Introducing SBS Voices' new podcast: 'The New Writer's Room'

Thinking of entering the SBS Emerging Writers' Competition? Consider this your cheat sheet.

Subscribe to The New Writer's Room wherever you get your podcasts. Source: Supplied

So, you want to enter the SBS Emerging Writer's Competition. But where do you start? Writing can be a daunting task, especially for new and emerging writers.

Good writing begins with questions. What does it take to write a good story? How do you get your readers to connect with a character? Can you capture memories, smells and tastes on the page? What will make a reader laugh? How does a story change during the editing process?

You'll find the answers to all these questions and more on SBS' brand new podcast, The New Writer's Room. The podcast - hosted by SBS Voices editor Caitlin Chang and writer/editor Candice Chung - takes you behind the scenes of the writing process to help you understand what makes a great story. Each week, Caitlin and Candice will speak to writers about different aspects of memoir writing. You'll also hear from prize-winners of the 2020 Emerging Writers' Competition who share their advice on what it takes to write a successful entry. 

Wiradjuri writer Tara June Winch is the podcast's first guest. Source: Supplied

In the first episode, 2021 competition judge and award-winning author, Tara June Winch speaks to Caitlin and Candice about her friendship with fellow judge and writer Behrouz Boochani, the importance of creative partnerships and how to develop your writing craft.

Winch and Boochani maintain a long-distance friendship between France, where Winch is currently based, and Christchurch, New Zealand where Boochani lives.

"We talk a lot about both being Indigenous. He's an Indigenous Kurdish man. And we talk about comparative literature a lot. We talk about walking, because we both used walking as a writing tool. All the photos I've shared have been of my dog, and he wants more. So we talk about my dog."

But it's their ambitions to write something great that have bonded them. 

"You know when you're in the presence of someone that's safe. In terms of creative partnership, a creative friendship, when they listen to you, when there's an exchange of really, deeply listening and sharing and you know it doesn't go outside your circle," says Winch.

The New Writer's Room co-hosts Caitlin Chang and Candice Chung. Source: Supplied

Winch believes that partnerships like the one she and Boochani share are a vital part of being a writer. 

"I can't recommend enough to find someone that you really trust with your work, especially your work that's a work-in-progress, that isn't polished. It's different if you're speaking with a publisher or an agent, where it's almost like you're speaking on business terms. Whereas with a friend, you can just speak with a vulnerability."

The key to connecting with your readers, Winch says, is being able to tap into that voice of vulnerability.

"I don't think you need to find it [your voice]. It's there. It lives inside you. It's the voice at 3:00 AM that's telling you to live a better life. It's all your regret, all your guilt, all your shame. It's that love you can't let go of. It's your first absolutely soul-destroying heartbreak. That's your voice."

Listen to SBS Voices' new podcast, The New Writer’s Room, in the SBS Radio app, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

SBS wants to hear your story...because there's a writer in all of us. Submit your story of 1000-2000 words that speaks to the beauty and/or challenges of being Between Two Worlds in diverse Australia and you could win up to $5000 and kickstart your career. Entries are open from August 16-September 16. Go to www.sbs.com.au/writers for more information and register here to enter.