Unearthing Stories: Flipping Funghi and Licking Rocks with Romy Ash and Verity Borthwick
Bianca Millroy
Amidst shape-shifting landscapes, we enter a realm of staggering beauty, harsh isolation and danger simmering just beneath the surface…
Our conversation today unearths the stories of two female scientists navigating the tectonics of their own inner turmoil; excavating the past as well as facing the erosion of a future forever altered by the climate crisis. Stories that urge us to look deeper and listen closely as lives both human and non-human emerge, erupt and unfold against the ever-expanding timescale of the Earth.
This episode traverses climate and earth science, mycology, food and agriculture, exploitative industries such as mining and fish-farming, and much more.
SWN's Bianca Millroy is joined by Romy Ash and Verity Borthwick talking about their latest works of fiction, both of which combine the fascinating science of geology with deeply human narratives of grief, hope and longing.
Romy Ash is a critically acclaimed, award-winning novelist. Her first novel Floundering was shortlisted for The Miles Franklin Award, The Prime Minister's Literary Award and the Commonwealth Writers Prize, amongst others. Her children's picture book As Bright as a Rainbow was published in 2024. Her essays and journalism have been published in The Saturday Paper, The Guardian, Meanjin, The Griffith Review and others.
Verity Borthwick is an award-winning novelist and geologist. She has been published in The Best Australian Stories, Meanjin, Island, The Furphy Anthology, Aurealis, Science Write Now and more. She holds a Master of Arts from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). She started writing fiction by night, while working on her PhD in structural geology by day—looking at one crystal of salt for four years. She has worked in various remote locations around Australia as an exploration geologist, which was the inspiration for her novel Hollow Air. When she is not writing, Verity works as a freelance editor and takes care of her two sons.
As always, a full list of works discussed, links and resources are available in the Show Notes (below) and on your podcast platform of choice, and on the SWN website under ‘Listen’. Enjoy this latest episode!
SHOW NOTES: Additional Resources and Links
Dr Romy Ash – author of Mantle (Ultimo Press 2026)
Researcher profile: https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/profile/186441-romy-ash
Publisher: https://publishing.hardiegrant.com/en-au/authors/romy-ash
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/romyash/
Dr Verity Borthwick – author of Hollow Air (Ultimo Press 2025)
Website: https://www.verityborthwick.com/
Publisher: https://publishing.hardiegrant.com/en-au/authors/verity-borthwick
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/verity_borthwick/
Selected articles and media
‘From darning socks to licking rocks: I watched every movie with a female geologist and here’s what I learned…’ Verity Borthwick, author of Hollow Air, watched 25 films featuring female geologists and unearthed some rock-solid stereotypes on ArtsHub
‘Ig Nobel Prize-winning geologist on why rocks speak in tongues’ University of Leichester’s Professor Jan Zalasiewicz’s case for why so many scientists like to lick rocks.
Also mentioned: Robert McFarlane's Underland.
In Science Write Now
Mary King's Close by Verity Borthwick
Beyond Sight: A Personal History of Imaging by Verity Borthwick
Read more of Verity’s work: https://www.verityborthwick.com/published-works
View AustLit records (login required for full access):
Verity Borthwick: https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/10286057
Read book reviews:
We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the lands on which we live, work and create, and pay respects to elders past and present, remembering that First Nations people are our first artists, storytellers and scientists.
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