An editor once said “oddball” is my writing speciality.

I’m OK with that – odd things are intriguing. The more unconventional, the better, I reckon. Below is a small and far from exhaustive selection of my previously published stories: sometimes odd, hopefully often intriguing.

Beautifully odd mountains
“With no word of a lie, I can say that Koren is one of our easiest freelancers to work with. She is speedy, enthusiastic and proactive – and her writing’s great too. Plus, she’s ace company for a chat over a cup of tea!”
Sophie Kalagas, editor, frankie magazine
“Koren is a dream to work with – not only is she a great writer but she is quick, very reliable and always the right style. She is professional but super-friendly – I’d recommend her in a heartbeat (though secretly want to keep her for myself…).”
Kelley Sheenan, editor and publisher, Peppermint magazine
“Koren is excellent to work with. She always comes in on tone, on deadline, and clean as a whistle.”
Steph Harmon, culture editor, The Guardian Australia
“Koren is professional, timely and very easy to work with. Her stories are well-written and reported, and she is always willing to put in any extra work required to make sure that they’re perfect.”
Brendan Spiegel, editorial director and co-founder, Narratively
“Koren is an extremely versatile writer: she’s equally at home in the pages of tabloids, literary magazines, and political blogs. She delivers clean, sharp copy on deadline, and she responds promptly and insightfully to edits. Koren is a writer of great talent and even greater dedication.”
Simon Collinson, online editor, The Lifted Brow
“Koren is a gifted reporter with a honed instinct for what makes a good story and a talent for fluid writing. She’s a pleasure to work with.”
Gregory Feifer, former Europe editor, GlobalPost

Unconventional lives + cool projects

 

Sustainable living

  • ‘Life Swaps’ 10-part ethical living series for The Guardian Australia
    Over 10 weeks, I presented easy and actionable tips to creating a life that’s better for our planet – focusing on all areas of life, from technology and shopping to eating and travelling. 
  • Trash is for Tossers for frankie
    Lauren Singer lives a completely waste-free life in New York City.
  • Let there be light for Peppermint
    Dubbed the “solar mamas”, the unorthodox training these women go through is all thanks to 70-year-old Indian social activist Bunker Roy and his global Barefoot College.

 

Barrupu Yunupingu working at Yirrkala's art centre, North East Arnhem Land, 2012.

 

Passionate people doing good

  • Antonio and Maria’s happy home invasion for Narratively
    Long before “the sharing economy” took the Internet by storm, an ailing German adventurer and a benevolent Spanish couple sparked a forty-year experiment in ad-hoc hospitality.
  • Saving an amputee pony named Faith for Narratively
    An abused pony seems destined for the slaughterhouse, until one unusually altruistic couple goes above and beyond to arrange a groundbreaking treatment — the first of its kind in Spain.
  • World’s longest braid saves Polish river for GlobalPost
    Krakow artist Cecylia Malik orchestrates an unusual protest to save Poland’s Bialka River, threatened by over-development.
  • Word on the street for The Adelaide Review
    Homeless people are become tour guides in Barcelona, because who better to provide an insight into Spain’s most famous city than someone who has lived on its very streets?
  • Real Australians Say Welcome for The Adelaide Review
    With his viral Real Australians Say Welcome street art campaign, Adelaide’s Peter Drew sparked a national conversation about Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers.
  • C’mon Aussie C’mon for The Guardian Australia
    Adelaide artists Jake Holmes and Peter Drew hand printed hundreds of rainbow-coloured posters repurposing a classic 1970s Australian cricket anthem into a call for marriage equality.

 

Spanish culture and quirks

 

Down to worm hole with Madrid's creepy crawlers

 

Travel

 

An Italian landscape

 

Food and wine

  • Food waste feasts hit the road to help refugees for SBS Food
    Inspired by dumpster divers handing out free meals in Melbourne, an Amsterdam collective is helping feed asylum seekers with food rescued from the rubbish. Now they’re hitting the road.
  • Random cups of kindness for The Adelaide Review
    A simple yet elegant pay-it-forward, anonymous system of charity in Adelaide cafes is connecting the Australian city’s needy with warm cups of coffee — and far more.
  • The rise of the vegans for The Adelaide Review
    A look into vegan culture within the Australian city of Adelaide, asking how chefs are responding to those who choose to eat food sans animal products.
  • Premium punks for The Adelaide Review
    How a South Australian winemaker paired up with American rock band Tool’s famed lead singer, Maynard James Keenan, to make a small batch of premium wine.

 

Animals and animal rights

  • Spain is Africa’s animal-trafficking gateway to Europe for GlobalPost
    An unassuming primate rescue centre in Spain’s south has become a key player in the fight to halt illegal animal trading through the Iberian Peninsula.
  • Smart milk for Qweekend (exclusive cover story)
    In a dairy north-west of Brisbane, Australia, an unlikely source is set to deliver a healthy alternative to the white stuff usually produced by cows.
  • Weeding out animal cruelty for The Courier-Mail
    The remarkable story of Sue and Rod Weeding, British expats who gave up their sunshine-and-relaxation retirement to open a sanctuary for abused horses in Spain.
  • Meet Adelaide’s koala rescue squad for The Adelaide Review
    “Suddenly, Montarello’s phone starts pinging with terrible pictures: a koala had been attacked by a dog. Worse yet, she had a joey in her pouch – a baby now destined to become an orphan.”

 

Easy Horse Care Rescue Centre pony

 

Opinion/first-person

  • The rhythm of nature for Peppermint
    During a month-long volunteering trip to England’s Fern Verrow biodynamic farm, I got a very hands-on lesson in the world’s oldest consciously organic approach to farming.
  • All the love gone bad: On men and music lost for Kill Your Darlings
    A personal essay exploring the links between music and memory.
  • You can call me Koren for The Big Issue
    A rant against all the mere mortals who dare to mispronounce my name.
  • The Christmas poo for frankie
    It’s rather undignified, but I’ve always had a certain scatological obsession. So imagine my joy when I realised my adopted home of Spain shares the same preoccupation.

 

Spanish and Australian politics

 

Counting the bill, Spain style.

 

Disability

  • Art on a limb for frankie
    Taking their cue from the now-stylish spectacle industry, McCauley Wanner and Ryan Palibroda are transforming ugly prosthetics into avant-garde fashion.
  • You need a thick skin to cope with disability for New Internationalist
    The awful things able bodied people say to those with disabilities – like: “If I was in your situation, I’d top myself” – and the way one writer and activist from Melbourne, Australia responds.
  • Meet Deb Roach, A One-Armed Australian Pole Dancer Making It In The UK for Junkee
    Says Roach: “I won’t be made uncomfortable because society tells me that ten fingers is the only thing that looks pretty.”
  • We need to look past, not at, disability for New Internationalist
    People living with disability face fear, prejudice and awkwardness in their daily interactions with others. UK charity Scope is trying to End the Awkward with a new advertising campaign.
  • Two extremes of our state’s fault-based insurance scheme for The Courier-Mail
    The awful human consequences of a motor accident insurance scheme in Queensland, Australia, which only pays compensation to crash victims if fault can be established.

 

Guest blogs

 

I also take photographs. Head over here to see some of my favourite pictures.