The Vape Lord of Queanbeyan

by Omar Musa

From the winner of the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Fiction 2026

Can you sever a shadow? Can you outswim the rising tide?

A monitor lizard in Borneo tries to convince a boy not to kill a mafia boss. An American scam artist and an aspiring K-pop star fall in love – without ever seeing each other’s faces. After Islam is banned, a man uses a time machine to visit ‘The Japanese Goebbels’. A suicidal Australian boxer is given one more chance at humanity.

The Vape Lord of Queanbeyan is an explosive collection of award-winning, surreal short stories. Characters across the globe confront the most human of struggles – grief, doubt, addiction, lost love and friendships that shape or betray them. From Bosnia to Borneo, the United States to Australia to Mars, these are stories where lizards talk, cars fly and humans become birds, Sufi mysticism and AI technology collide. A world where nothing is ever what it appears to be.

'The Vape Lord of Queanbeyan is a masterful story collection by one of Australia’s finest writers. To read Omar Musa is to be stirred and shaken – and loved.' Tony Birch

'Surreal, wry and arresting stories from an inventive imagination at full stretch.' Cate Kennedy

Genres: Short Stories

263 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 7, 2026

About the author

Omar Musa is a Malaysian-Australian rapper and poet from Queanbeyan,
Australia. He is the former winner of the Australian Poetry Slam and
the Indian Ocean Poetry Slam. He has released three hip hop albums,
two poetry books (including "Parang"), appeared on ABC's Q&A and
received a standing  ovation at TEDx Sydney at the Sydney Opera House.
His debut novel "Here Come the Dogs" was published by Penguin Australia in July 2014.

Reviews

[Houlcroft · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a gift it is to get to see an author absolutely body a new medium. Musa has moved from poetry to novels and now slides so seamlessly into the skin of Short Stories, not just writing them but playing with them, experimenting with form and voice, and honestly just having fun. Just an absolute treat for readers.
Musa’s stories follow on from his previous writing, exploring ideas of identity through a firmly Muslim focus which never strays too far from his hometown of Queanbeyan yet, contradictorily, takes us from Malaysia to Bosnia to New York and back again.
His voice is refreshingly contemporary while he grappling with these age old issues, coated in the constant sting of Syabu smoke and vape juice, and the background hum of AI data centres.

[Rozanna Lilley · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's so much to enjoy in this vibrant, heartfelt collection of short stories. Musa excels at depicting troubled masculinity and male camaraderie. The stories move mainly between Malaysia and Queanbeyan, both functioning as liminal, marginal spaces. Often there's an element of magic realism counterbalancing these tales of disenfranchised, troubled fringe tellers. I particularly enjoyed the TV-addicted lounge lizard. The question of how to be a modern Muslim is absolutely central to these transnational characters as they search for meaning and connection. Terrific stuff.

[Louise]

Wow. I didn’t really know what to expect from The Vape Lord of Queanbeyan, but I bought it sight unseen based on the title alone. And I’m so glad I did.

I loved this collection of eclectic short stories predominantly set in Australia and Malaysia, but occasionally skipping to Bosnia or America. Naturally the Australian stories resonated with me the most. Locations I know very well. Queanbeyan (not so much specifically but as representative of any nondescript generic small town Australia), Sydney and Canberra, but peopled with those that I don’t know as well. Vape lords yes, but also widowed Arabic women with a fondness for blue tongues, and the special community of a mosque.

I know that I would enjoy rereading this collection and will hope to get to do that one day. I suspect it will serve as my gateway drug for Musa. I now feel emboldened to try his 2016 Miles Franklin winning Fierceland, which felt intimidating before.

[Karney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. I don't normally read books with lots of short stories.
While some wasnt really for me, there was some that were just masterpieces.
I loved the undertones of the stories.

[Lehan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The name of the book alone warrants 5 stars, but Musa’s poetics are beautiful in short story form, with an amazing breadth and diversity of story, setting, and perspectives