Overland literary journal

Overland magazine

Overland, the most radical of Australia’s long-standing literary and cultural magazines, celebrated its 50th year in 2004.

Publishing features, fiction, poetry, reviews, comment, artwork and opinion pieces, Overland is committed to engaging with important literary, cultural and political issues in contemporary Australia. It has a tradition of publishing dissenting articles with a political and cultural focus.

With ‘culture that matters … since 1954’ as its motto, Overland is the only high-profile Australian literary magazine that sees the publication and advancement of new and marginal writers as part of its charter.

Produced quarterly, Overland was founded in 1954 under the editorship of Stephen Murray-Smith, with the motto ‘temper democratic, bias Australian’. At the time it incorporated The Realist Writer, the journal of the Melbourne Realist Writers’ Group.

Contributors over the years include Peter Carey, Patrick White, Garry Disher, Elizabeth Jolley, Stuart Macintyre, David Foster, Germaine Greer, Dorothy Hewett, Bob Ellis, Mark Davis, Sam Watson, David Williamson, Thomas Shapcott, Judith Wright, Rodney Hall, Gwen Harwood, Thea Astley, Alan Marshall, Xavier Herbert, Amanda Lohrey, Eric Beach, Bruce Dawe, Frank Moorhouse, Manning Clark, Humphrey McQueen, Christina Stead, Geoffrey Dutton, Max Harris, Chris Wallace-Crabbe, Nancy Cato, Frank Hardy, Lily Brett, Peter Porter, James McAuley, Geoffrey Serle, Graham Pitts, Desmond O’Grady, Robert Adamson, Ian Turner, Jack Hibberd, Dean Kiley, Christos Tsiolkas, Alex Buzo, Martin Flanagan, Marcia Langton, Fiona Capp, Margaret Simons, Linda Jaivin and many others.

Yet Overland also gives a voice to the experiences that are excluded from the mainstream media and publishing outlets. The magazine has been part of an ongoing attempt to document lesser-known stories and histories, dissect media hysteria and dishonesty, debunk the populist hype of politicians, give a voice to those whose stories are otherwise marginalised, misrepresented or ignored, and point public debate in alternative directions.

While Overland remains committed to the quarterly print journal, the journal’s project now also includes regular online publication.

OVERLAND EVENTS

Overland regularly presents events, forums and debates presenting writers and public intellectuals with important things to say about Australian culture, literature and society. Recent speakers have included Romana Koval, Antony Loewenstein, John Harms, Brian Walters SC, Joel Deane, Natasha Cica, Veronica Brady, Mary Kalantzis, David Marr, Barry Hill, Martin Flanagan, Phil Cleary, Amanda Lohrey, Bob Ellis, Mark Davis, RW Connell, Humphrey McQueen, Stuart Macintyre, Mischa Merz, Marcia Langton and Linda Jaivin. Check the website for forthcoming events.

MEANLAND

In 2010, Overland, together with Meanjin, launched ‘Meanland: Reading in an Age of Change’: an ongoing collaboration involving events and articles that tackle the impact of digital media, shifting intellectual property rights and economic change. Speakers and guests involve some of the foremost thinkers from both Australia and overseas, including McKenzie Wark, Chris Meade, Cory Doctorow and Kate Eltham. Meanland documents are archived on their own website.

OVERLAND JUDITH WRIGHT POETRY PRIZE FOR NEW AND EMERGING POETS

With the support of the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, this exciting annual prize, for new and emerging poets, commenced in 2007.

Overland is available in bookstores or by subscription