ReadFin Literary Journal (Winter 2018)

Author Biographies
Organised by author’s surname
Robert Bennett
Robert Bennett is a writer, editor and illustrator who revels
in the unusual and absurd aspects of life. While studying
creative writing, Robert realized that he was a postmodernist
with leanings towards speculative fiction. As a result, Robert’s
work is informed by far too much television and eclectic
tastes in books, films and the arts. Robert proudly wears his
eccentricities like a hair shirt.
This book examines a number of Australian writers and their
seminal works including Helen Garner’s Monkey Grip. Don
Watson featured an excerpt from Chester’s book Hail & Farewell!
in his 2016 literary collection A Single Tree: Voices from the Bush
which explores European settlement in Australia. In 1984,
Chester issued his first self-published book The Garden Gate
and since then has written and self-published over twenty-five
books and twenty-nine mini mags.
Anna Bilbrough
Anna Bilbrough is a writer and editor based in Melbourne and
Ballarat. Anna’s fiction work has been published in Yarra Bend
Press’s 2017 anthology, The Last Word. She also worked as an
editor on The Last Word. Anna’s non-fiction work from her 2017
travels to Iceland will be published in a cultural guide in 2018
by Global Treks and Adventures. More of Anna’s writing can be
found at: annabilbrough.blogspot.com.au/
Michael Freundt
Michael Freundt is an Australian writer living in Bali,
Indonesia. He publishes on the Tablo platform (tablo.io) out
of Melbourne and blogs about reading and writing. He holds a
creative writing Master’s degree and writes long and short form
fiction, play scripts, and poetry when the mood takes him. A
novel How to be a Good Veronica and the short story collection My
Brother, My Love & Other Stories can be found in iBooks. You can
find Michael at: michaelkfreundt.wordpress.com/
Adam Casey
Dr Adam Casey has been writing and publishing his short
stories, poetry and critical essays for over 20 years, and is
working on his second novel. He is currently the Head of
Program for the Master of Creative Industries at Melbourne
Polytechnic.
Terry Chapman
Terry Chapman had three fun years doing the Bachelor of
Writing and Publishing at Melbourne Polytechnic from 2012.
He met lots of good people and learnt a lot about the many
facets of the writing game. Some of what he learnt ended up
in the self publication of a memoir-based anthology of his
short stories, just in from the printers. As much as he loves
writing, he also loves his three boys (now life-sized teens) and
they need feeding and stuff. So he is still teaching in central
Vic, still scribbling bits and pieces, still wondering what is the
great Australian novel.
Liddy Clark
By profession Liddy works in communications in the local
government sector. A nice follow-on from her time as member
of parliament in Queensland. Her background is in the theatre
and it was her time in the business of show that sparked her
interest in writing. Her novella When the Train Doesn’t Fit the
Platform is with a literary agent ready to go to the highest bidder
She is currently the Melbourne reviewer for Stagenoise at: www.
stagenoise.com/
Nicola Miller
Nicola Horgan is an emerging writer (who likes to use the pen
name, Nicola Miller) and editor who completed the Bachelor
of Writing and Publishing in 2017, and worked as Senior
Editor on The Last Word anthology. Nicola enjoys, and likes
to think she’s pretty decent at, writing short stories, memoir
pieces, conducting interviews and editing. Nicola is also a
self described cat lady who loves to support the terrible heavy
drinking writer stereotype by drinking a lot of cheap wine and
reading, mostly at the same time.
Amanda Kennedy
Amanda Kennedy lives in Melbourne, Australia with her two
cats and her partner. She loves reading, writing, movies and
has been hooked on stories from her earliest days. Kennedy also
creates art – mostly paintings and mostly of women. She has
started podcasting but she plans to work on that more. She is
up for collaborations of any types because she likes working
towards realising ideas with other people. Get in contact if you
feel like it: Artbyamandakennedy.wordpress.com/
Amanda Kontos
Mandi is a writer, writing practice coach, dreamer and Master’s
student empowering the writerly insides of those who choose
to show up at their keyboards. She is breaking internal editors,
sabotages and procrastinators to bring writing into the lives of
everyday women and men to help them feel at home inside their
haven created by a writing practice that empowers them to get
the most out of their lives.
Chester Eagle
In 1971, Heinemann Australia released Chester Eagle’s first novel
Hail and Farewell!: an evocation of Gippsland. He has subsequently
authored another six commercially published books including
Mapping the Paddocks published in 1985 by Penguin, and then,
in 2008, The Well in the Shadow published by Transit Lounge.
Martin Markus
Martin Markus is a social worker who is passionate about
mental health issues and writing. He one day hopes to publish a
book on his experiences working with refugees and prisoners.
68
ReadFin Literary Journal