Stories That Must Be Spoken: 10 Voices That Australia Needs to Hear Right Now
- Words by Peppermint
above COURTESY OF WORD TRAVELS
Launched on Sunday, Story Week 2023 is a celebration of “great writing powerfully performed”, bringing together spoken word performers, poets, hip hop artists and storytellers in live events all across Sydney. Inspired by this year’s theme of ‘Be Heard – Be Seen’, nearly 100 writers and thinkers will share stories on everything from colonisation and social justice to bookish inspiration and celebrating the strengths in vulnerability.
For the festival’s creative director, Miles Merrill, Story Week 2023 is not just about the voices of the performers, it’s also a reminder that we all have our own stories to tell.
“Story Week embraces all the ways we are heroes in our own narratives,” he says. “This is your space to fill and listen to others pour their words into your ears; gestures into your eyes.”
above MILES MERRILL, PHOTO COURTESY OF WORD TRAVELS
As Story Week 2023 events kick off, we caught up with Miles – who is also a writer and performer – and asked him to select 10 artists from this year’s lineup (not an easy task with so much talent on display) and tell us in his own words why he thinks they are the voices needed to be heard in Australia right now.
left NAZEEM HUSSAIN BY NICKMICKPICS right BEBE BACKHOUSE-OLIVER COURTESY OF WORD TRAVELS
NAZEEM HUSSAIN
Everything Nazeem Hussain creates – Legally Brown, Orange is the New Brown – is hilarious, hard-hitting and prolific. He’s Australia’s king of satirical comedy, constantly forcing people to ask themselves questions like, “Am I racist?” while also code-switching to write kids’ books.
BEBE BACKHOUSE-OLIVER
Bebe Backhouse-Oliver is a descendant of the Bardi Jawi people. Writer, poet, illustrator and speaker, Bebe is also co-chairperson of Blak and Bright First Nations Literary Festival, and a board director of Magabala Books, Australia’s leading Indigenous publishing house.
left DYLIN HARDCASTLE BY LUCY ZAROYKO right HANNAH DIVINEY BY JULIE ADAMS
DYLIN HARDCASTLE
Dylin Hardcastle is a trans, non-binary author working on their fourth novel, with two television shows in development and they are still under 30.
HANNAH DIVINEY
Hannah Diviney pushes big power – think Disney and Beyonce – to see her and others with disabilities with respect while being a creative writer, actor, editor and speaker.
READ MORE: “SEIZE THIS MOMENT”: WOMEN FROM 20 TO 70 SHARE STORIES OF REVOLUTION
left LUKE PATTERSON BY GRANT GRIBBLE right SOLLI RAPHAEL BY JAMES MORGAN PHOTOGRAPHY
LUKE PATTERSON
Gamilaroi poet Luke Patterson curates the Story Week First Nations program while spinning his own poems and playing the violin.
SOLLI RAPHAEL
After winning the Australian Poetry Slam at age 12, Solli Raphael has published three books with Penguin, performed at the Commonwealth Games, done a TEDx talk and set up his own climate change NFP. He’s 18.
left NICOLE SMEDE COURTESY OF WORD TRAVELS right LEILA MANSOUR BY TOM TOBY
NICOLE SMEDE
Not many artists are composers, multi-instrumentalists, poets and event producers, but First Nations artist Nicole Smede is that rare cross-disciplinary powerhouse.
LEILA MANSOUR
Lebanese poet, spoken word artist and fiction writer Leila Mansour is the 2022 Sydney Poetry Slam champion who performs across multiple stages while also completing a medical degree.
left JO YANG COURTESY OF WORD TRAVELS right MADISON GODFREY BY LOUISE COGHILL
JO YANG
2022 Australian Poetry Slam champion Jo Yang roars her poetry on stage while being a high school teacher in Tennant Creek in the middle of outback NT. She’ll be representing Australia in Rio at the Word Poetry Slam Championships this year.
MADISON GODFREY
Multi-award-winning writer and performer, Madison Godfrey is an Australian Poetry Slam national finalist whose debut poetry book Dress Rehearsals has been rocking great reviews since publication in early 2023.
Story Week 2023: Be Heard – Be Seen is on Sunday 1 October until Sunday 8 October at venues all over Sydney. For more information and to buy your tickets visit wordtravels.info
JOIN OUR MAILING LIST
Brighten up your inbox with our not-too-frequent emails featuring Peppermint-related news, events, competitions and more!
explore
More articles
Look, I don’t want to make anyone panic but IT’S DECEMBER!!! If you’re planning to give homemade gifts, you’re going to have to act fast. …
Hang out with us on Instagram
🌻 The Paddington 🌻
This is a much-loved staple, created for Issue 50 in 2021. We love seeing the #PeppermintPaddingtonTop continually popping up in our feeds!
How stunning is our model Elon MelaninGoddessEfon – she told us it was one of the first times she had been asked to come to a shoot with her natural hair. 🌻
We worked with South African patternmaker Sarah Steenkamp of @FrenchNavyNow_ to create this wardrobe essential – the perfect puff-sleeve blouse. Raglan sleeves make it the ultimate beginner sew, plus the gorgeous back buttons let you add your own personal twist.
Pattern via the link in bio! 🪡
Photos: @KelleySheenan
Fabric: @Spoonflower
Model: MelaninGoddessEfon
“In the 1940’s, Norwegians made and wore red pointed hats with a tassel as a form of visual protest against Nazi occupation of their country. Within two years, the Nazis made these protest hats illegal and punishable by law to wear, make, or distribute. As purveyors of traditional craft, we felt it appropriate to revisit this design.”
Crafters have often been at the heart of many protest movements, often serving as a powerful means of political expression. @NeedleAndSkein, a yarn store in Minnesota, are helping to mobilise the craftivists of the world with a ‘Melt The Ice’ knitting pattern created by @Yarn_Cult (with a crochet pattern too), as a way of peaceful protest.
The proceeds from the $5 pattern will go to local immigrant aid organisations – or you can donate without buying the pattern.
Raise those needles, folks – art and craft can change the world. 🧶
Link in bio for the pattern.
Images: @Gather_Fiber @NeedleAndSkein @a2ina2 @KyraGiggles Sandi.204 @WhatTracyMakes AllieKnitsAway Auntabwi2
#MeltTheIce #Craftivism #Knitting #CraftForChange
TWO WEEKS TO GO! 🤩
"The most important shift is moving from volume-led buying to value-led curation – choosing fewer, better products with strong ethics, considered production and meaningful stories. Retailers have real influence here: what you buy signals what you stand for. At Life Instyle, this means using the event to discover and invest in small-scale, planet-considerate brands that align with your values and your customer’s conscience. Consumers don’t need more things; they need better things, and retailers play a key role in selecting, contextualising, and championing why those products matter."
Only two more weeks until @Life_Instyle – Australia`s leading boutique retail trade show. If you own a store, don`t miss this event! Connect with designers, source exquisite – and mindful – products, and see firsthand why this is Australia’s go-to trade show for creatives and retailers alike. And it`s free! ✨️
Life Instyle – Sydney/Eora Country
14-17 February 2026
ICC, Darling Harbour
Photos: @Samsette
#LifeInstyle #SustainableShopping #SustainableShop #RetailTradeEvent
Calling all sewists! 📞
Have you made the Peppermint Waratah Wrap Dress yet? Call *1800 I NEED THIS NOW to get making!
This gorgeous green number was modelled (and made) by the fabulous Lisa of @Tricky.Pockets 🙌🏼
If you need a nudge, @ePrintOnline are offering Peppermint sewists a huge 🌟 30% off ALL A0 printing 🌟 when you purchase the Special Release Waratah Wrap Dress pattern – how generous is that?!
Head to the link in bio now 📞
*Not a real number in case that wasn`t clear 😂
#PeppermintWaratahWrapDress #PeppermintPatterns #SewingPattern #WrapDress #WrapDressPattern
8 Things to Know About January 26 - from @ClothingTheGaps:
Before you celebrate, take the time to learn the truth. January 26 is not a day of unity it’s a Day of Mourning and Survival for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
It marks the beginning of invasion, dispossession, and ongoing colonial violence. It’s time for truth-telling, not whitewashed history.
Stand in solidarity. Learn. Reflect. Act.
✊🏽 Blog written by Yorta Yorta woman Taneshia Atkinson.
🔗 Link in bio of @ClothingTheGaps to read the full blog
#ChangeTheDate #InvasionDay #SurvivalDay #AlwaysWasAlwaysWillBe #ClothingTheGaps
As the world careens towards AI seeping into our feeds, finds and even friend-zones, it`s becoming increasingly hard to ignore.
We just wanted to say that here at Peppermint, we are choosing to not print or publish AI-generated art, photos, words, videos or content.
Merriam-Webster’s human editors chose `slop` as the 2025 Word of the Year – they define it as “digital content of low quality that is produced usually in quantity by means of artificial intelligence.” The problem is, as AI increases in quality, it`s becoming more and more difficult to ascertain what`s real and what`s not.
Let`s be clear here, AI absolutely has its place in science, in climate modelling, in medical breakthroughs, in many places... but not in replacing the work of artists, writers and creatives.
Can we guarantee that everything we publish is AI-free? Honestly, not really. We know we are not using it to create content, but we are also relying on the artists, makers and contributors we work with, as well as our advertisers, to supply imagery, artwork or words created by humans. AI features are also creeping into programs and apps too, making it difficult to navigate. But we will do our best to avoid it and make a stand for the artists and creatives who have had their work stolen and used to train AI machines, and those who are now losing work as they are replaced by this energy-sapping, environment-destroying magic wand.
Could using it help our productivity and bottom line? Sure. And as a small business in a difficult landscape, that`s a hard one to turn down. We know other publishers who use AI to write stories, create recipes, produce photo shoots... but this one is important to us.
`Touch grass` was also a Merriam-Webster Word of the Year. We`ll happily stick with that as a theme, thanks very much. 🌿
