The novel, Voices, is an anthology of stories written by 55 Gulf woman from remote North West Queensland and it galloped off the shelves when it launched last September at the Morning Glory Festival in Burketown.

Editor Bronwyn Blake has dedicated the last two years of her life to this ongoing project and said the first print run sold out in a couple of months and the second run is now in the shops and selling well.

“The stories of fifty-five women, unique to the Gulf of Carpentaria region, are recorded in the 'Gulf Women’ anthology, accompanied by their photos, however, now we are proud to announce the launch of the new website,” Ms Blake said.

“There are profiles on some of the writers, with insights into the life of a Gulf Women, there is a list of stockists and their contact details, a link for direct mail order for those who are not located near a stockist, and a sample sound recording of one of the writers reading her story at the book launch.”

The Book Launch won an Australia Day Award for the Best Event in Burke Shire in 2017. 

Ms Blake said the cover of the anthology was invited by the Australian Book Design Association to enter for this year’s awards but alas, it did not win.

This powerful 400+ page book gives women a voice to tell their own stories of managing distant stations and stock camps, handling terrible accidents, floods, bushfires, and killing droughts.

“Virtually every part of the process of getting these stories from the mouths of Gulf Women onto the page and into the shops, has been undertaken and overseen by the women themselves,” she said.

“This independently organised, self-published book, shows what a group of isolated rural women can do when they get together and use technology to share their heritage campfire stories with a wider audience.”

Ms Blake said the contributors and herself agreed that all work would be voluntary so all profits could return to the Gregory region for community projects.

The Invisible Farmers Project has been a huge supporter and cites the novel as the perfect example of what a small community can do to gather and preserve local history, shining a spotlight on rural women, and with all profits going back into the community – finding a novel way to support and fun community projects.