A weary young backpacker sits on a train a long way from home and ruminates on all that got her there.

Cas Castellano is a writer of poetry and creative non-fiction from Philadelphia living in Australia. Her work has been featured for the first time in two indie publications this year [Sprig Magazine, Brisbane and Friends in Soft Focus, New York]. She delights in all that is absurd, profound, useless, and morally-ambiguous.

Music courtesy of Sean Peter

A family gets the train to Sydney to collect their new son.

CAROLINE ANNE BUTT was born in North Sydney. She grew up on Sydney's Lower North Shore, in a non-affluent, stable and loving home. She was a highly religious, innocent and nerdy girl. She's been a Share Clerk, school teacher, tutor, painter, researcher and writer.

Her published works have been an eclectic mix: writing for children, magazine articles, multimedia CDs, Life Writing, short stories. Her first memoir, Pumpkin, was published in 2019 by Ginninderra Press and her second memoir, The Steering Wheel, was published early in 2025. She experienced power and powerlessness in family, religious and patriarchal settings and continues to question their foundations and life in general. While she's found her own true north, she knows that, even then, tides always turn.

When Toby needed to become the primary carer of his first born child, he needed help.

Toby’s childhood memoir ‘Two Mums & a Dad’ was published in 2021. The promotional rounds for that book included interviews on TV and radio, coverage in newspapers, and talks at writers festivals and libraries. A number of Toby’s short stories have been published in magazines, converted into podcasts and broadcast on radio. As part of his day job, Toby has written boring articles for legal journals, industry papers, and broadsheets.

Music courtesy of Sean Peter.

Susan's 96 year old mum met Stan. This is their story.

Susan Hampton is a writer and a poet. She’s taught writing at manyAustralian universities. She Co-edited The Penguin Book of AustralianWomen Poets. Surly Girls, performance pieces and short stories, won the Steele Rudd Award in 1990. The Kindly Ones, a long narrative poem, won the 2006 Judith Wright Award. Last year, her memoir Anything Can Happen won the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award forNon-Fiction.

Susan grew up in Inverell and Newcastle and now she lives on the Central Coast.

Music courtesy of Sean Peter

A recently separated man 'enjoys' his new found freedom at a friend's wedding in Koh Samui, Thailand.

DARREN GILSHENAN.

After graduating from NIDA in 1988, Darren began his career in musical theatre before spending 10 years with The Bell Shakespeare Company. He followed this up with three years on the sketch comedy Full Frontal, and along with starring in high-profile roles on Australian television.

Darren’s television credits include: Sunny Nights (Stan, Jungle Entertainment), Ten Pound Poms S2 (BBC, Stan), Bay of Fires S2 (Fremantle), Thou Shalt Not Steal (Stan), Colin from Accounts S1-2 (Easy Tiger Productions), Population 11 (Stan), Nautilus (Disney+), Upright S2 (Lingo Pictures), Darby and Joan (Acorn), Joe vs. Carole (NBC, Matchbox Pictures), Troppo (Playmaker, EQ Media, Beyond), The Science of Harrow S1-2 (Hoodlum Productions), Harrow S1-3 (Hoodlum Productions), Stateless (ABC, Matchbox Pictures), How To Stay Married S1-3 (Princess Productions, Network Ten), Get Krack!n S2 (ABC), No Activity S1 (US Version) (Jungle Entertainment), True Story with Hamish and Andy (Nine Network), Here Come the Habibs! S1-2 (Jungle Entertainment), No Activity S1-2 (Jungle Entertainment), Maximum Choppage (Matchbox Pictures), The Killing Field (Seven Network), Devils Playground (Matchbox Pictures), The Moodys (Jungle Entertainment), Rake S3 (ABC), The Elegant Gentleman’s Guide to Knife Fighting (Jungle Entertainment), Janet King (ABC), Top of the Lake (See-Saw Films), A Moody Christmas (Jungle Entertainment) and Chandon Pictures S1-2 (Movie Extra).

Darren’s film credits include Audrey, Take My Hand, A Savage Christmas, The Appleton Ladies’ Potato Race, Carnifex, Never Too Late, June Again, Dying for a Laugh, A Few Less Men, Women He’s Undressed directed by Gillian Armstrong, Save Your Legs and Dark City.

He also starred in the web series Plausible Deniability produced by Random Pictures. For his work he won Best Actor at IndieX Film Festival. The web series also won the Outstanding Achievement: Best Web Series / TV Pilot at IndieX Film Festival.

Select theatre credits include The Caretaker (Ensemble Theatre), The Hypochondriac (Darlinghurst Theatre Co.), Who’s Afraid of Viginia Woolf? (Ensemble Theatre) for which he received a Best Actor nomination at the Sydney Theatre Awards, Tartuffe (Black Swan State Theatre Co.), Machu Picchu, Fool’s Island, Loot and Our Town (Sydney Theatre Company), Elling, Don Parties On (Melbourne Theatre Company), Mother and Son (national tour) and Strictly Ballroom: The Musical directed by Baz Luhrmann.

Darren won the 2020 AACTA Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Drama Series for Stateless. He won the Helpmann Award for Best Male Actor in a Play for The Servant of Two Masters. The Moodys and A Moody Christmas both won Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy at the 5th and 3rd Annual Equity Ensemble Awards respectively.

Music courtesy of Sean Peter.

To Be Or Not to Be, will he love me? Anna Downes is invited to an acting school reunion.

Anna Downes is the internationally bestselling author of The Safe Place, The Shadow House, and Red River Road (shortlisted for the 2025 ABIA General Fiction Book of the Year), as well as the Penguin Voices audio exclusive Break Me Down.

Born and raised in Sheffield, UK, she studied Drama at the University of Manchester and acting at Royal Academy of Dramatic Art before working professionally until 2011, when she moved to Australia and turned her hand to writing.

She now lives on the NSW Central Coast with her husband and two children.

Music courtesy of Sean Peter.

Lesley remembers a time when, with 3 kids under three, life got tough.

Some notes from Lesley:

Being the end of mental health month, I thought my story would be relevant. After a long admission to a mental health unit and a lot of work on myself. I became a volunteer then was employed by Gosford Mental health Centre, at the time it was Mandala, I worked for seventeen years at both Gosford and Wyong Mental health units as an advocate. My role was to help people through the system and put forward the needs of these people. I had the trust of both patients and staff, as I felt that we all needed to work together to get the best outcomes for patients. At the time patients didn’t have a voice. I wanted to give them a voice and make a difference in their lives.

I started to read at the age of fourteen and was sent out to work that same year. Through Adrienne’s program I have gained more confidence in reading and writing my story. She has helped so many people put pen to paper.

Music courtesy of Sean Peter.

One hand, one jar, one job!

Brenton Johnson is a local to the central coast. This is his first time writing, and reading a story. Brenton discovered Bravewords through an introductory course with Adrienne that his wife recommended. He's now hoping to one day complete a memoir.

We think he should!

Music courtesy of Sean Peter