Best-selling writer Stephanie Dowrick is returning to Radio National’s Life Matters from next Monday with a new six-part weekly series of conversations with presenter Geraldine Doogue. This follows their successful earlier series on “The Humane Virtues”, which evolved into Dowrick’s international bestseller “Forgiveness and Other Acts of Love”.

This new series,which will be heard at 9.30 am, looks at “self-love”, a topic that Dowrick promises has little to do with narcissism or self-esteem and a great deal to do with “socially relevant issues”. For example, what effect does religion and culture have on the ways we perceive ourselves? Do people’s view of themselves determine how much they can genuinely care about other people and look out for their interests?

As Dowrick says, “Most physical and psychological violence is committed by people who dislike or hate themselves. Yet self-love remains the love we ‘fear to name’ and rarely talk about. This series will explore the reasons why.”

Stephanie Dowrick is a New Zealand born publisher-turned writer and founder of the London publishing house The Women’s Press. As well as being a successful non-fiction writer on personal and social relationships, she is also a best-selling, acclaimed writer of fiction. She has been living in Sydney since 1983.