Australian Women Writers

Australian actress Isla Fisher attained widespread fame in 2005 when she starred in the commercially successful Hollywood film Wedding Crashers. Some of her other notable films are The Great Gatsby, Now You See Me, I Heart Huckabees, Bachelorette, Rango and Rise of the Guardians. She has also acted in television series and is an author of children’s books.

Australian author and feminist Germaine Greer made headlines with her first book, The Female Eunuch, which focused on female sexuality. Greer’s career boasts of a PhD in literature, and she has also taught at the University of Warwick and other institutes. She was later named an Australian National Living Treasure.

Liane Moriarty is an Australian author best known for writing the New York Times bestseller Big Little Lies. The book was later adapted into a TV series for HBO. Prior to becoming a famous author, she worked at a legal publishing company. She has also worked as a freelance advertising copywriter.  Her siblings Jaclyn and Nicola are also authors. 

Australian author Colleen McCullough soared to fame with her bestselling novel The Thorn Birds, which was also made into a hit miniseries. Fans also lover her Masters of Rome and Carmine Delmonico series of novels. A former neuropsychologist, she has previously taught at the Yale School of Medicine.

Silvia Colloca is an Italian-Australian actress, cookbook author, opera singer, and TV cookery show personality.  An opera-trained mezzo-soprano, she worked in musical theater before becoming an actress. She later created her own TV cookery shows that earned her much international prominence. She also runs a successful YouTube channel in collaboration with Marion Grasby.  

Lindy Chamberlain-Creighton is a New Zealand-born woman who was wrongfully accused of killing her nine-week-old daughter, Azaria. The child went missing when her family was on a camping trip, and Lindy was accused of killing the child after Azaria’s bloody clothes were found. She was later officially pardoned by the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory. 

Rhonda Byrne, noted Australian television writer-producer, was introduced to the New Thought Movement when she read The Science of Getting Rich. It resulted in the production of a pseudoscientific documentary film called The Secret, which was followed in the same year by a bestselling eponymous book. Today she has six titles her credit, which together forms The Secret Book Series.

Robyn Davidson is an Australian writer best known for her book Tracks, in which she wrote about her 2,700 km (1,700 miles) trek across the deserts of Western Australia using camels. As a teenager, she lived a bohemian life and has since traveled across the world. Her book Tracks won the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award in 1980. 

Susan Powter moved from Australia to the U.S. with her parents at 10. While coping with her first divorce, she had gained weight, which eventually motivated her to become a fitness enthusiast. Now a prominent nutritionist, fitness blogger, and talk-show host, she is known for her catchphrase "Stop the Insanity!"

Judith Wright was an Australian environmentalist, poet, and campaigner for Indigenous land rights. Wright is credited with founding one of the earliest environmental conservation movements in Australia. Best remembered for her poetry skills, Judith Wright won the prestigious Christopher Brennan Award in 1976. In 1991, she was honored with the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry.

Kerry Greenwood is an Australian author and lawyer who writes children’s books, mystery, science fiction, and historical fiction. She is best known for her series of historical detective novels about the fictional character Phryne Fisher. She has a law degree and worked full-time as a criminal defense lawyer before becoming a professional writer. She has won a Davitt Award.

Australian-British writer Kathy Lette initially gained fame with the book Puberty Blues, which was made into a movie and a series. She then became a sitcom writer. Known for her bestsellers such as The Boy Who Fell to Earth and How to Kill Your Husband, Kathy is a true-blue feminist.

While she initially pursued a degree in education, Julie Goodwin later quit and focused on youth work. The celebrity chef later won the first season of Masterchef Australia and has since penned cookbooks too. She is also a columnist and a singer, and has had her own cooking show, Home Cooked!

Mary Gilmore was an Australian writer and journalist. She wrote both prose and poetry and is recognized for her tremendous contribution to Australian literature. As a young woman, she became a school teacher and held utopian socialist views. She eventually started writing and gained fame as an author and poet later in life. 

Miles Franklin was an Australian feminist and writer best remembered for her 1901 novel My Brilliant Career. Franklin, who made immense contributions to Australian literature, was honored with the prestigious S. H. Prior Memorial Prize twice during her illustrious career. The Miles Franklin Award and the Stella Prize were established in her honor.

Oodgeroo Noonuccal was an Aboriginal Australian poet, political activist, artist, and educator. She became the first Aboriginal Australian to publish a book of verse. She emerged as a prominent political activist in the 1960s and campaigned for aboriginal rights. She was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire and won many literary awards.

Australian children’s author Merrion Frances Fox, better known as Mem Fox, has penned popular books such as Possum Magic and Time for Bed. She previously taught literacy studies at Flinders University. Her book Guess What? was listed on the U.S. list of the most challenged books.

Australian comedian, singer, and digital content creator Jordan Raskopoulos is best known as the lead vocalist of the comedy music act The Axis of Awesome. She also gained fame with The Ronnie Johns Half Hour and has hosted the podcast This is About. Openly transgender, she is also an LGBTQ icon.

Australian-born American author Shirley Hazzard is best known for her Lost Man Booker Prize-shortlisted book The Bay of Noon and the National Book Award-winning The Great Fire. She has also penned various non-fiction volumes on the United Nations, where she had worked as a typist for a decade.

Australian author Kate Grenville is best known for her Orange Prize-winning novel The Idea of Perfection and the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize-winning book The Secret River. She has previously also edited documentaries and taught creative writing. The Officer of the Order of Australia awardee has also earned several honorary doctorates.

Ruth Park was a New Zealand–born Australian writer whose works earned her numerous awards in both Australia and internationally between 1946 and 2004. She is perhaps best remembered for her 1948 novel The Harp in the South, which was translated into 37 languages. Also known as a children's writer, Ruth Park was honored with the prestigious Dromkeen Medal in 2008.

Catherine Helen Spence was a 19th-century Scottish-born Australian author, teacher, journalist, and politician. One of the leading suffragists of her era, she was also a minister of religion and social worker. She supported electoral proportional representation. Australian writer and feminist Miles Franklin called her the "Greatest Australian Woman". 

Sally Morgan is an Australian dramatist, author, and artist. Counted among the important Australian Aboriginal figures, Morgan is respected for her work and has been honored with several awards like Human Rights Literature and Other Writing Award. Her works are showcased in several public and private collections around the world. Morgan’s work is also displayed at the Australian National Gallery.

Dorothy Hewett was an Australian feminist poet, novelist, and playwright, often credited to be one of Australia's best-loved and most respected writers. She studied English at the University of Western Australia (UWA) and wrote for a Communist newspaper under a pseudonym. Over time, she established herself as a prominent author of feminist literature. She received the Christopher Brennan Award.

Pam Brown is an Australian poet and writer. A multi-talented woman, she worked in many jobs as a silkscreen printer, postal worker, and bookseller when young. Later on, she taught writing, multi-media studies, and film-making to students. She has also worked as a librarian. She is a recipient of the ALS Gold Medal, among other honors.