sleeper / noun 2. a timber, concrete or steel beam forming part of a railway track, serving as a foundation or support for the rails. 7. Colloquial a. someone or something that unexpectedly achieves success or fame. b. a book... which has slow but constant sales. 8. A spy who is allowed to carry on a normal life sometimes for years before being requested to undertake any espionage.
Macquarie dictionary, 3rd edition
Sleepers Salons coming up
A Successful Sleepers Salon Winter Series 2008
Over three consecutive Thursday evenings this June, Sleepers ran intimate Salons with the overarching theme for discussion being Australian literature, featuring three of our most interesting bookish figures: Steven Carroll (recent winner of the Miles Franklin Award), Sophie Cunningham (author of Bird and new editor of Meanjin) and ABC Radio National's The Book Show host, Ramona Koval. These were three fantastic Salons, and everyone had a ball. Our thanks go to our featured guests, and the Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) who generously supported these events with their cultural fund. Podcasts of these Salons will be available on this site real soon.
For information on the next Salons coming your way, stay tuned. We'll let you know.
About the Salons
The Salons, inspired by the French salons that were "an assembly of guests... especially such an assembly consisting of leaders in fashion, art, politics, etc.", are an opportunity for Australia's literary community to come together. Writers, editors, readers, printers, publishers, copywriters, proofreaders, authors, booksellers, academics, students, educators, journalists, reviewers, agents, designers, web publishers and festival coordinators are all invited to share their experiences of today's literary journey in Australia.
The entertainment takes shape in the form of readings from novels-in-progress, talks and discussions, music, comedy, poetry readings and on-the-spot poetry writing, spoken word and song, balloonology, haircuts and the odd massage, and live onstage interviews.
Some of the highlights of the Salons so far: Curtis Sittenfeld on her latest book; Charles Firth on America; all the way from the UK, Jon Ronson; Jane Clifton and Angela Pippos; Linda Jaivin and Alice Garner; Upon the release of The Secret of Success Is A Secret, Sean Condon in conversation with Adam Ford; US author and filmmaker Dana Adam Shapiro in conversation with Eleanor Elliott Thomas; Ivor Indyk on the trials and tribulations of independent publishing; Tony Wilson; a discussion with the team from Cardigan Press; Gideon Haigh discussing the state of non-fiction in Australia; Jeff and Jill Sparrow, authors of Radical Melbourne, interviewed by Ralph Mclean; Andrea Goldsmith and Dorothy Porter discussed prose v. poetry; Antoni Jach and student-turned-author Sonia Orchard; Kevin Brophy and Cate Kennedy debating for the short story; Rob Drewe at the Sydney Writers' Festival; MJ Hyland; Kate Holden, and more.
If you have somebody or something you would like to see appear or be interviewed at a Salon please contact us.
For photos of past Salons, visit our Gallery.