From Vision Australia. This is talking vision. And now here's your host, Sam Colley.

From Vision Australia. This is talking vision. And now here's your host, Sam Colley.

Hello everyone. It's great to be here with you. And for the next half hour we talk matters of blindness and low vision.

Hello everyone. It's great to be here with you. And for the next half hour we talk matters of blindness and low vision.

We are a referral organization, so we don't provide the reading and writing support ourselves, but we help people to find the best solution. And often that might involve helping them call the provider or institution that they're going just to break down some of those barriers so they feel comfortable to make that call.

We are a referral organization, so we don't provide the reading and writing support ourselves, but we help people to find the best solution. And often that might involve helping them call the provider or institution that they're going just to break down some of those barriers so they feel comfortable to make that call.

Welcome to the program. We've got a great show in store for you this week as we celebrate a special birthday with the 30th anniversary of the Reading Writing Hotline, who have spent the past three decades referring callers to the services they require to improve their literacy and numeracy. I catch up with the manager of the Reading Writing Hotline, Vanessa Iles, and that interview is coming up very shortly after my conversation with Vanessa. It's almost time for the Melbourne Writers Festival coming up in early May, and we've got a couple of events at the Vision Australia office in Kooyong to let you know about. I'm speaking with the artistic director of the festival, Micaela McGuire. She'll tell us a little bit more about those events, but also the festival more broadly, and that conversation is coming up later in the show. I hope you enjoyed this week's episode of Talking Vision. I began the interview with Vanessa by asking about the history of the Reading Writing hotline, as well as an overview of the hotline and the work they do.

Welcome to the program. We've got a great show in store for you this week as we celebrate a special birthday with the 30th anniversary of the Reading Writing Hotline, who have spent the past three decades referring callers to the services they require to improve their literacy and numeracy. I catch up with the manager of the Reading Writing Hotline, Vanessa Iles, and that interview is coming up very shortly after my conversation with Vanessa. It's almost time for the Melbourne Writers Festival coming up in early May, and we've got a couple of events at the Vision Australia office in Kooyong to let you know about. I'm speaking with the artistic director of the festival, Micaela McGuire. She'll tell us a little bit more about those events, but also the festival more broadly, and that conversation is coming up later in the show. I hope you enjoyed this week's episode of Talking Vision. I began the interview with Vanessa by asking about the history of the Reading Writing hotline, as well as an overview of the hotline and the work they do.

Absolutely. Well, we started in 1994 and we came out of the International Year of Literacy, and that was a big acknowledgement that there's lots of people out in the community that need help with their reading and writing. Many of those people may have gone to school in Australia. And so it's not a language issue. It's a literacy reading and writing issue. And they often don't feel comfortable putting their hand up and saying, I'm struggling with my reading and writing. They might feel a bit of shame and embarrassment around that. And so the ABC put a program, ABC TV put a program together, which was a literacy program for adults that they could enjoy in their lounge rooms. So they had a workbook, they could watch the TV, they worked. You know, they had sort of an online teacher with some little skits. It was quite kind of a funny program. And then they needed teachers on, on the phone lines to help them if they got stuck with their workbooks. So that was sort of the genesis of the hotline. And we we assisted. That program was called the Reading Writing Roadshow, and it went for years on the ABC. It was very, very popular and ran quite a few times over the years. So at the end of that program, people realized that they still they'd finish the program and then they're like, oh, now I want it. What? How do I get into a classroom? I've got my confidence up. How do I get into a classroom? And then the hotline just continued. So our job now really is to take calls from the public, from anyone who wants to improve their own reading and writing, and now digital skills through to community workers, family members, employers. Lots of people call us saying, look, I'm seeking some support for someone I know, and we help them sort of navigate. It's pretty tricky field out there. We get them, help them to find a class that's going to be good for them and talk them through all the barriers that they might face that they're worried about, so that they can get into a classroom.

Absolutely. Well, we started in 1994 and we came out of the International Year of Literacy, and that was a big acknowledgement that there's lots of people out in the community that need help with their reading and writing. Many of those people may have gone to school in Australia. And so it's not a language issue. It's a literacy reading and writing issue. And they often don't feel comfortable putting their hand up and saying, I'm struggling with my reading and writing. They might feel a bit of shame and embarrassment around that. And so the ABC put a program, ABC TV put a program together, which was a literacy program for adults that they could enjoy in their lounge rooms. So they had a workbook, they could watch the TV, they worked. You know, they had sort of an online teacher with some little skits. It was quite kind of a funny program. And then they needed teachers on, on the phone lines to help them if they got stuck with their workbooks. So that was sort of the genesis of the hotline. And we we assisted. That program was called the Reading Writing Roadshow, and it went for years on the ABC. It was very, very popular and ran quite a few times over the years. So at the end of that program, people realized that they still they'd finish the program and then they're like, oh, now I want it. What? How do I get into a classroom? I've got my confidence up. How do I get into a classroom? And then the hotline just continued. So our job now really is to take calls from the public, from anyone who wants to improve their own reading and writing, and now digital skills through to community workers, family members, employers. Lots of people call us saying, look, I'm seeking some support for someone I know, and we help them sort of navigate. It's pretty tricky field out there. We get them, help them to find a class that's going to be good for them and talk them through all the barriers that they might face that they're worried about, so that they can get into a classroom.

And given it's kicked off in 1994, that's riding the wave of the internet, has that sort of became a fledgling medium and really, as we know, took off in the coming decades to where it is now, where it's an absolutely ubiquitous medium found in literally every corner of society. So that's also an interesting backdrop against which the hotline has found itself over the past three decades. So what sort of impact has this advance in technology had on the various shapes that the hotline has taken over the past 30 years?

And given it's kicked off in 1994, that's riding the wave of the internet, has that sort of became a fledgling medium and really, as we know, took off in the coming decades to where it is now, where it's an absolutely ubiquitous medium found in literally every corner of society. So that's also an interesting backdrop against which the hotline has found itself over the past three decades. So what sort of impact has this advance in technology had on the various shapes that the hotline has taken over the past 30 years?

That's a great question, Sam. And I think people would be surprised to know that we haven't changed that much. And the reason for that is typically the cons of calls we get from people where they might be struggling with their reading and writing. When you add a digital layer on top of that, it actually is another literacy. So it actually compounds the problem for people already struggling with their reading and writing. And we know that, you know, there's plenty of people, particularly in older generations in the community, that read and write perfectly well and they, you know, manage their day to day and their work life with those literacy skills. But once they have to go online, it's a whole different story. So what we find is, while we do have a website available for people to access, and we have resources online that people can access, most people still really prefer a phone line because of the human connection. So we don't have a complicated phone menu where, you know, if you ring a bank, it often takes you five minutes listening to press four for this, press five for that. We've got a very straightforward phone line. People just ring through and speak with the teacher, and if we're on the phone, it'll go to a voicemail and one call back. So that's actually seems to be the medium that people still prefer. We do receive emails, but in terms of sort of really embracing this whole, you know, availability of now other platforms, it actually gets really complicated for people. And so we just keep it straightforward. We can send people resources in lots of different formats. They may want it in text or they may want it anymore. They may want it mailed to them. But in terms of actual accepting calls from people, the good old phone line is still what works.

That's a great question, Sam. And I think people would be surprised to know that we haven't changed that much. And the reason for that is typically the cons of calls we get from people where they might be struggling with their reading and writing. When you add a digital layer on top of that, it actually is another literacy. So it actually compounds the problem for people already struggling with their reading and writing. And we know that, you know, there's plenty of people, particularly in older generations in the community, that read and write perfectly well and they, you know, manage their day to day and their work life with those literacy skills. But once they have to go online, it's a whole different story. So what we find is, while we do have a website available for people to access, and we have resources online that people can access, most people still really prefer a phone line because of the human connection. So we don't have a complicated phone menu where, you know, if you ring a bank, it often takes you five minutes listening to press four for this, press five for that. We've got a very straightforward phone line. People just ring through and speak with the teacher, and if we're on the phone, it'll go to a voicemail and one call back. So that's actually seems to be the medium that people still prefer. We do receive emails, but in terms of sort of really embracing this whole, you know, availability of now other platforms, it actually gets really complicated for people. And so we just keep it straightforward. We can send people resources in lots of different formats. They may want it in text or they may want it anymore. They may want it mailed to them. But in terms of actual accepting calls from people, the good old phone line is still what works.

Over the.

Over the.

Years. Vanessa, I'm curious to hear about people ringing in to the hotline and contacting you via the website and email who are blind or have low vision. Could you go into a little bit of detail around that, and the sort of ways in which the hotline can help.

Years. Vanessa, I'm curious to hear about people ringing in to the hotline and contacting you via the website and email who are blind or have low vision. Could you go into a little bit of detail around that, and the sort of ways in which the hotline can help.

As we do with all of the population? We have a really wide variety of calls from people who have vision impairment, and some of them may. Have had a vision impairment from birth. Some of them, it may be a gradually being lost and they're calling us because they're now struggling where they weren't before. Or it may have been, you know, a sudden vision loss as a result of an injury. You know, one of the calls I can think of we received was from someone who was experiencing deteriorating vision, and they explained that, you know, they needed to be able to read manuals. They were fixing cars and they wanted to be able to read manuals, and they really needed help with that. So I suppose the first thing we have to do is really unpack what is the literacy help they need from what is the assistance they need with their vision or their deteriorating vision. And that can actually take quite a bit of time to unpack that information. And once we determine, then assuming there is some sort of literacy issue, and assuming they also want to go to a class to improve their literacy, then we'll talk them through what that involves, what RTOs might be. Sorry, RTOs are registered training organizations, so they might be tafes or they might be a private provider talking through what options are available and how it will work. So in that particular case, with that bloke that needed help with reading a manual, it was really it wasn't a literacy issue, it was that his eyesight was deteriorating. And so in those cases, we refer callers through to Vision Australia to discuss perhaps some sort of adaptive technology or how they may cope with that. In another case, we had a call from a young woman who she was in her 20s. She said that she really wanted to increase her literacy skills because she wanted to get work, and she had what she described as a severe vision impairment. She left school when she was about 13, and so she felt that she didn't get all of the reading and writing skills that she needed. And so in that case, we found out who was the providers in her area that would offer classes. And then with her permission, she she actually requested that we help her sort of with the next step. So then we rang there was a TAFE in this instance and spoke with the teacher consultant for students who have disabilities, and they explained that they've got a really long kind of they do a functional assessment on what the requirements are. And so we could talk that through with her. And then we eventually passed her over to the tape. But it's kind of, you know, people often they're feeling embarrassed about their literacy skills to start with and they just don't know where to start. And so being able to unpack that information for them and then to let them know the kinds of questions that the TAFE might ask to help them support her better, was really helpful for her. And then she felt confident to make that next step. We do hear from people that often they use their vision as a strategy for not acknowledging their limited reading and writing skills. So they might say they forgot their glasses or they're struggling with their eyesight. So it really takes quite a bit of questioning to unpack that.

As we do with all of the population? We have a really wide variety of calls from people who have vision impairment, and some of them may. Have had a vision impairment from birth. Some of them, it may be a gradually being lost and they're calling us because they're now struggling where they weren't before. Or it may have been, you know, a sudden vision loss as a result of an injury. You know, one of the calls I can think of we received was from someone who was experiencing deteriorating vision, and they explained that, you know, they needed to be able to read manuals. They were fixing cars and they wanted to be able to read manuals, and they really needed help with that. So I suppose the first thing we have to do is really unpack what is the literacy help they need from what is the assistance they need with their vision or their deteriorating vision. And that can actually take quite a bit of time to unpack that information. And once we determine, then assuming there is some sort of literacy issue, and assuming they also want to go to a class to improve their literacy, then we'll talk them through what that involves, what RTOs might be. Sorry, RTOs are registered training organizations, so they might be tafes or they might be a private provider talking through what options are available and how it will work. So in that particular case, with that bloke that needed help with reading a manual, it was really it wasn't a literacy issue, it was that his eyesight was deteriorating. And so in those cases, we refer callers through to Vision Australia to discuss perhaps some sort of adaptive technology or how they may cope with that. In another case, we had a call from a young woman who she was in her 20s. She said that she really wanted to increase her literacy skills because she wanted to get work, and she had what she described as a severe vision impairment. She left school when she was about 13, and so she felt that she didn't get all of the reading and writing skills that she needed. And so in that case, we found out who was the providers in her area that would offer classes. And then with her permission, she she actually requested that we help her sort of with the next step. So then we rang there was a TAFE in this instance and spoke with the teacher consultant for students who have disabilities, and they explained that they've got a really long kind of they do a functional assessment on what the requirements are. And so we could talk that through with her. And then we eventually passed her over to the tape. But it's kind of, you know, people often they're feeling embarrassed about their literacy skills to start with and they just don't know where to start. And so being able to unpack that information for them and then to let them know the kinds of questions that the TAFE might ask to help them support her better, was really helpful for her. And then she felt confident to make that next step. We do hear from people that often they use their vision as a strategy for not acknowledging their limited reading and writing skills. So they might say they forgot their glasses or they're struggling with their eyesight. So it really takes quite a bit of questioning to unpack that.

Of course, we will also stress that, as you've mentioned, it is a referral service where people can ring up and find a way to get the resources that they do need. And that's one of the most crucial aspects of the hotline, is to point people in the right direction, but looking forward to the future now. Vanessa, what are some challenges but also opportunities that the hotline is looking to address over the coming months, years, perhaps decades to come?

Of course, we will also stress that, as you've mentioned, it is a referral service where people can ring up and find a way to get the resources that they do need. And that's one of the most crucial aspects of the hotline, is to point people in the right direction, but looking forward to the future now. Vanessa, what are some challenges but also opportunities that the hotline is looking to address over the coming months, years, perhaps decades to come?

Well, I.

Well, I.

Think that one of the really big issues is that the literacy, numeracy and digital skill requirements are increasing in every aspect of our life. So whereas once upon a time, we may have been able to hold down a job that didn't require very much reading and writing, and we came home and we could spend time with our family. These days, we know that most jobs, even if they're predominantly a manual focus, will require significant reading and writing skills. And then when you come home from work, you often have a whole lot of admin to do, which requires answering emails, which again requires literacy and numeracy. So we know that there's a really big increase in the skills required. And unfortunately, the increase in literacy and numeracy in the community is not increasing. So we can see there's a big role for us. As you really correctly pointed out, Sam, we we are a referral organisation, so we don't provide the support, the reading and writing support ourselves, but we help people to find the best solution. And often that might involve helping them call the provider or institution that they're going just to break down some of those barriers so they feel comfortable to make that call. One thing we really want to work on, and I had a perfect example of this in my inbox this morning from an organisation we work with, is just the complexity of language that people use unnecessarily. And, you know, and that would be compounded, I imagine, for people with a vision impairment who, you know, may really tire from having to see so much text. And that is just, you know, it's not. Necessary. So we're really pushing. We have a reader friendly handbook on our website and working with large organizations, government organizations, to get them to simplify unnecessarily complicated language so that it's more accessible to people. You know, I really nearly half of the population would really struggle with a standard government form that you have to fill out, and there's no need for it to be so complicated. So that's one of the big challenges we face and something we're really advocating for at the moment.

Think that one of the really big issues is that the literacy, numeracy and digital skill requirements are increasing in every aspect of our life. So whereas once upon a time, we may have been able to hold down a job that didn't require very much reading and writing, and we came home and we could spend time with our family. These days, we know that most jobs, even if they're predominantly a manual focus, will require significant reading and writing skills. And then when you come home from work, you often have a whole lot of admin to do, which requires answering emails, which again requires literacy and numeracy. So we know that there's a really big increase in the skills required. And unfortunately, the increase in literacy and numeracy in the community is not increasing. So we can see there's a big role for us. As you really correctly pointed out, Sam, we we are a referral organisation, so we don't provide the support, the reading and writing support ourselves, but we help people to find the best solution. And often that might involve helping them call the provider or institution that they're going just to break down some of those barriers so they feel comfortable to make that call. One thing we really want to work on, and I had a perfect example of this in my inbox this morning from an organisation we work with, is just the complexity of language that people use unnecessarily. And, you know, and that would be compounded, I imagine, for people with a vision impairment who, you know, may really tire from having to see so much text. And that is just, you know, it's not. Necessary. So we're really pushing. We have a reader friendly handbook on our website and working with large organizations, government organizations, to get them to simplify unnecessarily complicated language so that it's more accessible to people. You know, I really nearly half of the population would really struggle with a standard government form that you have to fill out, and there's no need for it to be so complicated. So that's one of the big challenges we face and something we're really advocating for at the moment.

And for listeners out there who are looking to get in touch with the reading writing hotline, that number, of course, as people would have known over the years 1306506, but also for people to get in touch with you online, perhaps, Vanessa, if that's the way that they'd like to contact you, what is that website and email for people to get in touch?

And for listeners out there who are looking to get in touch with the reading writing hotline, that number, of course, as people would have known over the years 1306506, but also for people to get in touch with you online, perhaps, Vanessa, if that's the way that they'd like to contact you, what is that website and email for people to get in touch?

Yeah, it's reading writing hotline.edu dot now. So I think for most people, if they type in reading into the search engine, it'll come up somewhere within the first sort of page of responses. So reading writing hotline.edu dot o u and you'll find us, there's a form on there that you can click and it'll send us an email. And there's lots of information on there about what happens when you call the hotline. What are some resources that might be available. You know, and it's a good starting point for people.

Yeah, it's reading writing hotline.edu dot now. So I think for most people, if they type in reading into the search engine, it'll come up somewhere within the first sort of page of responses. So reading writing hotline.edu dot o u and you'll find us, there's a form on there that you can click and it'll send us an email. And there's lots of information on there about what happens when you call the hotline. What are some resources that might be available. You know, and it's a good starting point for people.

Well, there's, you know, so much we could talk about Vanessa, but that's all the time we've got for now. I've been speaking today with Vanessa Iles, manager of the Reading Writing Hotline, joining me today to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the hotline. And we wish them a very happy 30th birthday and many successes, no doubt into the future. I'm Sam Culley and you're listening to Talking Vision on Vision Australia Radio, associated rating radio services around the country and the Community Radio Network. I hope you enjoyed that conversation there with Vanessa from the Rating Writing Hotline. If you missed any part of that conversation with Vanessa, I'd love to hear it again. Talking vision is available on the Vision Australia Radio website at RVA radio.org. That's RVA radio.org. You can also find the program on the podcast app of your choice or through the Vision Australia library. And coming up now I chat with Mikaela. I began by asking Mikaela to give us an overview of the Melbourne Writers Festival.

Well, there's, you know, so much we could talk about Vanessa, but that's all the time we've got for now. I've been speaking today with Vanessa Iles, manager of the Reading Writing Hotline, joining me today to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the hotline. And we wish them a very happy 30th birthday and many successes, no doubt into the future. I'm Sam Culley and you're listening to Talking Vision on Vision Australia Radio, associated rating radio services around the country and the Community Radio Network. I hope you enjoyed that conversation there with Vanessa from the Rating Writing Hotline. If you missed any part of that conversation with Vanessa, I'd love to hear it again. Talking vision is available on the Vision Australia Radio website at RVA radio.org. That's RVA radio.org. You can also find the program on the podcast app of your choice or through the Vision Australia library. And coming up now I chat with Mikaela. I began by asking Mikaela to give us an overview of the Melbourne Writers Festival.

Yeah, so Melbourne Writers Festival started in 1984, and we are running the most recent edition from the 6th to the 12th of May this year. We've got about 50 public events featuring almost 100 writers from Australia to all around the world, right here in Melbourne. It's the most thrilling lineup that I've put together in all my years of directing festivals. This is my fourth Melbourne Writers Festival, and we cannot wait to start welcoming audiences and authors to Melbourne very soon.

Yeah, so Melbourne Writers Festival started in 1984, and we are running the most recent edition from the 6th to the 12th of May this year. We've got about 50 public events featuring almost 100 writers from Australia to all around the world, right here in Melbourne. It's the most thrilling lineup that I've put together in all my years of directing festivals. This is my fourth Melbourne Writers Festival, and we cannot wait to start welcoming audiences and authors to Melbourne very soon.

That's right, and it's a very exciting time. You've recently launched the program for the festival, so tell us a little bit about your recent program launch.

That's right, and it's a very exciting time. You've recently launched the program for the festival, so tell us a little bit about your recent program launch.

It was such a fun night. It was about two weeks ago now on a Thursday evening at the wonderful Crystal Palace and Courtyard in Carlton, which is a beautiful venue. We were surrounded by friends, colleagues from the industry, book talkers, readers, long time friends of the festival and authors. And honestly, it was the launch of my dreams. As soon as I started announcing the names of authors who'd be coming to join us in person, like Ann Patchett, for instance, there were audible gasps from the crowd. People were cheering and clapping. It's such an exciting lineup, and it's one of the nicest moments of the year for the festival team to be able to show off all of this really hard work, and to finally stop keeping the secrets that we've been keeping about who we've got joining us this year. But like I said, Ann Patchett just was met with the most amazing groups and cheers. She is such a beloved author of so many people, myself included. She runs a bookstore in her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee, which is legendary. She has published books like Bel Canto, Commonwealth, State of Wonder. I mean, she's such like a sort of cultural phenomenon. She's even mentioned in an episode of Lena Dunham show girls very early on. She's just this huge cultural touchstone for people universally beloved, and we are so lucky to have her joining us here in Melbourne. It's her first trip to Australia in almost ten years, and she'll be joined by her good friend and fellow author Meg Mason, who was the author of Sorrow and Bliss. And they're going to be talking about something a little bit different this festival. They're not going to be talking about the books that they've published. They're going to be talking about the books that they never published, the second drafts of books that they kept stashed in a drawer that they didn't feel could see the light of day. And in any case, that's an entire other draft of her book called The Dutch House that links into this year's festival theme, which is ghosts. And that particular event is called Spectres at the feast. But all throughout the program, we'll be looking at different sorts of hauntings, whether that's political ghosts or the ghosts of history, ghosts of past relationships, ghosts of our past selves, as well as the idea of our future, our collective hopeful future as a sort of ghostly possibility. So these are the themes that have come out in the novels and the nonfiction books that will be part of the program. And this is the framework that we're using to ask authors to engage with each other on stage.

It was such a fun night. It was about two weeks ago now on a Thursday evening at the wonderful Crystal Palace and Courtyard in Carlton, which is a beautiful venue. We were surrounded by friends, colleagues from the industry, book talkers, readers, long time friends of the festival and authors. And honestly, it was the launch of my dreams. As soon as I started announcing the names of authors who'd be coming to join us in person, like Ann Patchett, for instance, there were audible gasps from the crowd. People were cheering and clapping. It's such an exciting lineup, and it's one of the nicest moments of the year for the festival team to be able to show off all of this really hard work, and to finally stop keeping the secrets that we've been keeping about who we've got joining us this year. But like I said, Ann Patchett just was met with the most amazing groups and cheers. She is such a beloved author of so many people, myself included. She runs a bookstore in her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee, which is legendary. She has published books like Bel Canto, Commonwealth, State of Wonder. I mean, she's such like a sort of cultural phenomenon. She's even mentioned in an episode of Lena Dunham show girls very early on. She's just this huge cultural touchstone for people universally beloved, and we are so lucky to have her joining us here in Melbourne. It's her first trip to Australia in almost ten years, and she'll be joined by her good friend and fellow author Meg Mason, who was the author of Sorrow and Bliss. And they're going to be talking about something a little bit different this festival. They're not going to be talking about the books that they've published. They're going to be talking about the books that they never published, the second drafts of books that they kept stashed in a drawer that they didn't feel could see the light of day. And in any case, that's an entire other draft of her book called The Dutch House that links into this year's festival theme, which is ghosts. And that particular event is called Spectres at the feast. But all throughout the program, we'll be looking at different sorts of hauntings, whether that's political ghosts or the ghosts of history, ghosts of past relationships, ghosts of our past selves, as well as the idea of our future, our collective hopeful future as a sort of ghostly possibility. So these are the themes that have come out in the novels and the nonfiction books that will be part of the program. And this is the framework that we're using to ask authors to engage with each other on stage.

And that's fantastic.

And that's fantastic.

News to hear people like Ann Patchett heading along and, you know, having somebody of that stature at the Melbourne Writers Festival, that's a fantastic win for the team. But also that discussion that not only Ann Patchett will be having, but all the other authors around her about those, you know, second drafts, things I weren't confident enough to publish, things that didn't quite get there. That's a really interesting peek into the behind the scenes of what it's like to be a writer. So those are going to be really interesting sort of sessions for sure.

News to hear people like Ann Patchett heading along and, you know, having somebody of that stature at the Melbourne Writers Festival, that's a fantastic win for the team. But also that discussion that not only Ann Patchett will be having, but all the other authors around her about those, you know, second drafts, things I weren't confident enough to publish, things that didn't quite get there. That's a really interesting peek into the behind the scenes of what it's like to be a writer. So those are going to be really interesting sort of sessions for sure.

Yeah, I think that's right. I mean, a lot of our audience are just general members of the public who love to read, who perhaps don't necessarily know that much about how books come together. So I think it it's really valuable to demystify the process, right, to let people know that, you know, these perfectly formed, magisterial pieces of work, you know, don't just flow forward from an author's fingers, but, you know, it's a really hard job. And years and years of work and lots of frustration grows into the finished products that we get lucky enough to find in book. Bookstores or in libraries. The other thing, of course, about Ann Patchett is that she has the best audiobook narrators in the world. Meryl Streep does her most recent novel.

Yeah, I think that's right. I mean, a lot of our audience are just general members of the public who love to read, who perhaps don't necessarily know that much about how books come together. So I think it it's really valuable to demystify the process, right, to let people know that, you know, these perfectly formed, magisterial pieces of work, you know, don't just flow forward from an author's fingers, but, you know, it's a really hard job. And years and years of work and lots of frustration grows into the finished products that we get lucky enough to find in book. Bookstores or in libraries. The other thing, of course, about Ann Patchett is that she has the best audiobook narrators in the world. Meryl Streep does her most recent novel.

Oh, wow. Okay. Yeah, that's pretty cool. Oh my God, it's so great.

Oh, wow. Okay. Yeah, that's pretty cool. Oh my God, it's so great.

And, um, Tom Hanks does the Dutch house.

And, um, Tom Hanks does the Dutch house.

Wow. Yeah. Wow. Okay, no, I want.

Wow. Yeah. Wow. Okay, no, I want.

To go back to that launch. And, you know, those feelings of, you know, it all went so well, and that's an absolute dream come true with all these people coming together. And when you're involved in something like that and it goes off without a hitch. That's just such a wonderful feeling, isn't it?

To go back to that launch. And, you know, those feelings of, you know, it all went so well, and that's an absolute dream come true with all these people coming together. And when you're involved in something like that and it goes off without a hitch. That's just such a wonderful feeling, isn't it?

It is. Yeah. There were definitely some hitches backstage, but as a festival team, that's our job. To make it seem incredibly smooth and polished on the outside. And it had such a lovely feel like it was just a big room full of friends, uh, people who really love the festival and the ones who are most eager to hear about it. Very first of all.

It is. Yeah. There were definitely some hitches backstage, but as a festival team, that's our job. To make it seem incredibly smooth and polished on the outside. And it had such a lovely feel like it was just a big room full of friends, uh, people who really love the festival and the ones who are most eager to hear about it. Very first of all.

Now one of the other important things, the reason why we're catching up today is about, um, Virgin Australia partnering up as an accessibility and inclusion partner to the Melbourne Writers Festival in 2024. So could you go into a bit of detail about why the Melbourne Writers Festival has partnered with Virgin Australia Radio? Again, in this capacity.

Now one of the other important things, the reason why we're catching up today is about, um, Virgin Australia partnering up as an accessibility and inclusion partner to the Melbourne Writers Festival in 2024. So could you go into a bit of detail about why the Melbourne Writers Festival has partnered with Virgin Australia Radio? Again, in this capacity.

I feel.

I feel.

Like you're just asking for compliments.

Like you're just asking for compliments.

Oh that's okay.

Oh that's okay.

We love working with Virgin Australia Library. It's such a terrific partnership for us. We're really aware of the fact that it's not always practical or possible for people to get to our events in the city, so we're always looking to broaden the access and make the festival as inclusive as possible. Uh, like I said, you know, we spend a year putting these festivals together. So as much as we're able to within our resources, we want to be able to make sure that they're able to be enjoyed by as many people as possible. So a big part of that is doing a couple of events with Virgin Australia Library in Kooyong every year. We've got two amazing events this year, and of course we also work with you to make sure that there's an audio guide available for our program guide that you can access through our website, just through the festival Information and Access part. But if you prefer to listen to the program guide, perhaps while you're having a cup of tea or doing something else, that's a really easy way for people to be able to get across the program, hear all about what's happening, and decide which events they want to go to, and start marking them down and booking tickets.

We love working with Virgin Australia Library. It's such a terrific partnership for us. We're really aware of the fact that it's not always practical or possible for people to get to our events in the city, so we're always looking to broaden the access and make the festival as inclusive as possible. Uh, like I said, you know, we spend a year putting these festivals together. So as much as we're able to within our resources, we want to be able to make sure that they're able to be enjoyed by as many people as possible. So a big part of that is doing a couple of events with Virgin Australia Library in Kooyong every year. We've got two amazing events this year, and of course we also work with you to make sure that there's an audio guide available for our program guide that you can access through our website, just through the festival Information and Access part. But if you prefer to listen to the program guide, perhaps while you're having a cup of tea or doing something else, that's a really easy way for people to be able to get across the program, hear all about what's happening, and decide which events they want to go to, and start marking them down and booking tickets.

I would love to have a chat about the Vision Australia library events and the tour events. As you've mentioned that the Melbourne Writers Festival is involved with presenting. So let's start off with Toby Walsh's event Machines Behaving Badly. That's quite an interesting one for people out there.

I would love to have a chat about the Vision Australia library events and the tour events. As you've mentioned that the Melbourne Writers Festival is involved with presenting. So let's start off with Toby Walsh's event Machines Behaving Badly. That's quite an interesting one for people out there.

Yeah, I mean, this is one of the biggest topics of the modern age, right, about how AI interacts with our everyday lives and what that's going to look like in the rapidly evolving future. And Toby Walsh is a world leading AI expert. He's based in Sydney, and the machine's behaving badly as the title of his latest books. It's about the morality of AI, so he's going to be talking about all of the ethical considerations that we need to be bearing into mind as we make this technology more and more enmeshed with our daily lives. We've got a session elsewhere in the festival as well, talking about the role of art and how it intersects with AI particularly, you know, the question of whether ChatGPT can write a great novel, which is something that, you know, I'm sure university students are grappling with all around the country. Yes. Um, but yeah, Toby is going to be chatting about, I guess, the unexpected consequences of these technologies. And he'll be in conversation with Elizabeth McCarthy, who's a fantastic broadcaster who was at Triple-A for a number of years and is now director of the Queenscliff Writers Festival as well. So she's a fantastic interviewer. And I think this conversation between her and Toby is going to be fascinating.

Yeah, I mean, this is one of the biggest topics of the modern age, right, about how AI interacts with our everyday lives and what that's going to look like in the rapidly evolving future. And Toby Walsh is a world leading AI expert. He's based in Sydney, and the machine's behaving badly as the title of his latest books. It's about the morality of AI, so he's going to be talking about all of the ethical considerations that we need to be bearing into mind as we make this technology more and more enmeshed with our daily lives. We've got a session elsewhere in the festival as well, talking about the role of art and how it intersects with AI particularly, you know, the question of whether ChatGPT can write a great novel, which is something that, you know, I'm sure university students are grappling with all around the country. Yes. Um, but yeah, Toby is going to be chatting about, I guess, the unexpected consequences of these technologies. And he'll be in conversation with Elizabeth McCarthy, who's a fantastic broadcaster who was at Triple-A for a number of years and is now director of the Queenscliff Writers Festival as well. So she's a fantastic interviewer. And I think this conversation between her and Toby is going to be fascinating.

And following on from that conversation with Toby will also be hosting a conversation with Louise Milligan in particular about pheasants Nest, her new book, which has come out.

And following on from that conversation with Toby will also be hosting a conversation with Louise Milligan in particular about pheasants Nest, her new book, which has come out.

Yeah, so most people will obviously be familiar with Louise as her award winning journalist. I work on Four Corners. She's written non-fiction books, but this is her first foray into fiction, and David Marr said that it was a thriller that only a journalist could have written. So she's really drawn on the stories that she's reported on throughout her career to write this book, and it's about a reporter who gets abducted, so it's meant to be very addictive, but distinctly Australian as well. I can't wait to read this one. I haven't had a chance to do it yet, but I'm looking for a really pacey thriller and this apparently will fit the bill. But we also really love the way that Louise's book fits in with that festival theme of ghosts, because I think she'll talk about the stories that she's worked on that have really haunted her, the victims that she's interviewed, who have stayed with her, and why she's been compelled to turn their stories or to draw inspiration from their stories to help write this book.

Yeah, so most people will obviously be familiar with Louise as her award winning journalist. I work on Four Corners. She's written non-fiction books, but this is her first foray into fiction, and David Marr said that it was a thriller that only a journalist could have written. So she's really drawn on the stories that she's reported on throughout her career to write this book, and it's about a reporter who gets abducted, so it's meant to be very addictive, but distinctly Australian as well. I can't wait to read this one. I haven't had a chance to do it yet, but I'm looking for a really pacey thriller and this apparently will fit the bill. But we also really love the way that Louise's book fits in with that festival theme of ghosts, because I think she'll talk about the stories that she's worked on that have really haunted her, the victims that she's interviewed, who have stayed with her, and why she's been compelled to turn their stories or to draw inspiration from their stories to help write this book.

And Mikaela. Chewing on a little secret. The Vision Australia Library readers do absolutely love a pacey thriller, so I think this one will be very highly sought after. So let's give people some details about those two events, though, of course, taking place at Virgin Australia's office in Kooyong. But also that's on May the 10th. So what times are those? And, you know, how can people sign up to head along.

And Mikaela. Chewing on a little secret. The Vision Australia Library readers do absolutely love a pacey thriller, so I think this one will be very highly sought after. So let's give people some details about those two events, though, of course, taking place at Virgin Australia's office in Kooyong. But also that's on May the 10th. So what times are those? And, you know, how can people sign up to head along.

So you can book via the link on the Melbourne Writers Festival website, which is just you can just Google Melbourne Writers Festival, it'll take you right there or MWF. Com.au and Toby Walshs event is on at 6:00 and closes is at 8:00.

So you can book via the link on the Melbourne Writers Festival website, which is just you can just Google Melbourne Writers Festival, it'll take you right there or MWF. Com.au and Toby Walshs event is on at 6:00 and closes is at 8:00.

All right.

All right.

So perfect. You can do the double bill. Have a lovely Friday night at Kooyong.

So perfect. You can do the double bill. Have a lovely Friday night at Kooyong.

It'll be action packed. Hopefully. A lot of people head long. I'm sure it's going to be absolutely packed to the rafters. A lot of interest from a lot of people, especially with those sort of topics and really interesting topics of the time, but also a genre of novel that, you know, people really do get around at the Vision of Style library. So that couldn't fit better. It's absolute perfect fit. So looking forward to seeing how that goes. Now. The website that people can head to of course is mwf.com. Are you is there perhaps any emails or phone numbers that people could, um, perhaps get in touch with in case they'd like some more information or they're having a bit of trouble with registering or accessibility or something like that. And they want to let you know.

It'll be action packed. Hopefully. A lot of people head long. I'm sure it's going to be absolutely packed to the rafters. A lot of interest from a lot of people, especially with those sort of topics and really interesting topics of the time, but also a genre of novel that, you know, people really do get around at the Vision of Style library. So that couldn't fit better. It's absolute perfect fit. So looking forward to seeing how that goes. Now. The website that people can head to of course is mwf.com. Are you is there perhaps any emails or phone numbers that people could, um, perhaps get in touch with in case they'd like some more information or they're having a bit of trouble with registering or accessibility or something like that. And they want to let you know.

Definitely. So the best phone number from Monday to Friday between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.. Although please do leave a voicemail message now. Getting a manager will get back to you is 9999199, and anyone who uses T and phone 133677. And then they can ask for our regular number which is 99991199. Speak and listen. Users can also phone 1300 555 727 and ask for that number again, which is 99991199. And then we also accept calls via the National Relay Service. You've got to register for that online, but you can also call the National Relay Service at 133677.

Definitely. So the best phone number from Monday to Friday between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.. Although please do leave a voicemail message now. Getting a manager will get back to you is 9999199, and anyone who uses T and phone 133677. And then they can ask for our regular number which is 99991199. Speak and listen. Users can also phone 1300 555 727 and ask for that number again, which is 99991199. And then we also accept calls via the National Relay Service. You've got to register for that online, but you can also call the National Relay Service at 133677.

Okay, perfect. I've been speaking today with artistic Director Mikaela McGuire from the Melbourne Writers Festival, catching up with me today to chat about the upcoming festival and a couple of events that are taking place at the Vision Australia offices in Kooyong on the 10th of May. And that's all the time we have for today. You've been listening to Talking Vision. Talking vision is a Vision Australia radio production. Thanks to all involved with putting the show together every week. And remember, we love hearing from you. So please get in touch anytime on our email at Talking Vision. At vision.org that's talking vision or one word at Vision australia.org. But until next week it's Sam Cowley saying bye for now.

Okay, perfect. I've been speaking today with artistic Director Mikaela McGuire from the Melbourne Writers Festival, catching up with me today to chat about the upcoming festival and a couple of events that are taking place at the Vision Australia offices in Kooyong on the 10th of May. And that's all the time we have for today. You've been listening to Talking Vision. Talking vision is a Vision Australia radio production. Thanks to all involved with putting the show together every week. And remember, we love hearing from you. So please get in touch anytime on our email at Talking Vision. At vision.org that's talking vision or one word at Vision australia.org. But until next week it's Sam Cowley saying bye for now.

You can contact Vision Australia by phoning us anytime during business hours on one 308 4746. That's one 384 746 or by visiting Vision australia.org. That's Vision Australia call.

You can contact Vision Australia by phoning us anytime during business hours on one 308 4746. That's one 384 746 or by visiting Vision australia.org. That's Vision Australia call.