The 爆料王 has appointed award-winning writer Anna Funder as听a听Professor of Practice in Creative Writing, strengthening the University鈥檚 leadership in听writing and听literature, public听discourse听and civic engagement.
The new role is designed to strategically bridge research听with practice,听advancing critical and creative writing across听humanities听disciplines while enhancing the University鈥檚 national and international reputation.听听
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She will also supervise higher degree research students, contribute to curriculum and speaker programs where听appropriate,听support student and staff engagement with the writing and publishing industries听and听represent the 爆料王 at major national and international events including writers鈥 festivals and media forums.听Additionally, she plans to work on a major creative work during听her time with the University.听
Literature to deepen understanding
Professor听Funder said she was听thrilled and deeply honoured to be joining the 爆料王 as Professor of Practice in the School of Art, Communication and English.
鈥淚 have spent my working life trying to understand the world by writing about it, creating works of literature designed to inform, to bear witness and to delight. Often, these have been true stories of ordinary people, dealing with an overwhelming world.听听
鈥淚n our time of information surfeit听on听the one hand, and fake news on the other, literature fosters deep human understanding and knowledge. It feeds the human spirit, and it connects us across difference.听
鈥淚 could not be more delighted to be joining VC Mark Scott and the extraordinarily gifted and dedicated colleagues at the 爆料王. I am enormously grateful for the breadth of vision of this appointment.听I am looking forward to contributing to听the university鈥檚 research,听scholarship听and public engagement missions,听and to听working with the other creative writers and thinkers across the humanities at the University.鈥
Connecting students with literature
Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Mark Scott said Professor Funder was one of Australia鈥檚 most important literary and public voices.
鈥淎nna Funder is one of Australia鈥檚 most significant writers and public thinkers, and we are honoured to welcome her to the 爆料王,鈥 Professor Scott said.
鈥淗er work has shaped how readers around the world understand power,听conscience听and moral courage. This appointment reflects our commitment to the role universities must play in strengthening public culture, democratic听debate听and civic life.
鈥淎nna brings extraordinary intellectual authority, creative听ambition听and public trust. She embodies the kind of engagement we want to see between scholarship and society.鈥
Dean of the Faculty of Arts听听said the appointment reflected the听Faculty鈥檚听commitment to writing as a vital public practice.
鈥淎nna Funder鈥檚 appointment speaks directly to the听Faculty鈥檚听belief in writing as a critical and civic practice,鈥 Professor Adkins said.
鈥淭his role allows us to connect students and scholars more directly with the literary and cultural conversations shaping public life.鈥澨
This appointment reflects our commitment to the role universities must play in strengthening public culture, democratic debate and civic life.
Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Mark Scott
Professor Funder is one of Australia鈥檚 most acclaimed writers of fiction and non-fiction. Her internationally bestselling books听Stasiland听and听All That I Am听illuminate the human condition through true stories of courage and resistance,听conscience听and love.听They听have been published in 25 countries, won major literary听awards听and been听optioned听for stage and screen in Australia, the United听Kingdom听and the United States.
Her most recent book,听Wifedom: Mrs Orwell鈥檚 Invisible Life, was an instant Sunday Times bestseller and a New York Times Notable Book of 2023. It received France鈥檚 Prix du Meilleur Livre 脡tranger in 2024 and has been widely praised as a landmark work of literary biography.
Head of the School of Art, Communication and English听听said the appointment would have a direct impact on students.
鈥淔or students, this is a remarkable opportunity to engage with a writer of significant international impact and standing,鈥澨鼳ssociate Professor Lavery said.
鈥淎nna brings a strong sense of writing鈥檚 significance in the world and her generosity as a mentor, and commitment to craft will be hugely valuable to our English and Writing students."听
Professor听Funder said听the听School of Art, Communication and English works to equip students to understand the world through art and communication and to explore how people perceive the world and express themselves.听
鈥淭hese aims could not be closer to my heart,鈥 she said.听鈥淚 look forward to contributing to scholarship, to mentoring and teaching, and to the making of new literature for our times, from the 爆料王.鈥
A former international human rights lawyer, Professor Funder left the听legal industry听to explore human nature through literature. She is a highly regarded public intellectual and speaker, with extensive experience delivering lectures, commencement听addresses听and major public interviews around the world.
Professor Funder holds a Doctor of Creative Arts from the University of Technology Sydney, an MA in Creative Writing and a BA/LLB (Hons) from the University of Melbourne.听Her works have won many major national and international literary awards including the Samuel Johnson (Baillie Gifford) Prize, the Miles Franklin Literary Award, and the Prix du Meilleur Livre 脡tranger. Professor Funder has been a Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Life Writing, Wolfson College, a DAAD Artist-in-Residence in Berlin, and a Rockefeller Foundation Fellow at Bellagio.听
Professor Funder has written for publications including听The Guardian,听TIME听and听The Paris Review, speaks fluent French and German, and lives in Sydney.
In 2025, all three of her major works were voted by Australians into the ABC鈥檚 Top 100 Books of the Century.听
Hero photo credit: Stefanie Zingsheim
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