Poet, writer and performer Koraly Dimitriadis is set to launch her short story collection The Mother Must Die, to be published by Puncher and Wattmann.
It hit bookstores worldwide on October 1, with launches to follow in Melbourne and Sydney. The Melbourne launch on October 6 will be hosted by the Greek Community of Melbourne and Victoria and feature an in-conversation with author Christos Tsiolkas.
The Sydney launch on October 20 will include an in-conversation with poet and academic Michele Seminara and will be hosted by The University of Sydney at Chau Chak Museum beside the Cypriot antiquities collection.
Dimitriadis, who is a bestselling poet in Australia, is self-published, but backed by distributor, Woodslane.
“This book, as well as my unpublished novel, We Never Said Goodbye, has been finished for about 10 years. It’s been a real challenge to get my work published because of the conservative, elitist nature of the industry where you get punished or excluded if you don’t follow the grain,” she said.
“I really enjoyed working with Puncher and Wattmann. They stayed true to my voice and didn’t censor me at all. They are really carving a name for themselves for publishing unconventional writing. I’m very excited.”
The Mother Must Die blurb
The fashion industry is killing the planet but I really need that new designer handbag… Her daughter is divorcing and she’s going to die because of it… The mother must be medicated… I just want to be in Cyprus, why would I want to be in Australia… She’s never had an orgasm and still lives with her parents… Anything my boys want they get… He’s got a whole bank of chicks on his phone… Ever since I came to this country, I been in bed… If her children can get her the drug for the MND, until then she will dream of her village in Greece… Conquests are about scoring the chicks, but he’s never going to turn out like his nonno… He’s just an old smelly Italian gambler… They never talked about what her uncle did again… The money made him go mad… My mummy is sad, she keeps talking about ‘court and custody,’ but I’m going to take the potion and make everything better…
Broken people trying to make their way back to hope. Stories of identity, divorce, sexuality, parenting, domestic violence, and the working-class migrant experience. Bestselling poet Koraly Dimitriadis’s debut collection will transport you into the minds of disenfranchised characters, troubled men, children who live in two homes, and women trying to break free.
Bookings are highly recommended for the launches or you can also pre-order your signed copy before it hits bookshelves.
