Committee & Event Background

The Queenscliffe Literary Festival brings the best of established and emerging Australian literary talent to the Borough of Queenscliffe and the greater Bellarine community.

The Festival has become a recognised and anticipated cultural event on the local calendar.

The purpose is to curate a lively and intelligent season of events that stimulates discussion and to provide opportunities for engagement and participation.

The program aims to be inclusive, accessible, thought-provoking and diverse. It celebrates Australian literature across fiction, non-fiction, poetry, music and art delivering an exciting and diverse range of authors, artists, musicians and artisans to the Borough of Queenscliffe and the wider community.

Program Director

Elizabeth joined Queenscliffe Literary Festival as Program Director in August 2023.

She has worked as a radio producer, presenter and mentor for over 20 years in community radio and the ABC. She has anchored books and ideas shows on radio and regularly reviewed books on ABC Radio Melbourne. She has worked as a literary judge and convenor numerous times, predominantly for Stella Prize and the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards.

Elizabeth hosts in-conversation literary events for The Wheeler Centre and Melbourne Writers Festival, and previously for Sydney Writers Festival, regional literary festivals, and local libraries. Elizabeth also works in events and engagement at RMIT University.

Festival Manager

Isabelle commenced as the Queenscliffe Literary Festival’s Manager in April 2026. Her work over 20 years traverses media, art, music, and politics, and she has worked in Australia and overseas as a journalist covering major political and diplomatic events such as the UN’s Copenhagen Climate Conference.

Isabelle is also the Secretary for Music in Exile, and sits on the Board of the Geelong Regional Library Corporation. She is driven by place-based opportunities for change and community activation, and loves the unique connections the festival has developed between its program, and the people and places of Queenscliffe.

President

Virginia has been a resident in Queenscliff for eight years and since her move to the Borough has actively participated on and volunteered for community organisations. She brings to the QLF expertise in professional strategic planning, policy development and governance, skills that she gained through decades of public service experience and community leadership.

Virginia served for nine years as board director for Barwon Health and in her professional career she worked as a senior manager in the Victorian Public Service for 26 years on community strengthening programs, youth services, partnership brokering across State, Commonwealth and Local governments for collaborative urban growth area planning, urban revitalisation in central Geelong and to deliver major infrastructure projects. She retired from her position as Manager of Geelong City Deal in 2023.

Virginia has a good understanding of local government, having been a Councillor and Mayor for the former City of Geelong West and Manager of Human Services at Moorabool Shire.

Vice-President and Grants

Lyn is the Vice President of the QLF, having lived in Queenscliffe intermittently since 1973. She has worked in the social justice arena for the past four decades and has extensive experience utilising varying arts mediums to explore contemporary issues of concern to communities.

She has also supported development of arts activity which builds inclusive and cohesive communities and engages a diverse range of people in creative activity and the exploration of new ideas.

Treasurer

Sue relocated to the Bellarine in 2019 and brings decades of experience as an avid reader and active book club participant. She previously lectured at Monash University after completing her degrees and obtaining CPA accreditation as a mature student. Following five years living and working in both the UK and China, Sue returned to Melbourne, where she served as a finance manager for three not-for-profit medical research organisations. Since settling on the Bellarine, she has contributed her expertise as treasurer to various volunteer groups and undertaken consultancy work within the region.

'Penned' Micro-fiction Coordinator

Pip came to the QLF in 2019 to ‘help with a little bit of social media’ and her role has grown exponentially along with the Festival itself. In her past she had a long career in retail banking and then second long career in parenting, before gaining an Honours degree in Creative and Professional Writing. Pip lived in Belmont as a child and has loved bringing up her own kids in this area that has so much to offer. Pip has interned at the Canberra Writers Festival and worked with the Word for Word National Non-Fiction Festival and Local Word Writers Festival.

Sponsorship Coordinator

Jacqui is an experienced marketing, events and fundraising practitioner and joined the Committee in 2025. She moved to Point Lonsdale from Port Melbourne in late 2024 and enjoyed her first Queenscliffe Literary Festival inviting Melbourne friends and meeting locals.

Jacqui brings to the Committee an extensive record of achievement in events, tourism, marketing, communications, stakeholder engagement, and business planning. She grew up in the foothills of the Otways near Colac and has enjoyed discovering the Bellarine and reacquainting herself with Geelong.

Committee Member

Pauline Nunan is a former teacher and has been involved in international education as a university marketing and recruitment manager for many years with extensive experience as an events manager. She has long been an avid reader, a book club member and loves attending writers’ festivals and book events. Pauline is widely travelled and always enjoys reading novels about the places she visits as well as more conventional travel and culture books. Her reading interests vary widely from crime fiction to contemporary fiction, biographies, history and politics. Recently Pauline moved permanently to Queenscliff after being a regular visitor for 10 years. She is delighted to be living in such a vibrant and interesting community.

Committee Member

Monica joined the QLF Committee in 2025. With over 25 years’ experience in the not-for-profit sector, she has served on arts, cultural, and education committees. Her background includes two decades as an Occupational Therapist and another 20 years in bookkeeping and finance. Monica’s strengths are budgeting, minute taking, event coordination, and ticketing. The Literary Festival offers valuable opportunities for connection, and her reading list continues to grow.

Schools Program Coordinator

Volunteer Coordinator

Annie and her family have been coming to Point Lonsdale for generations.  Her parents retired here more than 40 years ago, and she moved here permanently over three years ago.

Annie has enjoyed volunteering for various Borough festivals over the years. As a Senior Manager and Director of her own company, she has lead People and Training functions, and small to large complex technological and other business improvement changes across industries around Australia. She is excited to combine her passion for literature with her many years’ experience managing people, projects, events, process and change.