultural diversity issues in the public sector. She was chair of Canberra Arts Marketing for five years, the Jigsaw Theatre Company chair for seven years, and M16 Artspace for almost a decade. Previously, she served as Deputy Chair of the Cultural Council of the ACT. She was also the ACT government-appointed representative on the National Heritage Collections Council and a foundation Board member of the Cultural Facilities Corporation (CFC). She is also a former member of the Immigration Review Tribunal. Vasiliki has published a book of short stories and her work has appeared in several anthologies of Greek-Australian women writers in both English and Greek. < PREVIOUS HOST NEXT HOST > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

bded4d4f-ee4c-4cf5-9182-45f914fc195a Lia Hills ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Lia Hills Lia Hills is an award-winning poet, novelist and translator, whose work has been published and translated around the world. Her novels have been nominated for numerous awards, including the Miles Franklin and the NZ Book Awards. Her latest novel, The Desert Knows Her Name, was written in consultation with the Barengi Gadgin Land Council and other Wimmera communities. Lia narrated the first draft using speech-recognition software during two weeks spent in an old farmhouse on the edge of Wyperfeld National Park. Other works include The Crying Place, the possibility of flight, her translation of Marie Darrieussecq’s internationally-acclaimed novel Tom is Dead, and Balit Bagurrk: Strong Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women of the Yarra Ranges, of which Lia was co-editor. She lives and works on Wurundjeri Country. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: Reflections: Dispossession of Your Land DATE: Saturday 29th March TIME: 12.10pm-1.10pm WITH: Isabella Higgins TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

722d2ce8-c2d4-4a3e-8800-0382e45f3909 Jumaana Abdu ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Jumaana Abdu Jumaana Abdu is a Dal Stivens Award winner and an alumnus of the Wheeler Centre Next Chapter program. Her work features in Thyme Travellers (Roseway Publishing), an international anthology of Palestinian speculative fiction. She has been published elsewhere in Kill Your Darlings, Westerly, Griffith Review, Meanjin, Liminal, Overland, Debris and New Australian Fiction 2024. During the day, she is a medical doctor. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: Reflections: Conflict in the Home of Your Heart DATE: Saturday 29th March TIME: 09.30am-10.30am WITH: Antony Loewenstein TICKETS WHAT: Breaking the Mould: Women, Medicine, and the Power of Storytelling DATE: Saturday 29th March TIME: 1.30pm-2.30pm WITH: Charlotte Rimmer TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

95866083-325d-4a36-9f29-8473fa0690af Tracey Croke ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Tracey Croke Tracey Croke is a Sydney based freelance journalist who covers, travel, adventure, culture, sports and health, along with global gallivants on her mountain bike. Her writing and photography is published in The Guardian, BBC, Telegraph (UK) and a raft of adventure and mountain bike publications. Tracey is also a contributing author to Ride: Cycle The World (DK Penguin Random House). According to ChatGPT, she has authored two books, but that's codswallop. Tracey is best known for writing upbeat, mindful features about adventurous and immersive experiences. She has followed ancient elephant-migration trails on a mountain bike safari in Botswana, walked a peace trail in Palestine, trekked with nomadic tribes in Afghanistan and was on the first mountain-bike traverse of Kyrgyzstan’s Talas Range. Tracey won the 2024 Kennedy Award (Outstanding Travel Writing category) for her feature about a night out on Sydney’s iconic Oxford St strip with drag queen Kiama Blowhole. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: "I haven't been everywhere, but it is on my list." (Susan Sontag) DATE: Saturday 29th March TIME: 2.50pm-3.50pm WITH: Rananda Rich TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

0f9ca455-2797-421f-b4a2-1bf752bff057 Shireen Morris ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Shireen Morris Shireen Morris is an associate professor at Macquarie University Law School and director of its Radical Centre Reform Lab. She formerly worked at Cape York Institute as a senior adviser on Indigenous constitutional recognition. Her previous books include A Rightful Place, Radical Heart and Statements from the Soul. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: Reflections: Dispossession of Your Land DATE: Saturday 29th March TIME: 12.10pm-1.10pm WITH: Isabella Higgins TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

3c9ee47e-950a-4104-9d40-b23ccb455849 Niav Owens ABOUT < VIEW ALL HOSTS Niav Owens Niav Owens has been a sports broadcaster in Australia and globally for over a decade, specialising in football. She was one of the three main hosts for the coverage of the Women’s World Cup 2023 on Optus Sport and is part of the Network 10 and Paramount Plus coverage of A-Leagues and international matches. Additionally, she hosts a Sunday night panel show that covers all things Women’s Football, streaming on 10Plus for the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). Before 2020, Niav was the host of ABC’s flagship sports program, National Grandstand, on ABC Radio and the Invictus Games on ABC TV. < PREVIOUS HOST NEXT HOST > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

584cd65d-b6a2-4bec-8263-e29a5af118ef Sarah Martin ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Sarah Martin Sarah Martin is a perioperative nurse, mental health advocate, a carer peer worker and a peer ambassador for Sane Australia. Her mission and passion is to break the silence and stigma of all mental health concerns, which is why she wrote Dear Psychosis, her first book, a narrative non-fiction about a family’s journey with mental health, psychosis, bipolar and depression. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: Bipolar Journeys: Stories Of Strength, Struggle, And Self-Discovery DATE: Friday 28th March TIME: 2.00pm-3.00pm WITH: Suzanne Leal TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

611ed6f6-866d-4009-a46e-8a35a578277e David Dufty ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS David Dufty David Dufty is a Canberra-based writer and researcher. He completed a psychology degree with honours at the University of Newcastle, has a PhD in psychology from Macquarie University, and has worked as a statistician and social researcher at the University of Memphis, Newspoll, and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. His previous book, How to Build an Android, described modern developments in robotics and artificial intelligence. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: Before the NBN and Snowy 2.0 DATE: Saturday 29th March TIME: 09.30am-10.30am WITH: TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

d04b302d-0901-4442-8304-9aa497bb6890 Deborah Pike ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Deborah Pike Deborah Pike was born in Zimbabwe, moved to Hong Kong as a child and grew up in Perth. She has a PhD from the University of Sydney and now teaches literature at UNDA Sydney campus. She is a winner of an Australian Government Award for University Teaching. Deborah has travelled widely, living in Paris for several years, where she held positions at Shakespeare & Company Bookstore, the OECD, the University of Paris VII and the Paris Institute of Political Studies. Deborah is the author of the monograph The Subversive Art of Zelda Fitzgerald. Her debut Novel, The Players, was released in 2024. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: Creative Lives In Fiction: Stories Of Love, Ambition And Self-Discovery DATE: Sunday 30th March TIME: 10.00am-11.00am WITH: Summer Land TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.

e25543b1-0d6f-4539-a664-751ebc003dab Helen Hayes ABOUT < VIEW ALL AUTHORS Helen Hayes Helen Hayes is a travel writer and guide who has been in the media since 1977, spending many years in radio – on- and off-air, with her most enjoyable role being the helicopter traffic reporter for 2UE, almost a decade as a researcher on the Great Outdoors travel show on Channel Seven and over 20 years working as an editor on high profile magazines such as Vacations & Travel and Holidays with Kids, as well as contributing to other magazines and newspapers including the Australian Financial Review, Escape, Explore, and Signature Luxury, Travel & Style. Helen also sub-edits several magazines. Helen has won several awards, and been a finalist in others. PROGRAM SESSIONS WHAT: "I haven't been everywhere, but it is on my list." (Susan Sontag) DATE: Saturday 29th March TIME: 2.50pm-3.50pm WITH: Rananda Rich TICKETS < PREVIOUS AUTHOR NEXT AUTHOR > ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The Manly Writers' Festival acknowledges and thanks the original storytellers on the lands on which our events take place, the Gameraygal people of the Eora Nation. We acknowledge and respect their continuing connection and culture, and we pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present, as well as emerging leaders.