The Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers 2026
RUNNER UP: ‘Today, In the missions’ and ‘My Favourite Kitchen Spot’
Joyrah Sebasio was raised on Angamuthi country on Ichurru, her work reflects the academic teachings of her late grandmother, Mrs Bakari Sebasio née Tamwoy of Injinoo.
Joyrah says: ‘Today, In the missions’ captures a moment of deep reflection transformed into real experiences that our children have to carry when our Akas are not around, Yagar mithalnga, Kapu Apu a Kayadh. ‘My Favourite Kitchen Spot’ captures and intertwines a memory of a child in a house subject to state poverty and police brutality.
Congratulations again to the writers! The winning poem will be published in Overland issue 262 in Feb/March.
2026 Copyright Agency First Nations Fellowships
Hear recent initiatives where we optimized creative writing on black&write, and spoke up on artistic censorship.
Joyrah is a Bamaga woman and one of six artists shortlisted for 2025 black&write Writing Fellowship for her poetry collection "Letters to Live By." There has been significant controversy around this fellowship, as just hours before the $15K award was due to be presented to 2025 recipient Martu writer Ren Wyld the ceremony was cancelled and Wyld's win rescinded, after Queensland's government intervened citing a deleted tweet by Wyld in support of Palestinian resistance. Anna and Joyrah speak about this, and the ongoing importance of First Nations-Palestinian solidarity.
