Will Elliott (born 1979) is an Australian horror and
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...
writer living in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
, Queensland. He currently tutors at the University of the Sunshine Coast.
Profile
Elliott dropped out of a law degree at the age of 20 when he developed
schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social withdra ...
. His first
novel
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...
, ''
The Pilo Family Circus
''The Pilo Family Circus'' is a 2006 horror novel by Will Elliott.
Plot
It follows the story of Jamie, who, after a random incident of nearly hitting a clown with his car, finds himself being stalked by three sadistic clowns.
Background
''T ...
,'' concerns a young man who struggles with an
alter ego
An alter ego (Latin for "other I", " doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a differen ...
who appears when he dons
clown
A clown is a person who performs comedy and arts in a state of open-mindedness using physical comedy, typically while wearing distinct makeup or costuming and reversing folkway-norms.
History
The most ancient clowns have been found in ...
face paint; Elliott has said the novel is not autobiographical. ''The Pilo Family Circus'' was published in Australia in 2006 after winning the inaugural
ABC Fiction Award The ABC Fiction Award was an Australian literary award presented annually to the best, original, unpublished, adult fiction manuscript, written by an Australian resident over the age of 18. It was launched in 2005. The aim of the award was "to encou ...
(sponsored by
ABC Books
An alphabet book is a type of children's book giving basic instruction in an alphabet. Intended for young children, alphabet books commonly use pictures, simple language and alliteration to aid language learning. Alphabet books are published ...
). The novel went on to win the
Aurealis Award
The Aurealis Award for Excellence in Speculative Fiction is an annual literary award for Australian science fiction, fantasy and horror fiction. Only Australians are eligible for the award.
History
The Aurealis Award was established in 1995 by ...
(co-winner: Best Horror novel, plus the Golden Aurealis Award),Aurealis Awards winners archive Retrieved 16 September 2007. the
Australian Shadows Award
The Australian Shadows Awards are annual literary awards established by the Australian Horror Writers Association (AHWA) in 2005 to honour the best published works of horror fiction written or edited by an Australian/New Zealand/Oceania resident ...
, the
Ditmar Award
The Ditmar Award (formally the Australian SF ("Ditmar") Award; formerly the "Australian Science Fiction Achievement Award") has been awarded annually since 1969 at the Australian National Science Fiction Convention (the "Natcon") to recognise a ...
(Best Novel), ''
The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
's'' "Best Young Novelist Award" for 2007 and the 'Premios Nocte' Best Foreign Book Award 2011. ''The Pilo Family Circus'' was also short-listed for the 2007
International Horror Guild Award
The International Horror Guild Award (also known as the IHG Award) was an accolade recognizing excellence in the field of Horror fiction, horror/dark fantasy, presented by the International Horror Guild (IHG) from 1995 to 2008.
The IHG Awards wer ...
for Best Novel.International Horror Guild Award 2007 shortlist. /ref> ''The Pilo Family Circus'' was picked North American distribution by Victoria Blake's new publishing company,
Underland Press
Underland Press is a publishing company founded by Victoria Blake, a writer and the former prose editor for Dark Horse Comics. Underland Press was sold to Resurrection House in September 2013.
Debut authors for ''Underland Press'' included: Bra ...
and debuted there in 2009. A sequel, entitled "The Pilo Traveling Circus", has appeared.
The Pendulum Trilogy, a fantasy trilogy made up of ''Pilgrim'', ''Shadow'' and ''World's End'' was published between 2010 and 2011 (on two separate dates) by HarperCollins Publishers Australia. Elliott has expressed disappointment with this series. He said that it was written in difficult personal circumstances, and that it is "not the kind of fiction he should be writing". The trilogy still received a positive critical response from reviewers.
Elliott's dark humor fantasy ''Nightfall'' was published in Australia in 2012. A standalone comic fantasy, "Inside Out" was published in October, 2013.
Elliott's short stories include his first published short fiction, "Ain't no ordinary ham", published in the September 2006 issue of ''Griffith Review''. It was reprinted in '' Best Australian Stories 2006'', ed.
Robert Drewe
Robert Duncan Drewe (born 9 January 1943) is an Australian novelist, non-fiction and short story writer.
Biography
Robert Drewe was born on 9 January 1943 in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria. At the age of six, he moved with his family ...
( Black Ink, 2006). "Pre-emptive Strike" was published in the 2007 volume. ''Happy Endings'', a short story collection, was published in May 2013 as an E-book.
A memoir, "Strange Places" was released in Australia in 2009. It detailed Elliott's experiences with schizophrenia and the development of his writing career. It was short-listed for the
Clive Barker
Clive Barker (born 5 October 1952) is an English novelist, playwright, author, film director, and visual artist who came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories, the ''Books of Blood'', which established him as a leading h ...
,
Tristan Egolf
Tristan Egolf (December 19, 1971 – May 7, 2005) was an American novelist, author, and political activist.
Early life
Egolf was born in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain. His father, Brad Evans, was a ''National Review'' journalist and his ...
,
Jasper Fforde
Jasper Fforde (born 11 January 1961) is an English novelist, whose first novel, ''The Eyre Affair'', was published in 2001. He is known mainly for his ''Thursday Next'' novels, but has published two books in the loosely connected ''The Big Over ...
,
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
Mervyn Peake
Mervyn Laurence Peake (9 July 1911 – 17 November 1968) was an English writer, artist, poet, and illustrator. He is best known for what are usually referred to as the '' Gormenghast'' books. The four works were part of what Peake conceived ...
, and
George Saunders
George Saunders (born December 2, 1958) is an American writer of short stories, essays, novellas, children's books, and novels. His writing has appeared in ''The New Yorker'', '' Harper's'', ''McSweeney's'', and '' GQ''. He also contributed a w ...
The Pilo Family Circus
''The Pilo Family Circus'' is a 2006 horror novel by Will Elliott.
Plot
It follows the story of Jamie, who, after a random incident of nearly hitting a clown with his car, finds himself being stalked by three sadistic clowns.
Background
''T ...
Ditmar Award
The Ditmar Award (formally the Australian SF ("Ditmar") Award; formerly the "Australian Science Fiction Achievement Award") has been awarded annually since 1969 at the Australian National Science Fiction Convention (the "Natcon") to recognise a ...
, Best Novel (2007)
*
Australian Shadows Award
The Australian Shadows Awards are annual literary awards established by the Australian Horror Writers Association (AHWA) in 2005 to honour the best published works of horror fiction written or edited by an Australian/New Zealand/Oceania resident ...
(2007)
*Golden
Aurealis Award
The Aurealis Award for Excellence in Speculative Fiction is an annual literary award for Australian science fiction, fantasy and horror fiction. Only Australians are eligible for the award.
History
The Aurealis Award was established in 1995 by ...
, Best Novel (2007)
*Aurealis Award, Horror novel, ''co-winner with Edwina Grey's
Prismatic
An optical prism is a transparent optical element with flat, polished surfaces that are designed to refract light. At least one surface must be angled — elements with two parallel surfaces are ''not'' prisms. The most familiar type of optical ...
'' (2007)
*"Best Young Novelist Award", ''
The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'' (2007)
*
ABC Fiction Award The ABC Fiction Award was an Australian literary award presented annually to the best, original, unpublished, adult fiction manuscript, written by an Australian resident over the age of 18. It was launched in 2005. The aim of the award was "to encou ...
(2006)
* Nocte Award Best Foreign Book Award (2011).
Nominations
*
International Horror Guild Award
The International Horror Guild Award (also known as the IHG Award) was an accolade recognizing excellence in the field of Horror fiction, horror/dark fantasy, presented by the International Horror Guild (IHG) from 1995 to 2008.
The IHG Awards wer ...