(human) Being

'What happens when people feel that they are not in charge of their stories either locally, or in a globalised world, is alienation. This is the problem of censoring, of silencing, amputating parts of the story, or having stories stolen, or writing official scripts, or having your story told on other people’s terms.

Stories have been blown off course. Marooned. Caught in nets. The storytellers will need to fly higher, be braver to capture more of the world, and tell stories more imaginatively, more forcibly, and powerfully enough, to subvert the censoring narratives of inhumanity.' Alexis Wright (2019)

(human) Being is VATE’s response – to fly higher and to be braver.

Creating an Australia free from discrimination is a job for everyone. This series will move stories from the margins to the centre. It will be an act of visibility and solidarity and a counterprogram to the noise. It will place the human voice at the centre – to fight mis/dis-information through narrative. This inaugural edition of (human) Being amplifies LGBTQIA+ voices by bringing together student and teacher writing with commissioned contributions from established authors. Importantly, it will also include factual information to combat mis/disinformation. Supported by mentorship and paired with a practical teacher resource, the project aims to strengthen inclusive practice in schools, foster belonging, and celebrate queer storytelling.

This VATE initiative is supported by Will Kostakis (author ambassador), Karys McEwen (author editor), and Ange Crawford, Ernest Price and Jes Layton (commissioned writers).

How to get involved

VATE members and students are invited to apply to be part of the inaugural edition of the (human) Being anthology. Read more about the anthology and how to apply below.

Student information & application form
Teacher information & application form

  

Author ambassador

Will Kostakis is an award-winning author for young adults, best known for his contemporary novels The First Third and The Sidekicks. An advocate for young readers and writers, Will was awarded the 2020 Maurice Saxby Award by the School Library Association of New South Wales for his service to children’s and young adult literature. We Could Be Something was awarded the 2024 Prime Minister's Literary Award for Young Adult Literature. 
     

Author editor

Karys McEwen is a school librarian, children’s author, bookseller, vice president of the Victorian branch of the Children’s Book Council of Australia, and education advisor for the Melbourne Writers Festival. She is passionate about the role libraries and books can play in the wellbeing of young people, and she is currently writing a Substack newsletter for educators and parents called I Read A Lot. Her debut middle grade novel, All the Little Tricky Things, was published by Text Publishing in 2022, and her second middle grade novel, The Paperbark Tree Committee, was released in 2025.

  
     

 

Commissioned writer

Ange Crawford is a queer, autistic writer based in Naarm/Melbourne. Currently a PhD candidate in the School of Media and Communication at RMIT, she holds a Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology, Honours 1) from Bond University and a Master of Arts (Writing) from Swinburne University of Technology. Her award-winning debut novel for young adults, How to Be Normal, was published by Walker Books in 2025. She has published shorter works across many genres, such as digital poetry, reviews, fiction and feature articles. She works as an editor and sessional academic, and she runs Seventh Gallery’s emerging writers’ program.
     

Commissioned writer

Ernest Price lives, writes and teaches on Bunurong land in Hoppers Crossing. He has worked as a Director of English in multiple English KLAs around Victoria. Ernest has written and presented extensively for VATE. He co-authored VATE’s Inside Frameworks guide with Sonia Muir, and was part of the implementation team for VCAA during the rollout of the current Study Design. Ernest’s creative non-fiction has been published by Overland and Queerstories. His debut novel The Pyramid of Needs was published by Affirm Press in 2024.

  

     

 

Commissioned writer

Jes Layton (she/he) is the Executive Director and co-CEO of the Emerging Writers’ Festival. As an author and illustrator, Jes has presented at a variety of local and national writers festivals, conferences and events unpacking queerness, fandom and pop culture. She has also authored essays, articles and comics, facilitated student workshops and hosted reading events contextualising and exploring fanfiction for both fans and those who may not be as familiar. More of Jes’ nonfiction, fiction and illustrative work can be found both online and in print with the likes of SBS, Archer Magazine, Junkee, Voiceworks, Kill Your Darlings, The Big Issue, Affirm Press, Fremantle Press, Black Inc, and Pantera Press among others. Jes’ latest piece ‘Breathe’ can be found in Spinning Around; The Kylie Playlist (Fremantle Press, 2024) and ‘Seeing Colour’ in Everything Under the Moon: Fairy Tales in a Queerer Light (Affirm Press, 2024).