Hi, I’m Viv.
I write…
Photo Credit: Takahiro Shinbori
My vocation began in kindergarten. While other children were spilling paint over their shorts, I was penning stories about the trials and tribulations of fairy princesses on their quest to find magic medicine. Violence and grit of this nature continue to stain my work.
In high school I wrote a novel called The Coconut Children, which was published in March 2020 by Penguin Random House. I’m currently adapting this novel for stage with Belvoir Theatre and for screen with Exit Films. I also freelance across Film and TV, tutor Postcolonial Literatures at university, and have a cosy vlog series called A Day in the Life of a Writer (forthcoming).
…and I teach!
I believe writing is like riding a bicycle. A skill to be picked up at any point in your life. Scary at first, sure, but a thrilling and essential mode of transport to other worlds. A simple enough activity that allows you to escape the earth’s gravity.
I’ve taught creative writing in primary schools and high schools. I’ve mentored emerging writers at residencies and run workshops for community initiatives and in commercial settings. I am currently a course director and key tutor for Faber Writing Academy's Writing a Novel course, where I’ve distilled a lifetime of novel-writing experience and novel-reading appreciation into a fun and rigorous syllabus with a special focus on craft and intention.
I am a proud to be the Professor of World Witewatures at School of Zines, a Western Sydney storytelling initiative, where I run storytelling workshops.
School of Zines poetry workshop with Viv, November 2024.
Nice Things That Have Been Said About Viv
Dr. Kim Huynh, author and academic
“… she is one of the few people whom I trust to provide feedback on my writing, both fiction and non-fiction.”
Bilal Hafda, director of Guesthouse Publishing, artistic director of the Bankstown Poetry Slam
“Vivian is one of my favourite caretakers of writing in the whole wide world.”
Dave Eggers, author