Iconic Australian street magazine The Big Issue will release its 16th annual Fiction Edition this Friday 2 October, featuring 14 stories from prominent and emerging Australian writers. The bumper edition includes new commissioned work from Bruce Pascoe, Claire G Coleman and Alice Bishop. A further 11 writers – Millie Baylis, Anne Kate Blair, Nina Cullen, Jennie Del Mastro, Brooke Dunnell, Angharad Hampshire, Jodie Kewley, Michael McGirr, Ferne Merrylees, Rebecca Varcoe and Colin Varney – were selected from a record number of 871 submissions.
The Big Issue editor Amy Hetherington says the edition is highly anticipated by Big Issue readers and vendors alike.
“There is always something special about The Big Issue’s Fiction Edition, but this year it’s extra special. Sharing stories is a way we connect and make sense of the world, and this collection of new fiction brings some levity and meaning to these unpredictable times.
“Not only is this edition full of great reads from new and emerging writers, but by buying a copy you’re also supporting your local Big Issue vendor in what has been a tough year.”
The Fiction Edition has been a permanent staple in the Australian literary community since 2005 and has become the biggest-selling fiction magazine in Australia. The special edition has featured authors such as Maxine Beneba Clarke, Graeme Simsion and Christos Tsiolkas. It has helped provide a launchpad for writers like A.S. Patrić (Fiction Edition 2014) who won the 2016 Miles Franklin Award, and Jane Harper, who was inspired to write her international bestseller The Dry after her short story was published in the 2014 edition.
With 16 extra pages, this edition was made possible by the generous support of the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund. Submissions were blindly judged by The Big Issue books editor and poet Thuy On and writer and editor Katherine Smyrk, as well as The Big Issue editorial team. Illustrations are by Melbourne artist Janelle Barone.
Copies of the magazine are available for $9 from Big Issue vendors around the country. Vendors purchase the magazine for $4.50 and sell it for $9, earning a meaningful income. Vendors are equipped with hand sanitisers, magazine boxes and the option for cash, card or Beem It payments to ensure the health and wellbeing of vendors, customers and the broader community. For those in Victoria who cannot access a vendor, magazines are available at selected Woolworths supermarkets or online through our Issuu store. Readers can also purchase a subscription to the magazine and support our Women’s Subscription Enterprise.
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The Big Issue spokespersons and Fiction Edition authors and judges are available for media. For more information and to confirm media opportunities, contact:
Maree Agapitos | Media and Communications Coordinator magapitos@bigissue.org.au | (03) 9663 4533
Steph Say | National Communications and Partnerships Manager ssay@bigissue.org.au | (03) 9663 4533 | 0418 124 190
About The Big Issue
The Big Issue is an independent, not-for-profit organisation dedicated to supporting and creating work opportunities for people experiencing homelessness, marginalisation and disadvantage. The Big Issue is best known for its fortnightly street magazine, which has put more than $31 million into vendors’ pockets. Alongside the magazine The Big Issue has additional programs such as the Women’s Subscription Enterprise, Community Street Soccer Program and The Big Issue Classroom. For more information visit thebigissue.org.au.
About the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund
The Copyright Agency is a not-for-profit rights management organisation that ensures artists, writers and publishers are fairly rewarded for the reproduction of their work.
The Agency’s Cultural Fund provides grants to creative individuals and organisations for a diverse range of projects which aim to enrich Australian cultural life.
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