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Welcome to the writing centre

If you're a writer, or aspire to be one, then you've come to the right place. We've taken extracts from our bestselling writing guides (including those written by acclaimed authors like Kate Grenville and Garry Disher) and put them online for you to access whenever you feel the need for some writerly wisdom.

From getting started to getting published, the Writing Centre is full of practical advice to help you refine your craft, quotations to inspire you, and tips on how to make the best impression when you're ready to show your work to publishers (unless you're writing purely for your own pleasure, of course!). You'll also find author interviews,  a list of useful links, and information about how to submit manuscripts to Allen & Unwin.

Meet our authors

We have author events happening around the country all the time. If you want meet one of our authors or hear them talk about their books, check out our events page - there's information on festivals, author tours, book launches and signings. 

Sign up for Writing Centre updates

Sign up for our writing centre eNewsletter and get updates about new writing books, author interviews, events, writing workshops and competitions. Subscribe now.

Faber Academy at Allen & Unwin

Faber Academy at Allen & Unwin is an exciting writing programme offering a range of courses from one-day workshops to six-month courses devised by the foremost practitioners in their fields. If you have a story to tell, why not study with two of the world's leading publishers?

Find out more about Faber Academy at Allen & Unwin

Read student testimonials

The Australian/Vogel's Literary Award

The Australian/Vogel's Literary Award is one of Australia's richest and the most prestigious award for an unpublished manuscript by a writer under the age of thirty-five. Offering publication by Allen & Unwin and prize money totalling $20,000, The Australian/Vogel's Literary Award has launched the careers of some of Australia's most successful writers, including Tim Winton, Kate Grenville, Gillian Mears, Brian Castro, Mandy Sayer and Andrew McGahan.

Find out more


Recent books on writing

Spotlight:

The Writers and Artists Guide to How to Write

by Harry Bingham

This book will tell you how to write novels and narrative non-fiction for publication. It teaches the core skills of story-telling: story, character, prose style, and a whole host of attendant tools that you'll need in order to be successful and to please your agent, publisher and audience.

Spotlight:

Writing: A User's Manual

by David Hewson

You are a writer and you have a killer book idea. How do you turn your inspiration into a finished novel? Writing: a User's Manual offers practical insight into the processes from planning to story development, research to revision.