- Posted on 2 Mar 2026
- 3 mins read
'Genre-defying' author Johanna Bell, whose practice spans fiction, poetry, prize-winning picture books and community arts, will join the Creative Writing Department at UTS as its New Writer-in-Residence 2026.
Johanna Bell is the author of two full-length books: Cheeky Dogs: To Lake Nash and back (co-created with artist Dion Beasley) and Department of Vanishing, winner of the Tasmanian Literary Award 2025 for an unpublished manuscript and published this year by Transit Lounge. Set in a time of mass extinction, Department of the Vanishing blends documentary poetry, archival image, and narrative verse to explore the vital questions: Can we live in a world without birdsong, and is it possible to create a new opus with the fragments left over?
Alongside her literary CV, Johanna has directed innovative and award-winning projects, including Birds Eye View, a podcast produced with women in the Darwin Prison, which was named 2020 Australian Podcast of the Year and received a New York Radio Award, and SPUN, the Top End’s longest-running live storytelling program.
During her residency, Johanna will be working on her third full-length book, an exploration of memory loss.
'There are so few opportunities that support early career writers to complete their second or third book. This fellowship provides time, space and a scholarly shot in the arm which is exactly what I need to push into creative nonfiction, a new form for me.'
'I'll be working on a book that explores how we collect memories and what happens when we begin to forget. I'm also drawn to lyric essay and I'll be starting what I hope will become an essay collection about distance and the many ways we humans have tried to conquer it. But that may change and that's the beauty of this fellowship. It provides the spaciousness to experiment, reflect and write with intention.'
Completing a second or third book is often difficult. The $30,000 Copyright Agency-UTS New Writer’s Fellowship is a unique opportunity that provides a writer with the financial security to complete a new work, to take creative risks, and to connect with Australia’s leading creative writing program.
As part of the Creative Writing discipline, Johanna will also consult with students on their writing and participate in the Writing program where students will study her work.
Past fellows include celebrated novelists, storytellers and essayists such as Vogel Award winner Christine Piper, Bri Lee, Christopher Raja, Nardi Simpson, Vivian Pham, and Eda Gunadyin.