Acclaimed author Christos Tsiolkas on fence-sitting in a time of fracture

When acclaimed Australia author Christos Tsiolkas was invited to give the 2025 Ray Mathew Lecture at the National Library of Australia, he had in mind what he wanted to say, as difficult as it was. Then he got a rage-filled message from a longtime friend. How did Christos respond? Is fence-sitting an indulgence in an ethically troubled, divisive, dislocated world? Or, is 'speaking across the fence' something writers and other creatives can offer us? "We're urged at all times — and for every occasion — to take a position. Yet is there a utility, both practical and ethical, in taking a breath, a pause, and refusing to land definitively on a stance?" — Christos Tsiolkas Speaker Christos Tsiolkas Author of The Slap, The In Between, Barracuda, Damascus Playwright and screenwriter Further information More about the annual Ray Mathew Lecture, including the transcript and video of the 2025 lecture