It was difficult. So many amazing submissions came in for this year’s Big Issue fiction edition. But co-editors Jo Case and Melissa Cranenburgh finally managed to pare down 200 submissions to the final six.

The authors selected in the open submissions category are: Laura Jean McKay, Nic Low, Josephine Rowe, Krissy Kneen, Catherine Harris and Emma Schwarcz. The edition will also feature commissioned stories from Frank Moorhouse, Nick Earls, Charlotte Wood, Chris Womersley, Peggy Frew and Amanda Lohrey.

With a whopping 16 extra …

“One of the best things I remember about my childhood is going around to my grandmother’s place to help her with the garden and around the house. I used to stay over some weekends and I really enjoyed that. I knew I was a bit different from an early age, but it was not until much later in life that I found out that I had gender dysphoria syndrome. This brought meaning to the fact that I had always …

In 2008, the federal government set a target: halve homelessness by 2020 and offer supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who need it. More than three years on, what has changed? Who has benefited? Who is still slipping through the cracks? Michael Green finds some very human perspectives amid the complex housing landscape.

Also in this issue:

Alan Attwood and Sophie Quick talk hunting hats, odd-glamour and Holden on the 60th birthday of The Catcher in the Rye; Tom Hawking takes a …

I was born in Brisbane Hospital and had a happy childhood in northern Queensland, but my mother drank a lot and I was often left to look after my younger brothers. I left home at 17 when it became too much. I miss my father – he died in 2000. I’m still in regular contact with my mother and we have a good relationship now. She still lives in Townsville.

I have been deaf since birth due to my mum having chicken …

How closely have you been paying attention to The Big Issue this year? If you’ve spent every spare moment memorising our feature stories, editorials and contents pages, you’ll have a major advantage in our first Big Quiz! This epic quiz comprises 69 questions – all of which have been drawn from this year’s Big Issues. Those scoring fewer than 35 correct answers need to try harder; anyone scoring 60 or above should get out more. 

Also in this issue:

Elmo Keep sinks …

Everyone has to be nice to you on your birthday, so it’s important to stretch out birthday festivities for as long as possible. The Big Issue’s 15th birthday is a superb case study in celebration-stretching: we (officially) partied for three whole weeks! The most recent celebration took place in the capital last week – when more than 100 people came along to celebrate The Big Issue’s Canberra operations with 23 current and past vendors at the ACT Legislative Assembly …

Students from Endeavour Hills Secondary College in Melbourne have released a song to raise awareness about homelessness. The Year 7 students penned the song after visiting The Big Issue office last month. The visit was part of a new subject at the school called ‘community’ , which encourages students to focus on a social cause.

“Our class visited The Big Issue Classroom and were inspired to really make a difference and spread the message about what they learned about homelessness,” teacher Kirsty Letts said.

“They …

When Michael was 21 he fled the angry shouts of his parents’ crumbling marriage, stuck his thumb out on the Brisbane highway and jumped into a car with a crucifix hanging from the rear-vision mirror. Two days later, when the driver dropped him off in Townsville, he was a Christian – and has been one ever since.

But his arrival in Townsville represented the start of five lonely years for Michael. He lived on the streets, spoke to no one …

As the final Harry Potter film – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 – hits the cinemas, we examine the bespectacled boy wizard’s legacy. Daniel Radcliffe talks fame, fortune and spectacles; Angus Attwood describes growing up with Harry; and Sophie Quick explains why, in her book, talking animals will always trump wizards.

Also in this issue:

Lindy Burns explains why public transport still moves her; true-crime writer Liz Porter discovers that real-life heroes are better than cop show cut-outs; Mic …