The father-daughter duo working on a book together

About this episode

The episode features a discussion with David Ryan and Anna Spargo-Ryan about their collaborative writing project and their connections to AFL.

David Ryan has loved AFL since he was six, following first South Adelaide Panthers and then Geelong Cats. As an adult, he played football in Adelaide Hills. His passion eventually led to a Creative Writing PhD exploring the relationship between the sport and community in Victoria. Two of David’s three children are also diehard Cats’ supporters. Anna Spargo-Ryan is an Australian author, scriptwriter and editor. She has written two novels and a memoir, in addition to works of fiction and non-fiction published in Australian newspapers and literary magazines. In 2016 she was the inaugural winner of the Horne Prize for her essay The Suicide Gene.

People in this episode

Host: jessica.mudditt

Guests: David Ryan, Anna Spargo-Ryan

Topics covered

• AFL
• creative writing
• father-daughter collaboration
• Australian literature
• community and sport

Keywords

• AFL
• David Ryan
• Anna Spargo-Ryan
• creative writing
• father-daughter duo
• Australian literature
• community
• sports

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: South Adelaide Panthers, Geelong Cats

Books & works: The Suicide Gene

Places: Victoria, Adelaide Hills, Australia

More episodes of Hembury Books Podcast

• Beyond Burnout: Elizabeth Blackley & Steven Puri on High Performance · June 7, 2026 · 25 min
• Kim Pavy's real life stalker inspired her genre-bending romance thriller · June 1, 2026 · 15 min
• The 'distorted' reality of living with an eating disorder with Kate Purcell · May 24, 2026 · 24 min
• A License to Print The World’s Top-Selling Book: the Bible · May 17, 2026 · 32 min
• An author’s endorsement: why I chose Hembury Books as my publisher · May 11, 2026 · 29 min
• Reuniting Karen and Kathleen nearly 50 years after they first met at the ‘House of Horrors’ living with Fred and Rose West. · March 22, 2026 · 35 min