Millennial malaise, trivial grievances and what really matters in life with Bridie Jabour

Bridie Jabour is the opinion editor of Guardian Australia. She has previously worked as a journalist for NewsCorp and Fairfax, where she has reported on social affairs, politics and regional issues. She has worked in the Canberra press gallery and was a reporter for Brisbane Times after starting her career at the Gold Coast Bulletin in Queensland. She writes commentary on feminism, inequality, and pop culture, and appears regularly on The Drum, Triple J and ABC Radio Sydney. She is the author of the novel The Way Things Should Be, but today we are discussing her new non-fiction collection of essays Trivial Grievances. 

Our interview starts at 19 minutes. 

Michelle recommends

True Crime Story by Joseph Knox

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Caitlin recommends

This One Is Ours by Kate O'Donnell 

A powerful, passionate and beautiful young adult novel to escape in. 

In this interview, we chat about: 

• How Bridie’s friends and family helped her celebrate the book launch despite it coinciding with the start of Sydney’s latest lockdown
• The summer holiday ‘filler’ opinion piece that went viral and led to Bridie writing Trivial Grievances
• How Bridie’s career as a journalist influenced her writing style and the essay/memoir style of the book
• Did the premise of millennial malaise stand up in the writing of the book?
• The terrifying car crash Bridie and her family were involved in just after she finished writing the book and what it taught her about living
• How Bridie became a journalist and how that influenced her publishing journey, including some of the things that surprised her about the industry compared to life in the newsroom
• A *brilliant* tip for finding an agent for your work

Books and other things mentioned

• I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara
• The Final Revival of Opal and Nev by Dawnie Walton
• Dirty John (TV series)
• Red Dragon
• Jane the Virgin
• The Panic Years by Nell Frizzell

Follow Bridie on Instagram @bkjabour

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Trivial Grievances is available now. 

Please note that Caitlin's job at HarperCollins Publishers did not affect our decision to invite Bridie to be a guest, we're delighted to have her and hope you enjoy this episode. Michelle also read a PR copy