5 fascinating Australian literary podcasts – from biographers’ tales to Luke Bateman
By Caitlin Macdonald, Researcher, School of Art, Communication and English, University of Sydney ·
This article was originally published by The Conversation. Author: Caitlin Macdonald, Researcher, School of Art, Communication and English, University of Sydney.
Books may be solitary, but reading rarely is. Literary culture has always depended on conversation in the form of book clubs, university, festival and bookshop events, and spirited conversations with friends. Literary podcasts – both accessible and surprisingly intimate – have become one of the most vibrant places for these conversations.
These five Australian podcasts approach literature from very different angles.
In one, two novelists have an unfiltered chat about the same book, with special guests. Another is a deep dive into Tasmania’s literary culture. Others focus on short fiction, biography and the reading life.
Hosts range from novelist Tony Birch to books influencer Luke Bateman and former ABC arts journalist Caroline Baum. And surprising guests include Louise Milligan on The First Stone and Bri Lee on short fiction. Together, they demonstrate the depth and diversity of Australia’s contemporary literary scene.
1. He Read She Read
In classic literary podcast style, Melbourne crime writer J.P. Pomare and novelist Sarah Bailey read the same book and discuss it together, in He Read She Read. Fortunately, the execution is much more interesting than the concept might suggest!
Pomare and Bailey have an easy rapport, giving episodes the feel of a particularly intelligent book club. (It reminded me of Dominic Sandbrook and Tabitha Syrett’s The Book Club, and Sophie Gee and Jonty Claypole’s Secret Life of Books). Their talks are conversational: they aren’t afraid to admit when a book doesn’t appeal. A recent discussion of Frank Herbert’s Dune opens with the confession that one host failed to finish it, prompting a fantastic conversation about literary reputation and reader expectations.
Often, discussions springboard into broader cultural debate. An episode on Helen Garner’s The First Stone, featuring investigative journalist Louise Milligan, explores Garner’s place in the Australian literary landscape, questions of gender and power, and the lingering controversies surrounding one of Australia’s most debated works of nonfiction.
Some other podcasts offer more formal literary criticism. But He Read She Read succeeds because it captures the pleasure of serious readers thinking aloud, unfiltered, together.
2. Unfolded
Unfolded may be the most unusual podcast on this list. As the hosts, creative writing academic Seth Robinson and award-winning novelist Tony Birch, put it, listeners “hear the stories, then go to the source”. Produced through the University of Melbourne’s Public Humanities Initiative, each episode pairs a contemporary short story with a conversation with its author. It explores where the story came from and the questions it seeks to address.
Because listeners encounter the story before the conversation, the discussion remains grounded in a shared reading experience, rather than drifting into promotion. The result feels somewhere between a literary journal, an author interview and a public humanities seminar.
Episodes featuring writers like Dominic Amerena, (author of I Want Everything), and Bri Lee demonstrate the range of the podcast’s intellectual interests. Conversations move easily between creative process and larger cultural questions. They rove over social media and artistic community, class and climate politics, the pressures of publishing, the relationship between fiction and activism, and the enduring power of storytelling. Authors are encouraged to reflect on the anxieties and preoccupations that shaped their work.
Birch is a particularly effective host, often drawing connections between a story and broader questions of memory, place, politics and literary culture. His exchanges with writers frequently become some of the most illuminating parts of the episode, revealing how fiction emerges from both personal experience and wider social concerns.
At a time when short fiction receives relatively little attention outside literary journals, Unfolded offers a thoughtful, accessible space where contemporary stories can be both heard and discussed.
3. In the Good Books
Reading advocate and influencer Luke Bateman’s In The Good Books is built on a belief that stories matter. Bateman’s project is less interested in judging books than in exploring why people read, write and connect through them.
Episodes alternate between book club style discussions and interviews with authors. Recent guests have included Australian Children’s Laureate Andy Griffiths, historical novelist Ariel Lawhon and fantasy writer Shen Tao. Bateman’s interviews are warm and generous: he encourages authors to reflect on reading and the books that shaped them. Conversations often drift naturally from questions of craft into broader reflections on memory, identity and the power of storytelling.
Bateman is also refreshingly willing to laugh at himself. Before tackling Stephen King’s Pet Sematary, he admitted: “I’m a big scaredy-cat”. Approaching Jane Austen, he confessed feeling “on the outside looking in” whenever people discussed the classics. He approaches books with both sincerity and humour. And his enthusiasm is often infectious, whether he’s talking romance, fantasy, horror – or the simple pleasure of discovering a book that changes the way we see the world.
Readers seeking rigorous literary criticism may want something more sceptical. Yet, there is genuine value in a podcast that takes books seriously while remaining unashamedly enthusiastic.
4. Life Sentences
For readers fascinated by other people’s lives, Life Sentences is essential listening. Hosted by journalist, critic and broadcaster Caroline Baum, it features conversations with biographers about the lives they write – and the challenges of turning a life into a story.
The podcast is distinguished by Baum’s interest in biography as both literary form and investigative practice. Her interviews regularly probe questions of ethics and historical reconstruction. How much can we ever know about another person? Where is the line between scholarship and speculation? What happens when public reputations or inconvenient truths get in the way of a good story?
Recent episodes illustrate these concerns particularly well. A discussion with Patricia O'Brien about her biography of Errol Flynn examines the gap between Hollywood mythology and historical reality. Another, with Kerrie Davies, explores Miles Franklin’s decision to reinvent herself as a domestic servant after the success of My Brilliant Career.
Baum is an attentive and intellectually curious interviewer. She is more interested in uncovering complexity than in delivering verdicts.
5. Remotely Lit
Hosted by Tasmanian writer and researcher Liz Evans, Remotely Lit is a literary podcast produced in Lutruwita/Tasmania. It often begins with a book, then expands into discussions of language, history, culture and community.
A sense of place is what makes it so distinct: Evans is deeply engaged with Tasmania’s literary and intellectual life. Many episodes explore the relationship between storytelling and the communities stories emerge from.
A fascinating conversation with Pakana researcher, poet and language consultant Theresa Sainty ranges from palawa kani language retrieval to cultural memory, oral history and the role of language in sustaining identity. Another episode, featuring Aimen Jafri of Hobart’s Migrant Resource Centre, examines storytelling as a tool for cultural inclusion and belonging in migrant communities.
Evans is a generous, well prepared interviewer who allows complex ideas the time they need to develop. Remotely Lit feels less like a literary podcast than a project illustrating the conditions that make literature possible.
Caitlin Macdonald does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Originally published by The Conversation — Australia selected topics