2018 has been a bumper year for our team of creative writing presenters and alumni, publishing a whopping total of 43 books, including books of fiction and non-fiction in the genres of romance, historical fiction, fantasy, crime and mystery, thriller and suspense, Australiana and children. Here, in no particular order,
We are delighted to announce that AWC graduate Frances Chapman has won the prestigious Hardie Grant Egmont 2018 Ampersand Prize for her ‘vibrant’ debut YA novel, What it Takes. From the Hardie Grant website: Selected from nearly two hundred submissions, What It Takes is a beautifully written own-voices LGBTQ novel
Courses taken at AWC:
Creative Writing Stage 1
Advanced Fiction Writing Techniques
Novel Writing Essentials
Build Your Author Platform
Pitch Your Novel: How to Attract Agents and Publishers
We are thrilled to see AWC alumna and award-winning author Tamsin Janu shortlisted in 2018 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards Children’s fiction category for her book Figgy Takes the City. From the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards media release: The shortlists for this year’s Prime Minister’s Literary Awards have today been announced by
Courses taken at AWC:
Blogging for Beginners
Freelance Writing Stage 1
Travel Writing
Profile Writing
Ashleigh Mills wanted to combine her passion for cats, travel and freelance writing. So she took AWC’s courses in Blogging for Beginners, Travel Writing and Freelance Writing Stage 1. Then everything fell into place.
Courses taken at AWC:
Freelance Writing Stage 1
Copywriting Essentials
Travel Writing
Profile Writing
Courses taken at AWC:
Write Your Novel
Courses taken at AWC:
Freelance Writing Stage 1
Inside Publishing
(previously called How to Get your Book Published)
After self-publishing four novels and a series of eight illustrated children’s educational books on Amazon, Jaci Byrne decided that she wanted to get her books ‘traditionally published’.
A HUGE congratulations to AWC Creative Writing Stage 1 graduate, Sarah Bailey who has won the Ned Kelly Award for Best First Novel, The Dark Lake (2017 Allen & Unwin). The Dark Lake was a bestseller around the world and her suspenseful storytelling about a police procedural set in country
Courses taken at AWC:
Freelance Writing Stage 1
Travel Writing
How to Build a Successful Freelance Copywriting Business
Copywriting Essentials
Living with profound vision impairment (Graham is legally blind) and growing up prior to the advent of the adaptive technology that has so enriched his life today, Graham felt completely lost when it came to mainstream employment. He had finished a Certificate IV in Professional Writing & Editing qualification at Melbourne Polytechnic TAFE but felt it was geared predominantly to fiction writing. So he decided to enrol into AWC’s online Freelance Writing Stage 1 course, and has never looked back.
Courses taken at AWC:
Writing Picture Books
Congratulations to Australian Writers’ Centre Writing Picture Books graduate Mandy Foot for the publication of her second picture book, Lucy and Copper, with Hachette Australia.
AWC alumna Catherine Pelosi is kicking goals again with the publication of her second book this year. Something for Fleur is Catherine’s first picture book and it comes hot on the heels of her first junior fiction novel, Quark’s Academy.
So it’s been a big year for the author who completed the course How to Write for Children and Young Adults at the Australian Writers’ Centre.
Course taken at AWC:
Writing Picture Books
Maggie Hutchings’ determination to improve and keep writing until she was published has paid off, thanks to taking AWC’s Writing Picture Books course and the subsequent publication of her children’s book Unicorn! by Affirm Press.
Courses taken at AWC: Writing Picture Books Creative Writing Stage 1 Congratulations Lauren on the publication of baby + me!. A graduate of AWC’s Writing Picture Books and Creative Writing Stage 1 courses, Lauren is the author of this beautifully illustrated and thoughtfully written story book for soon-to-be big brothers and
Courses taken at AWC:
Freelance Writing Stage 1
Travel Writing
Copywriting Essentials
How to Write Media Releases
Mandy McKeesick completed the AWC Freelance Writing Stage 1 course with the aim of showcasing the Australian bush. Today she has a successful business working with both magazine and corporate clients doing just that!
Congratulations to AWC alumna Sarah Bailey who appeared in the Sun Herald and The Sunday Age. Sarah has just published her second book Into the Night (Allen & Unwin), a brazen murder with hundreds of witnesses and a case where no one can be trusted.
Sarah’s acclaimed debut novel The Dark Lake (2017) was a bestseller around the world and her taut and suspenseful storytelling earned her comparisons with authors such as Gillian Flynn and Paula Hawkins. In 2018 The Dark Lake was winner of the Davitt Award (Debut) award for best crime books written by Australian women.
AWC courses completed:
Writing Picture Books
How to Write for Children and Young Adults
Prolific children’s author Shelly Unwin is blasting onto bookshelves with her new picture book Blast Off!, which rockets through the solar system in a funny, fact-filled space trip around the planets.
AWC courses completed:
Creative Writing Stage 1
When Ali (on the right above) gave up her job in advertising at the age of 24 to travel the world, little did she realise it would culminate in an innovative career built around books and a two-book deal with Simon and Schuster Australia and The Book Ninja (Ali Berg & Michelle Kalus, 2018) in bookstores around the world. Ali and Michelle’s second novel, While You Were Reading followed in 2019, and their latest book Fancy Meeting You Here launched with rave reviews.
AWC courses completed:
Advanced Fiction Writing Techniques
Courses taken at AWC:
Creative Writing Stage 1
Novel Writing Essentials
History, Mystery and Magic
Blogging for Beginners
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