Story Hunter

Coordinator

Emma Carpenter

Emma Carpenter is a booklover whose various employment experience includes bookshops, English classrooms, libraries, publishers, primary schools and of course, writing her own books. An award-winning Young Adult novelist under the pen name Gabrielle Reid, Emma recently graduated with a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Newcastle. She loves working with young people to develop their ideas and is extremely proud to lead the Story Hunter team. Emma lives on Awabakal land in Lake Macquarie with her three junior bookworms.

Jess Black

Jess Black is an award-winning author of more than fifty children's books. Jess regularly teaches creative writing in schools and runs holiday workshops. Jess has written the Tales of Mr Walker series about a dog who comes to live in the fanciest hotel in town. Jess has also written the Kitty is Not a Cat series, Little Paws series and the Keeper of the Crystals series; and is co-author of the hugely successful Bindi Wildlife Adventure series, the Kaboom Kid series and the Animal Tales series. Jess lives in Newcastle with her two daughters, husband and slightly batty cat and dog.

Nina Cullen

Nina Cullen is a Newcastle based writer and teacher. Her short fiction has been featured in publications such as The Australian Book Review, Big Issue Fiction Edition, Island, Sleepers Almanac, Island, Meniscus and Taste: Fresh New Writing. Her journalism and social commentary have appeared in publications such as the Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian, The Australian, Good Food and Sunday Life, and her essay and memoir pieces have been used by the International Museum of Women, San Francisco and the ABC. Nina has taught English language and literacy for over 13 years in Australia and Timor-Leste and prior to joining the Story Hunter team in Newcastle she was a creative writing tutor with Story Factory.

Karen Eastwood

Karen Eastwood is a storyteller, writer, podcast host and educator. She is the author of The Luck of the Draw, the memoirs of Vietnam War veteran Allen May. Karen has worked on Newcastle Library's early literacy programs including Stories Come Alive (formerly known as The Wacky Wombat Show), as well as the annual Book Week Show and is the host of several of their podcast series. She has facilitated storytelling and creative writing programs for all ages under the umbrella of Story Spot, where she collaborates with other Newcastle creatives such as Curious Legends, Sketch It Live and the Newcastle Museum. Her mission is to help people have fun building connections through the sharing of stories. She especially enjoys helping children discover how to use the magic and power of words to convey their own unique perspectives and stories.

Catherine Owen

Cath Owen is a primary school teacher and emerging writer who is lucky enough to live in beautiful Port Stephens on Worimi land. She has always loved stories in all forms, whether reading them, writing them or seeing them performed. She is a strong supporter of public education and is thrilled to be able to share her passion for stories and to help students in the Hunter region to develop their own voices. She was a 2024 recipient of a Varuna Residential Fellowship, where she continued her work in middle grade fiction. Her manuscript for The Christmas Cult received the Whitsundays Literary Heart Award for Best Unpublished Manuscript. In her spare time, Cath loves to read, write, sing and to enjoy the natural beauty of Port Stephens with her kids.

Malini Stephen

Malini Stephen is a teacher and emerging writer, passionate about all things reading and writing. Malini has previously lived in Darwin and now resides in Newcastle, where she is working on two novels that explore themes of family, cultural identity, and connection to place. She has recently completed a novel writing course at the Australian Writers Centre. Malini believes creativity is important for developing young minds to expand their imagination, and she works to support others with the skills to explore their ideas, create new worlds and make sense of this one.

Jacqueline Wright

Jacqui Wright is a teacher and writer who is a passionate believer in the power of stories to connect, inform, heal and empower individuals, groups, communities and nations. Jacqui's first novel, Red Dirt Talking, was longlisted for the 2013 Miles Franklin Literary Award. Since then, her stories, plays and articles have been published by Radio National, ABC News, Griffith Review, Fairfax, Westerly, Margaret River, Fremantle and Currency Presses. Jacqui's work at ABC Kimberley has shown that there is more than one way to tell a story. Putting words together in all kinds of ways – writing, drawing, speaking and recording via digital technologies – will never lose its magic!