My hotel in Canberra inexplicably left three unwrapped chocolates at the end of the bed, with the heater blasting. Yesterday, I woke up from a nap and thought that I’d shat myself
“Scott John Morrison – a Pentecostal rugby union fan from the eastern suburbs of Sydney – plagiarised the identity of men like my father … Morrison’s alter ego was a big swinging shtick.”
@GuardianAus
published a slice from my
@quarterly_essay
TOP BLOKES
“Australia – a nation of self-proclaimed straight-shooters – has been hijacked by a pack of fabricated larrikins and bona fide bullshit artists.” TOP BLOKES - my
@quarterly_essay
analysing the inauthenticity of Scott Morrison - is officially out today
My first book Car Crash: A Memoir is about how I survived a highway collision that killed three of my friends when I was seventeen, and the relationships that kept me alive afterwards. It now has a cover and will be published April 2021
“The Game” is a brilliant deconstruction of Scott Morrison’s place in Australian politics. The prose of
@mrseankelly
is an antidote to the ScoMo persona: such great weight, and never blustering for the sake of it
“Australia – one of the richest countries on earth – can afford to pay aged care workers a fair wage.” I wrote a feature for
@GuardianAus
about my mum’s incredible legacy as a foster carer, and harrowing experience in the aged care system
(1) “Scott Morrison was on a slippery slope from the Promised Land to rock bottom.” So begins my election essay for
@THEMONTHLY
The paywall has been lifted today
“Albanese leaves breathing space for the nation to imagine that the election was about them.” The agony and the ecstasy of election night as brilliantly captured by
@andrewquilty
for my new essay in
@THEMONTHLY
Had a yack to
@PhillipAdams_1
about my new essay for
@THEMONTHLY
He officially renamed the show ‘LNP’ in memoriam of Scott Morrison. You can listen tonight on
@LNLonRN
It’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks, but getting CAR CRASH launched by Anna Krien with Helen Garner in the audience was pretty close to the biggest pinch / shit myself moment. Thanks to
@ReadingsBooks
for the event and
@BlackIncBooks
for their literary guardianship
“The People’s Republic of Rugby League is the snoozing superpower of Australian sport.” New essay at
@THEMONTHLY
about Peter V’landys, rugba league, Murdoch vs Packer, and the shifting battle lines of Australian sport
I had a chat to national treasure
@PhillipAdams_1
about BAD COP: Peter Dutton’s strongman politics on
@LNLonRN
Or - as he called it - ‘Blaine Explains’
“Dutton’s raison d’être? Make Australia afraid again. Then he will offer himself as the lesser of two evils. A serious strongman for the age of anxiety.” An extract from my Quarterly Essay BAD COP, out Monday
Bit emotional to be shortlisted for the QLD Premier's Award for a work of State Significance, and The University of QLD Non-Fiction Award. Thanks to the
@QldLitAwards
for their support, &
@BlackIncBooks
for nurturing CAR CRASH. And congrats to all the other shortlisted authors!!!
Tomorrow night, I’m doing an interview with possibly the toppest bloke I know
@mrbenjaminlaw
thanks to
@Gleebooks
You can watch him interrogate me about Australian politics and masculinity for free! Via Zoom!
My next book - Australian Gospel - will be published by
@BlackIncBooks
It’s about religious preachers Michael and Mary Shelley; my parents Tom and Lenore Blaine; and the foster kids trapped between their beliefs. Thanks to
@literaryagent1
for sealing the deal
“Peter Dutton was framed mostly in his preferred way – as a humble Queensland copper, not a wealthy property developer.” An extract from my Quarterly Essay BAD COP - out today - via
@TheNewDailyAu
Father’s Day was yesterday. Tomorrow is the ten-year anniversary of my dad’s death. I dedicated my
@quarterly_essay
- TOP BLOKES - to him. It’s out next Monday. I’m sure that he’d absolutely piss himself with laughter to get top billing above Scott Morrison
I’m still astonished an extract from my book CAR CRASH (
@BlackIncBooks
) is the cover story of
@GoodWeekendMag
My life became infinitely more enjoyable when I stopped pretending to be the tough guy that I thought my dad, brothers and mates expected me to be
Thanks for all of the responses to the excerpt of my
@quarterly_essay
TOP BLOKES. I’m stoked to see it resonate so widely. If you’d struggle to fork out for the cost of a physical copy, shoot me a message with your postal address, and I’ll send you one
Tomorrow, I have a long profile in
@GoodWeekendMag
about Robert Forster from The Go-Betweens. It's about the platonic love between two men, the romantic love between a man and a woman, and the salvation of creativity. Up now at
@smh
A former cabinet colleague of Scott Morrison: “Morrison does try to be something that he’s not. Scotty from Marketing, as his critics call him … All the beer and footy bullshit was part of his promotion, even internally with we colleagues. He gave me the creeps.”
Made my debut yesterday as a panellist on
@ABCthedrum
to chat with
@ellenmfanning
about my two favourite subjects of conversation: running a 3-star motel in Bundaberg, and the myth of the Australian larrikin
I chatted to
@SquigglyRick
about survivor’s guilt and identity for
@GuardianAus
Rick quickly diagnosed my existential predicament. I think he must know a thing or two about this stuff??? CAR CRASH is out now via
@BlackIncBooks
Car Crash has been published in America, Canada and the UK. Looking forward to encountering the overseas negotiation of my father’s slang. I.e. “We’re not here to fuck spiders”
Very special to do this piece with
@NickFeik
who took a punt on me a when I had no idea what I was doing. He’s been an awesome supporter and exponent of the essay form
I had a chat to
@BetootaAdvocate
about how right-wing elites posture as anti-establishment while attacking genuine larrikins, ie
@TamePunk
The great thing about podcasts is you can call Andrew Bolt a suss c*** without bleeping
(2) I chatted to a bunch of voters, and some of Labor’s new MP’s i.e. Zaneta Mascarenhas
@SallySitou
Michelle Ananda-Rajah and Dan Repacholi. Unfortunately, I could only include 10% of the people I interviewed. Still, I tried my best to create a kaleidoscope of the general mood
Unbelievably grateful to receive the 2023 Judy Harris Writer in Residence Fellowship. I get to spend a year at
@CPC_usyd
and
@Sydney_Uni
gleaning expertise about the brain and genetic editing. Huge shoes to fill!
Read more here:
On Thursday night, I’m having a chat with the great
@murpharoo
about my
@quarterly_essay
TOP BLOKES. You can watch online for free thanks to
@ReadingsBooks
and also receive $5 off the cost of a copy
Thank you to national treasure
@PhillipAdams_1
for a riveting conversation about toffs cosplaying as battlers. And
@RadioNational
for using a photograph from before I aged thirty years while writing a book and a
@quarterly_essay
during coronavirus
I spent five months studying Hillsong sermons, and wrote an essay for
@THEMONTHLY
about the optimism of Brian Houston in the time of climate change and coronavirus
My highlight of
@SydWritersFest
- and one of the highlights of my life - would have to be getting on the Corona and limes with David Malouf on Friday night
“I’ve been going to rugby league games since I could walk,” says
@AlboMP
“No one waves a scarf like that when your team is going to win.” The Rabbitohs are back in the NRL GF. Read Albo’s comments on the faux fandom of ScoMo at
@THEMONTHLY
Tomorrow,
@goodweekendmag
are publishing an exclusive extract from my debut CAR CRASH: A MEMOIR, out now via
@BlackIncBooks
It was an absolute honour to get my photo taken by
@JamesBrickwood
and chat to incredible editor
@katrinastrick
for podcast ‘Good Weekend Talks’, online now
“Scott Morrison’s not dumb,” Kevin Rudd once told me. “He didn’t wave his hands in the air ... because he was led to do so by the Holy Spirit.” Indeed, the backlash he provokes with these appearances is part of The Plan - not God’s, but the PM’s office
My first book CAR CRASH has received some early thumbs up. TIM WINTON: “Scarifying and unforgettable.” BRI LEE: “This book is for everyone.” BENJAMIN LAW: “Clear-eyed, bruising and tender.” TRENT DALTON: “A heart-soaring act of literary bravery.”
Steve Bradbury’d my way past Sal Rooney and Jonno Franzen in the top 10 at
@BRTDbookshop
last week. Stoked that people are still buying, reading, and agreeing / disagreeing with TOP BLOKES
“Scott Morrison rocketed to the top of a mock meritocracy populated by
mediocre GPS boys, who scratched each other’s backs until there wasn’t any skin or fingernails left.”
@THEMONTHLY
have published an extract from my
@quarterly_essay
TOP BLOKES
My hotel in Canberra inexplicably left three unwrapped chocolates at the end of the bed, with the heater blasting. Yesterday, I woke up from a nap and thought that I’d shat myself
Happy Love Your Bookshop Day!!! One of my most cherished memories is launching a book on the Brown Snake surrounded by loved ones thanks to
@avidreader4101
Kristina Olsson and
@TrentDalton
who are all inexhaustible sources of love for readers and writers in Queensland
Had a yarn to
@ProgRugbyLeague
in the lead-up to the NRL grand final about my
@quarterly_essay
TOP BLOKES, and the connection between politics and the great game of rugby league. FYI: I was an Allan Langer-esque halfback, trapped in the body of George Rose
My first book CAR CRASH is published by
@BlackIncBooks
on March 30. I’m doing events with
@bri_lee_writer
in Sydney,
@AnnaKrien
in Melbourne,
@TrentDalton
in Brisbane, and Archie Hamilton from The Betoota in my hometown of Toowoomba. See for free tickets!
Absolutely shattered to hear about the car accident in Buxton. Five families are confronting the overnight absence of their children and siblings. A grieving community will need concrete resources to deal with the lingering psychological impact
CAR CRASH: A MEMOIR has been out and about for three months via
@BlackIncBooks
Thank-you to all the people who have shaped, consumed and/or circulated my words within Australia!!! In 2022, CAR CRASH will be published in Canada, America and the U.K. by
@greystonebooks
“By the 2022 election, voters might get one too many glimpses of the smirk and shirk underneath Morrison’s masquerade of mateship.” Top time to read my
@quarterly_essay
I’m working on a sequel for
@THEMONTHLY
Great to be back in
@GoodWeekendMag
with a short but hopefully sweet piece about the religious experience of eating my first kebab, defecting to Sydney in my late-twenties, and turning thirty
Good to kick off proceedings for my sister’s wedding with a two-hour debate between my brother’s about whether climate change is real or not. Hoping to carry that ideological energy through to the ceremony, which has been relocated to the Sawtell RSL due to biblical flooding
Publication day for CAR CRASH: A MEMOIR via
@BlackIncBooks
I even managed to make a faux pas during the obligatory box opening video, which accurately reflects my attempts to finish writing it. I’d love for you to buy CAR CRASH from your local bookstore
This is a terrifically insightful book about rekindling the spirit of collectivism - AKA the fair go - following an era of individualism
@ak_pennington
asks important questions, and provides fresh ideas
My forthcoming Quarterly Essay is called TOP BLOKES. It is a tale about larrikins and battlers, and what happens when white-collar squatters cosplay as jolly swagmen. You can pre-order it now via
@quarterly_essay
and
@BlackIncBooks
“He told punters in the Deep North that Australia needed to be more like them, not the other way around, eliciting pride instead of inferiority.” I went on a 7000 km road trip for
@THEMONTHLY
to trace the roots of Scott Morrison’s mute revolution
Tu Le is a modern-day reincarnation of Tommy Raudonikis. She seems like the dream grassroots ALP candidate to tap into the frustration that battlers in western Sydney feel about being treated like second-rate citizens
ICYMI: yesterday,
@GoodWeekendMag
published an excerpt from my first book CAR CRASH: A MEMOIR, out Tuesday via
@BlackIncBooks
And FYI: I was getting heckled by hi-vis, half-cut tradies while getting moody portraits taken on the steps of The Nelson Hotel
I’m extremely lucky to have had the unwavering faith of
@BlackIncBooks
during a long writing process, and to receive endorsements for the proof from literary legends
@bri_lee_writer
@mrbenjaminlaw
and Kristina Olsson
The North American edit for Car Crash was mostly uneventful, up until the chapter about my dad and rugby league. Not sure that I can bring myself to call pluggers “flip flops”. But I do love the image of me in the backyard kicking a cricket ball
“I’m no Liberal-voting coalminer. But getting covered in other people’s shit seems pretty working class to me, bro.” Dylan Rowe, a tradie turned disability support worker. Read his quotes in latest
@THEMONTHLY