Hi, I'm Sharon Quill.Storyteller. Strategist. Socially awkward entrepreneur.
Copywriter by trade, marketing nerd and storyteller by heart — living and working on Wiradjuri Country in Dubbo, and bringing good humans together to do great things through Social Gain.
Have you heard about Ikigai? It's a beautiful Japanese concept about finding your reason for being — the sweet spot between what you love, what you're good at, what the world needs, and what you can be paid for. That's me and Social Gain.
The longer story starts on the front desk of an advertising agency. In the late nineties I was the receptionist at Hertz Walpole Advertising while studying copywriting and art direction at AWARD School. The creative team — including founders Jim Walpole, Alan Morris and Allan Johnston — took me under their wing, and I came out a trained copywriter, forever grateful.
From there I fell into film: media kits at Globe Films, then four years at AFTRS doing PR and marketing — events, media releases, its 30th anniversary, and six weeks managing the 2003 National Screening Tour of graduate films, with career panels and workshops.
Then three years at Variety, the Children's Charity NSW, running events and appeals — a Melbourne Cup Lunch for 500 at the Four Seasons, and four volunteer fundraising committees. Working with doctors, carers, therapists and schools, I saw how deeply purpose drives impact.
After that, around five years at Woodlands Publishing writing features and profiles for art and craft magazines. Profiling artists and artisans was my favourite work — I wrote 41 in all.
In 2008 two things began at once. I started Sydney Writer, a strategy-to-launch content and marketing consultancy I ran for fifteen years. And when I first became a mother, I started Sydney Mum, an online magazine. Over nine years it grew to 363 articles, 144,000 words, a podcast and a contributor network.
In January 2020 we moved from Maroubra Beach to drought-affected Dubbo. The plan was to stay a year, but thanks to a pandemic we're still here. Since then: eighteen months co-hosting and producing The Cam & Shaz Show on DCFM 88.9 — I was Shaz, our banner was Community, Kindness, Connection, and we called our featured locals the goodens — and twelve months with CPB Contractors on the Mindyarra Rail Maintenance Facility, procuring Aboriginal artwork alongside the First Nations Working Party, the Land Council, Orana Arts and the artists.
Shining a light on others and increasing the impact of work that makes a difference has helped form my ikigai — and is the driving Better Together principle of Social Gain.
Events and projects, built to last.
In 2023 I renamed Sydney Writer to Social Gain. From International Women's Day 2024 we built the Dubbo Women's Festival, now grown into The Orana Woman, a year-round platform, and the Orana Every Woman Festival each March. It earned a mention in Hansard. Around it sit Town Telly, Dubbo Slide Nights, Let's Taco'Bout It forums and Dubbo's Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever.
Right now I'm taking Social Gain through social enterprise certification exactly as it stands — events, projects and all — so the work outlasts the grants.
That's stage one. Where it's heading: three pillars, built on the three values underneath everything I do.