About In Conversation with Jennifer Down
About
Join the Centre for Critical and Creative Writing (CCCW) for a thought provoking conversation between UQ's own Associate Professor Stephen Carleton and acclaimed Australian author, Jennifer Down, as they discuss what recovery in the arts means to them.
As the 2022 winner of the prestigious Miles Franklin Award for her novel, Bodies of Light, Jennifer Down is one of the most exciting voices in contemporary Australian literature. Her work explores trauma, mental health, and the search for connection. Hear her thoughts on writing and publishing under pandemic conditions, what post-pandemic recovery looks like, and what recovery means for her on the personal level as a writer who traverses difficult and sometimes harrowing content in her novels.
This event is part of our mission at the CCCW to make UQ the best place in Australia to become a writer or to think critically about writing that makes a difference in the world. We are committed to bringing the nation's best writers to UQ, and this event kicks off what we hope will be an annual engagement with the Miles Franklin Prize and its shortlistees and prize winners. This is a not-to-be-missed opportunity for anyone interested in the craft of writing and the power of storytelling.
Join us for drinks and canapés and be part of the conversation.
Venue: The Terrace Room, Level 6, Sir Llew Edwards Building (14), UQ St Lucia
Date: Tuesday 23 May, 2023.
Time: 5.45pm for 6–7pm, drinks and canapés 7–8pm
RSVP: FREE (registration required)
Speakers
Jennifer Down is an acclaimed Australian author who has published three books, with her latest novel Bodies of Light receiving the Miles Franklin Literary Award in 2022. Two-time winner of the Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Australian Novelist award, her works have appeared in numerous publications including the Australian Book Review, the Saturday Paper, the Age, The Griffith Review, Literary Hub and more.
Associate Professor Stephen Carleton, School of Communication and Arts at The University of Queensland and Chair of the Centre for Critical and Creative Writing, is a Brisbane-based playwright and academic. Stephen has won the Griffin Theatre Award (2015) for The Turquoise Elephant, the Matilda Award for Best New Australian Play (2017) for Bastard Territory, and the Patrick White Playwrights’ Award (2005) and New Dramatists’ Award (2006) for Constance Drinkwater and the Final Days of Somerset.