Thea Astley was born in Brisbane in 1925. She was a teacher by profession. In 1958 Astley’s first novel, Girl with a Monkey, was published. Over the next four decades she published frequently. Astley won the Miles Franklin Literary Award for The Well Dressed Explorer (1962), her third novel. From the late 1960s until 1980, when she began to write full-time, Astley worked at Macquarie University. Astley won the 1989 Patrick White Award and became an Officer in the Order of Australia in 1992. Her last novel was Drylands (1999), her fourth Miles Franklin winner. A lifelong chain-smoker famed for her sharp wit, Thea Astley died in 2004. She remains one of the most distinctive and influential Australian novelists of the twentieth century.
Kate Grenville is one of Australia's best-known authors. Her books include the international best-seller The Secret River, The Idea of Perfection, The Lieutenant and Lilian's Story. Her novels have won many awards both in Australia and the UK, several have been made into major feature films, and all have been translated into European and Asian languages.
Andrew Bovell is a critically acclaimed Australian playwright and screenwriter. His theatre credits include Things I Know To Be True (Frantic Assembly and the State Theatre Company of South Australia, 2016); The Secret River (Sydney Theatre Company, 2013 Sydney Festival and 2016 national tour, winner of six Helpmann Awards including Best Play, as well as Best New Work Sydney Theatre Awards); When the Rain Stops Falling (Brink Production/State Theatre Company, 2008 Adelaide Festival, Almeida Theatre, Lincoln Centre NYC, winner of five Lucille Lortell Awards). Earlier works include Speaking in Tongues and Holy Day. Film credits include Strictly Ballroom, A Most Wanted Man, Edge of Darkness, Blessed, Lantana, and Head On.