We’re thrilled to announce that Manchester Writer Bria Cotton has been selected for a virtual residency with the Royal Historical Society of Victoria through Melbourne City of Literature.

The Royal Historical Society of Victoria (RHSV) was formed in 1909 and is a community organisation committed to collecting, researching and sharing an understanding of the history of Victoria. With the support of a large number of volunteers, the RHSV provides a full program of activities such as lectures, seminars, excursions and exhibitions for the benefit of members and the general public.

Bria will be working with them virtually to explore the collection and create new original work as part of her residency, supported by Melbourne City of Literature. The residency will also include opportunities for meetings with all the writers in residence and facilitated further connections with Melbourne as a City of Literature.

“I am thrilled to be a Virtual Writer in Residence at the Royal Historical Society of Victoria, honestly I’m still pinching myself! This is a fantastic institution that is seeking to connect their local community with Victoria’s history in new and engaging ways. I can’t wait to explore their collections, and see what stories we can tell and share about them.”

Bria is a fledgling worker in the museum sector, seemingly everywhere and nowhere at once. She says that writing for her ‘is a way to make sense of the nonsense, or to make nonsense of the sense’, so she is always hopping between creative writing and non-fiction in her spare time.