Paul Auster on the set of Lulu on the Bridge, which he directed in 1997.
Moviestore Collection / Alamy
A writer of immense talent, Auster’s legacy bequeaths the power of imagination and the inexhaustible possibilities of language.
These books had our academics gripped until their final pages.
Sunrise near Winton, Central Queensland.
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Alex Miller is a man of humble origins, adventurous journeys, and a slow-burning but ultimately impressive literary career.
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Children and the adults they become need to choose how they grieve. That may include sharing their experiences and getting angry.
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Writing from lived experience often has legitimacy, but autofiction has fictional elements that trouble the autobiographical pact.
A young Juby Mayet in Vrededorp, Johannesburg.
© Baileys African History Archives/Drum photographer/Courtesy Jacana Media
The Drum journalist was a rare woman in a male-dominated world. Her autobiography has now been published after her death.
Handwritten diaries and digital diaries both help preserve experiences and memories, but in different ways.
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As material objects, diaries give scholars an intimate look into their subjects’ lives, including handwriting and mementos. What if diaries in the future are nothing but insubstantial digital ghosts?
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Michelle Grattan speaks with former Australian ambassador to the United States Joe Hockey about his new memoir titled Diplomatic
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Political biographies show us who is ‘worthy’ of being written about … and who is overlooked in history.
Vittore Carpaccio’s portrait of a woman reading (1510).
Wikiart
The first French novelist wrote about an adulterous affair and moved to Paris after separating from her husband.
Shuvaseesh Das/Historic England Archive
How will we record the pandemic and its effectson our lives? How will we look back at the significance of the present in the future?
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Rather than presenting a disability as an obstacle, life writing can explore the joys, frustrations and creativity of living with disability or Deafness.
Elizabeth Farm, painted by Joseph Lycett, c1823.
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The newest novel from the author of The Secret River is an imagined diary, detailing the ‘true’ story of Elizabeth Macarthur.
Dennis Brutus’s life is synonymous with South Africa’s freedom struggle.
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Brutus’s life was closely interlinked with the rise of apartheid and offered a way to look at resistance to this system.
A legend, even in his own lifetime: stamps to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens’s birth.
Royal Mail/PA Archive/PA Images
Almost as soon as Dickens died in 1870, writers and illustrators began to take liberties with his life and career.
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Australia has a rich modern history of former prime ministers writing memoirs, partly to exact revenge and partly to secure their legacy as they see it. A Bigger Picture fits into that tradition.
Archie Roach performs during the annual Long Walk celebrations in Melbourne last May.
Erik Anderson
In his autobiography, Tell Me Why, musician Archie Roach tells the stories of loss, pain and survival behind his songs.
Roger Waters continues to perform ‘The Wall’ even after leaving Pink Floyd.
AP Photo/MTI, Balazs Mohai
The story of the album, which was released 40 years ago, is a classic tale of how bands struggle with unchecked egos and competing visions.
The director Salvador Mallo, a stand-in for Almodóvar himself, is played by Antonio Banderas.
Pathé UK
The Spanish director’s new film is a mischievously autobiographical commentary on the healing powers of art.
Stories foremothers keep and pass on may be aimed at enabling future generations to leverage experience for growth and learning. This image, circa 1899, shows the Grey County, Ont. farm of the author’s ancestors.
(Tracy Penny Light)
A historian reflects on the meaning of an aunt’s rural and war-time memoir, flagged for her attention when she was aged 13 by the then-81-year-old elder.