Writing, poetry and practice

Writing and publishing have a long history in Australia, starting with ancient rock paintings, and the song cycles and dances that are still extant. Literary writing and book publishing arrived, along with the first printing press in 1788, and the first book was printed just fourteen years later in 1802. (It failed to captivate its
audience, being the New South Wales General Standing Orders; but if you’re interested, you’ll find a copy in the Mitchell Library in Sydney.) Other, more reader-friendly, books rapidly followed, with Barron Field’s First Fruits of Australian Poetry published in 1819. By 1908 the Commonwealth Literary Fund was in place as, effectively, the first federal arts funding program; and now, a little over a century later, libraries, state and local writers centres, and publishers of all sizes are actively supporting this art form.