Lovely news–Bold Ben Hall has been longlisted for the 2025 ARA Historical Novel Prize, in the children’s and young adult category! And it is in such excellent company, too!
Bold Ben Hall longlisted for 2025 ARA Historical Novel Prize!
Awards
Bold Ben Hall shortlisted for NSW History Awards!
Big news: I am absolutely thrilled to announce that my historical novel for middle-grade readers, Bold Ben Hall (Walker Books), has been shortlisted for the 2025 NSW History Awards, in the Young People’s Category.
Such exciting news and such lovely and delightfully unexpected recognition for this novel which I so much enjoyed writing and researching!
Thank you so much to the judges and the State Library, and congratulations to all fellow shortlistees!
Many thanks also to my wonderful agent, Margaret Connolly, and to the fabulous team at Walker Books! And special thanks to Clare Hallifax, former publisher at Walker Books, who never forgot a conversation we had about Ben Hall years ago 
The full shortlist for the Awards has just been publicly announced by the State Library of NSW, and you can find all the details here: https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/news/shortlists-announced-2025-nsw-history-awards
Photos courtesy of the State Library of NSW.
A new project for the new year..
Delighted to say that I’ve just heard that I’ve been awarded a Small Project Quick Response Grant from Create NSW, to work in the new year on a fabulous project: the first draft of a short adult novel (around 30,000–35,000 words), intended for the audio format, which I will write over the first four months of the year. As I write it, I’m also going to be documenting its creation through a series of posts on this blog. More soon about the book itself!
It’s going to be such a fun project, an exciting challenge to try my hand at something different, and I am so looking forward to it! And I’m very grateful to Create NSW for their generous support.
Shortlistings for two of my picture books!
I’m thrilled to announce that two of my recent picture books have been shortlisted for the 2020 Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Awards!
They are There’s A Tiger Out There, illustrated by Ruth Waters and published by Little Hare, which was shortlisted in the Birth to Three Years category; and and Join the Armidale Parade, illustrated by Kathy Creamer and published by Little Pink Dog Books, shortlisted in the Five to Eight Years category.
The Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Awards are announced every year and aim to promote quality Australian books that help children get the best, most literate start in life.
Each book is judged on its appeal to children, interactive quality and ability to assist speech pathologists and parents in communication and literacy development.
Winners are announced in November.
Feathers of the Firebird 