Cirrus@Austlit

'Over the last decade several Australian broadsheet newspapers have run numerous articles on the state of literary publishing, providing a rare opportunity for academic debate to enter the public arena. According to the reported commentary of novelists, publishers and academics, it would seem the literary field is caught between two contradictory currents: although the economic viability of Australian literary titles appears under pressure, there is booming demand for university courses in creative writing. This casual linkage has enabled a range of speculations on the possibly 'perverse' market relations between writing programs and the publishing industry. Has consumer demand for Australian literary authors shifted from the bookshop to the arts faculty? A recent quip by Frank Moorhouse would suggest so: 'Now the joke goes that when someone says they're a writer, the next question is, "where do you teach?"' (10).' (Author's introduction)