Creating Good Readers

Charlotte Nash is the internationally published author of eight contemporary novels, most recently Twenty-Six Letters, On A Starlit Ocean, and Saving You. She has degrees in engineering and medicine, a PhD in creative writing, and is a multiple nominee for the Ditmar and Aurealis awards for short fiction. As a firm believer in unconventional pairings, she is an engineer by day and writes love stories by night. She teaches writing through the University of Queensland and, beyond books, she delights in great movies, through-hikes, and memorable dinner parties.

Megan Daley is the author of the bestselling book Raising Readers (UQP, 2019) as well as Teacher, Teacher (Affirm Press, 2023) and The Beehive (Walker Books, 2024). Megan is a Teacher Librarian and early years educator and has been awarded the Australian Teacher Librarian of the Year and the Queensland Teacher Librarian of the Year, as well as the national Dromkeen Librarian’s Award. A former national vice-president of the Children’s Book Council of Australia, Megan is also a regular literary judge, a workshop presenter, the creator of the popular website Children's Books Daily and co-creator of the Your Kid's Next Read podcast.

At 12 years of age, Solli Raphael was crowned the youngest ever Australian Poetry Slam champion in an all-adult annual competition held at the Sydney Opera House in 2017. Having since performed on stages such as the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in front of a live audience of 35,000 people and at TEDxSydney, and on TV shows such as The Project, ABC Me and ABC Breakfast, Solli believes that words can empower their audience.
Now 14, Solli continues to use the platforms of performing and writing to tackle current social issues – big and small and enjoys writing powerful and emotive poetry based on the world around him in the hope to create positive change. Successfully publishing his first book, Limelight, with a second book on the way, Solli would like to encourage his generation to participate in conversations about issues that affect their lives and their future.