SPEECHES and EVENTS
I’ve been the fortunate recipient of several invitations from the Wheeler Centre for Books, Ideas and Writing, our brand-new shiny hub of all things literary in Melbourne, a UNESCO City of Literature, to do talks and take part in panels. The Wheeler often films their events and here are links to a couple I’ve done so far. It’s an excellent place to catch writers talking and many of their events are free so I recommend it mightily to all Melburnians.
And some other events, including various gigs at writers festivals around the country.
A lovely gig at the Wheeler Centre in May 2016, recasting IN MY SKIN as a bedtime fairytale. In company with David Marr, Chloe Hooper, Erik Jensen and Darren Hanlon. I’m speaking at the 6-minute mark.
A panel I appeared on at Brisbane Writers Festival on drugs and the phenemenon of addiction, hosted by Paul Barclay and ABC’s Big Ideas (podcast), Sept 2015.
A short on-stage interview by Stephen Lang for Outspoken, in Maleny, QLD, Sept 2015 (podcast)
Interview, in parts, on RawCourageTV, digital tv by Margie Warrell, 2015. Part 1, part 2.
‘Understanding Addiction’ panel for 2014 Melbourne Writers Festival, with former Victorian Police commissioner Christine Nixon and founder of International Overdose Awareness Day, SJ Finn. On the ABC Big Ideas website.
Reading from my contribution, ‘The Door Between’ about romance to Ampersand journal, at its launch as part of 2013 Emerging Writers Festival.
Eye of the Storm writers festival at Alice Springs, April 2013: panel with Krissy Kneen, Anna Krien, Laura Jean Mackay: ‘Hungry Eyes: Women, Sex & Power’, filmed by ABC Big Ideas.
Eye of the Storm festival, panel with Benjamin Law, Pat Grant, Ali Cobby Eckerman: ‘Who do you think I am? Identity, Culture and Stereotypes’, filmed by Big Ideas.
Me on ‘Show and Tell’ website, various chunks of filmed interview (February 2013): on the temptation of taking drugs; on changing my life; On my ‘show and tell’… On being proud of my past; on being pregnant; on relationships; sex tips…
Me talking about addiction as part of discussion on ABC Canberra local radio with Genevieve Jacobs, August 2012 (radio file).
Me on ‘Jennifer Byrne presents…’ on ABC television, talking about memoir in panel with Benjamin Law, Jane Clifton and Peter FitzSimons, August 2011.
ACMI Desert Island Flicks gig in July 2011, where I was asked to show clips from and discuss the five films I’d take as a castaway. These are short clips from the event on YouTube.
Porn Wars, at SWF 2011: me, Catherine Lumby, Gail Dines and Leslie Cannold have it out on pornography today.
Me in conversation interviewing Sonia Faleiro, author of Beautiful Thing (about bar dancers in Mumbai) at Sydney Writers Festival, May 2011.
Miss Misogyny: Why are women so mean to each other? A 20 minute speech I gave for the Lunchbox/Soapbox weekly event at the Wheeler.
Me in a panel on love & literature, with playwright Hannie Rayson, memoirist and journalist Craig Sherbourne, and novelist Steven Carroll at the Wheeler.
Me revisiting the Gatwick Hotel in St Kilda, filmed by The Outsiders Guide (recommended) who made a series of films about the legendary boarding house. Budapest, the gentleman interviewing me, has sadly passed away since. Vale Budapest.
INTERVIEWS
Here are some of the interviews I’ve done over the years. So far they are usually about In My Skin but that will hopefully change when The Romantic comes out!
(Edited to add… argh, I am hopeless with keeping this updated. My Facebook page, Official Page for Kate Holden, has more links from recent times…)
PRINT INTERVIEWS
A feature in The Guardian Australia, marking ten years since the publication of In My Skin, November 2015
With freshlywordedpress, a blog by Larry Schlesinger, talking about In My Skin, Feb 2013
With Etchings magazine, about ideas of the feminine in my life and books, March 2012
With Melbourne Times Weekly, about doing a Woman of Letters gig, August 2011
With Arts Hub, August 2011, about writing etc.
With Beat magazine for my ACMI ‘Desert Island Flicks’ gig 2011.
With Readings magazine from Readings Bookshops, Melbourne
With the Safer Injecting magazine, not only about drugs but also writing
As part of a feature about Melbourne writers and our favourite books about Melbourne…
RADIO INTERVIEWS
With Wallace Chapman of Radio NZ, about IN MY SKIN etc, August 2016
With the famous Leonard Lopate in NYC (it’s the Counter Feat item; click to get access to mine)
With The Guestroom for ABC Darwin, 2009. (scroll down or use ‘find: Holden’ for my file)
ONLINE INTERVIEWS
I just need to say, seeing two of my favorite memoir authors complimenting each other makes my heart beat damn fast with happiness.
Thankyou both for having such amazing books, I was told to go buy There’s a Bear In There after I told a friend about how in love I was with In My Skin, which my literature teacher recommended to me, along with Anais Nin.
Mad.
Hi Madison,
Oh god, that’s great. I loved Merridy’s book, and was very nearly tempted by her publisher to sign with them purely on the strength of the her title. Isn’t she lovely to write to me? I also adore your literature teacher for her recommendations. Hope you liked the magnificent Anais: a bit unhinged at times but what a sumptuous life, what a thrilling questing mind.
Hope you find more books to make your heart beat faster, and thank you Madison. What a lovely message.
xxxxxx Kate
Dear Kate,
I have just lost someone so dear to me from heroin , we had been child hood sweethearts and had a child together. He was the one true love of my life and now hes gone , i feel like my soul has been taken and i have never felt so alone surrounded by people .
I had your book on a shelf in my bedroom , i would occasionly glance at the bookshelf but never got any of them off the shelf. Then after the funeral i was lying in my room and was compelled to reach for your book i wasnt sure even what the book was about.
I started to read , i havent been able to put the book down it drew me in and made me understand why ? the way you speak about addiction in such a way i have never heard before its made me understand why lies are told to protect the ones you love and the urges that you feel that an non heroin user may not understand. I thankyou for that , your book has brought me some comfort that i can now look in at those in a different light.
Thankyou for sharing your life and experiences with others , this has truly helped me.
Dear Clare,
Oh I am so sorry about your loss. What a tragedy, and you must be devastated, as well as his family and friends. I sometimes think of the friends I lost to heroin and how different and better the world would be if they were still here. A terrible waste. And so very hard for the people left behind.
I can’t tell you what it means to me that my book helped you just a little bit. That’s so overwhelming to me. Thank you for letting me know. I do think that addicts are often caught in a terrible situation of having to lie to protect both themselves and the ones they love; it comes out looking so bad but the person who feels worst, in a way, is the addict herself. I am still confronting what I learned (good and bad) about myself when I was using heroin.
Clare I hope your heart is slowly healing, but I guess you’ll always feel the loss. I am so terribly sorry. Take strength where you find it.
Best wishes
Kate
Dear Kate,
I’ve heard of you for so long, and after listening to you talk so beautifully on writing memoir this morning on Radio National, I’m going out to buy your books today. Cannot believe I haven’t already done this. I sat in my car riveted to what you were saying. At first I didn’t know who it was. Is this Helen Garner? Being read by Anna Funder? Who is this incredibly articulate, thoughtful, poetic and insightful woman? I’ve just finished my third memoir, and have been feeling all the things you describe: acutely nauseous at my own self absorption and arrogance, but at the same time soaring with the joy of telling my story, about the people who’ve affected me, and the journeys I’ve had. But you’re such a better writer than I could ever hope to be. My first journey worth writing about took place in a brothel, where I worked as a receptionist and got to know women, perhaps like you, because that’s why I had to write about them. Anyway, I just wanted to say – I’m so glad I heard almost all of your ‘After the Words’ today. I cannot wait to have your books in my hands so I can continue to hear your voice. With thanks, and best wishes, Merridy.
Merridy Eastman! You know, I was given a copy of There’s a Bear in There… at A&U offices when they were hoping to sign my book and I’ve had it on my shelves ever since, promising that one day when I can find time to read it I’ll just sink in and have a good time (I read the first chapter and it was wonderful, and took me right back to the working days…). Now I’ll yank it out and put it on my ‘imminent to read’ pile.
You are so lovely to leave me a message and say such nice things. Made my day. I heard myself on RN today and I wondered where my special sultry-radio voice went… But memoir as a phenomenon just fascinates me, the paradoxes and conundrums and joys and nauseas… I find that most memoirists I meet are like me, and started off wanting to describe the people they met far more than describe ourselves, most are accidental memoirists. But don’t you find that people then read your books and respond and then you realise you’ve done something that is, finally (hopefully) not entirely self-serving? I hope so. Just today I went to get my legs waxed and my waxing lady whom I’ve known for years said, I’m in the middle of The Romantic! Then she ripped strips of wax off my legs. I take it as a compliment.
Thanks so much Merridy, and it’s lovely to make contact with a fellow brothel-memoirist (and of course, hero of Play School). You’re so nice. I hope you like my books (I also write a column for the Age). And good luck with the third book, I bet you feel amazing (though slightly bereft) now it’s finished. I’ll look out for it, and read There’s a Bear in the meantime.
Cheers
Kate