In Conversation: An Unexpected Party

An Unexpected Party champions queer narratives by challenging stereotypes and exploring the many facets of identity.

Co-published by Fremantle Press, Get YA Words Out and edited by Seth Malacari, An Unexpected Party brings together the stories of emerging authors from the LGBTQIA+ community.

Written with wit, heart and honesty, these stories take queer protagonists outside the box of young adult romance and centre them at the heart of stories that involve magic, paranormal beings and adventure. Featuring trans and gender-diverse voices – asexual, aromantic, bisexual and more – the stories in An Unexpected Party are as diverse as their writers.

Join a panel of featured young LGBTQIA+ writers and storytellers as they delve into the fantastical realms and real-world struggles of this exciting new anthology.

This event is a co-presentation between the Western Australian Museum Boola Bardip and Fremantle Press.

Facilitator

Dr Lauren Butterly is the CEO of Pride WA and is driven by a commitment to social justice, equity and inclusion. Prior to her current role, Lauren was a lawyer specialising in environmental law and protection of First Nations’ cultural heritage and a weekends presenter on ABC Radio. Lauren first started volunteering within the queer community as the President of Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ running club, and she remains a passionate slow runner (who is most concerned about having a good chat on the run). Both as a CEO and a runner, Lauren proudly challenges stereotypes about what it looks like to live with Multiple Sclerosis, having now lived with MS for nearly 13 years.

Speakers

Seth Malacari (he/they) is an award-winning writer and member of the LGBTQIA+ community. Their work has appeared in Underdog: LoveOzYA Short Stories (2019). He is the founder of Get YA Words Out, has a Master of Arts (Writing and Literature) from Deakin University specialising in Queer YA and was the former chair of LoveOzYA.



 

Em Readman is a nonbinary writer hailing from Meanjin (Brisbane) and residing in Boorloo (Perth). Their work has been published by The Suburban Review, Bowen Street Press, Aniko Press and others. They often write about family, memory, and queerness, with a focus on the transient natures of all three. In 2022, Em won the Hunter Writer’s Centre Blue Knot Award.



 

Jesse Galea (they/he) is a transmasc writer living and creating in Boorloo. They’re a future librarian and spreadsheet enthusiast who has recently graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from Curtin University. When he’s not writing, he can be found cycling through several crafty hobbies (most recently, bookbinding) or unashamedly listening to Midwest emo. As a teenager, he didn’t have access to LGBTQIA+ YA and so didn’t know these stories existed. Since discovering them in adulthood and devouring as many as he could get his hands on (something they’ve never stopped doing), he’s proud to be able to add his voice to the ever-growing sea of LGBTQIA+ YA writers. Their writing has appeared in Pulch Mag, #EnbyLife, and just femme & dandy, among others.

Access information

The venue is fully accessible. Please contact reception@museum.wa.gov.au or call 1300 134 081 a minimum of five working days prior to the event if you are attending and would like the organisers to arrange Auslan interpretation.

More information is available on access to and within the Museum, plus how to prepare for your visit here.