Ready to stab the page? The 32nd Scarlet Stiletto Awards are now open!
Crime-fiend storytellers, sharpen your pens – Australia’s top short story competition for women’s crime fiction is back! The 32nd Scarlet Stiletto Awards, hosted by Sisters in Crime, is open for entries until 31 August 2025, with more than $13,000 in prize money up for grabs. There’s also a special Young Writer prize for creators under 19.
Stories must be 5,000 words or fewer, feature a strong female protagonist, and be written by an Australian-resident woman (cis, trans or intersex).
Now for the juicy bit: past winners have used this comp as a launchpad into publishing, with 34 alumni – including Tara Moss, Angela Savage, Anna Snoekstra and Dervla McTiernan – going on to publish full-length novels. Finalists will be celebrated at a fabulous ceremony in Melbourne this November. So if your notebook is full of clever crimes or delicious revenge plots, this might be the sign you’ve been waiting for.
AWC alumni Astrid Scholte’s Fallen Beauty scores a six-figure, two-book deal
Huge news for Aussie YA author and AWC alumni Astrid Scholte … her upcoming novel Fallen Beauty has just been snapped up by Wednesday Books in a six-figure, two-book deal set to kick off in late 2026. The book is a dark fantasy about an 18-year-old girl who’s spent her life locked in a tower mastering a dangerous gift, only to be thrown into a corrupt court in a kingdom plagued by death. Yes please!
Astrid shared the milestone on Instagram, beaming with the kind of joy that never gets old – even after five book deals. “As an aspiring author, I would read book announcements with so much hope… the excitement never gets old,” she wrote. We. Can’t, Wait!
Visit Astrid’s Instagram here.
Poetry Month 2025 leaps off the page and across Australia
Red Room Poetry is back with Poetry Month in August 2025, shining a spotlight on Australian poets and language play in every corner of the country – and yes, online too. This year's Ambassadors include big names like Stan Grant, Suren Jayemanne, Luke Davies, DOBBY, Leah Senior, Nyaluak Leth and Julia Baird, blending journalism, comedy, music, screenwriting and spoken word to bring flavour and diversity to celebrations.
Expect a packed month of happenings: live showcases in Tassie, WA, Byron Bay, Sydney and beyond, including highlights such as “Art After Hours: Ekphrastic Fantastic” (6 Aug), the playful “Hatred of Poetry” debate (14 Aug), and the grand National Poetry Month Gala at the State Library of NSW (28 Aug). Alongside the events is the inspiring 30in30 project – daily commissioned poems, prompts, reflections and prize‑winning writing prompts from leading voices like Amy Crutchfield, Evelyn Araluen, Nam Le and more.
How to nail your opening
Forbes recently dug into one of the most magical parts of writing – the all-important first line. In “15 Of The Most Famous First Sentences Across Literature,” Toni Fitzgerald highlights iconic opening lines from classics like *Pride and Prejudice*, *One Hundred Years of Solitude*, *1984* and *Moby‑Dick*, showing how a single sentence can set the tone and carry the story for an entire novel.
Whether it delivers universal truths, unsettling intrigue or quirky character glimpses, your first line may just make or break whether readers fall head-first into your story.
Read the Forbes article here.
Champions: Wylah the Koorie Warrior 4 is here!
AWC Alumni Richard Pritchard and his co-author Jordan Gould have just released the thrilling fourth instalment of their middle-grade fantasy series: Champions: Wylah the Koorie Warrior 4. In this adventure, Wylah and her trusty megafauna companions are whisked into a world packed with epic challenges, high stakes and unforgettable twists.
Richard shared how far his story has come since the first book, reflecting on his transition from a visual-effects artist (on films like Happy Feet and Mad Max) to award-winning children’s author. Co-written with Peek Whurrong cultural custodian Jordan Gould – with full cultural endorsement from local Aboriginal elders – the series continues to spotlight First Nations stories with heart, humour and wonder
