Gillian Mears (21 July 1964 – 16 May 2016) was an Australian

short story writer A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...

and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

. Her books ''Ride a Cock Horse'' and ''The Grass Sister'' won a

Commonwealth Writers' Prize Commonwealth Foundation presented a number of prizes between 1987 and 2011. The main award was called the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and was composed of two prizes: the Best Book Prize (overall and regional) was awarded from 1987 to 2011; the Best ...

, shortlist, in 1989 and 1996, respectively. ''The Mint Lawn'' won The Australian/Vogel Award. In 2003, ''A Map of the Gardens'' won the

Steele Rudd Award The Queensland Premier's Literary Awards were an Australian suite of literary awards inaugurated in 1999 and disestablished in 2012. It was one of the most generous suites of literary awards within Australia, with $225,000 in prize money across ...

Life

Mears was born at

Lismore Base Hospital Lismore Base Hospital is a major public teaching hospital in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, located in the city of Lismore. It has approximately 260 beds, and serves as the primary hospital and recognised trauma centre ...

, and raised in

Grafton, New South Wales Grafton ( Bundjalung-Yugambeh: Gumbin Gir) is a city in the Northern Rivers region of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is located on the Clarence River, approximately by road north-northeast of the state capital Sydney. The closest m ...

where she was school dux of Grafton High School. She moved to Sydney to study at university, beginning a degree in archaeology at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

having been inspired to pursue a career in archaeology after reading '' Gods, Graves and Scholars'' by

C. W. Ceram upright=.85, Original German cover of ''Gods, Graves and Scholars: The Story of Archaeology'' (1949)C. W. Ceram (20 January 1915 – 12 April 1972) was the pseudonym of German journalist, editor at Rowohlt Verlag, and author Kurt Wilhelm Marek ...

. At the age of 18, she withdrew from the course, and instead completed a degree in communications at

University of Technology, Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Although its origins are said to trace back to the 1830s, the university was founded in its current form in 1988. As of 2021 ...

. She lived near

. She died in May 2016 after living with multiple sclerosis for seventeen years.

Bernadette Brennan Bernadette is a French name, a female form of the name Bernard, which means "brave bear". Notable persons with the name include: People * Bernadette (singer) (born 1959), Dutch singer * Bernadette Allen (born 1956), American foreign service of ...

has written a biography of Gillian Mears.

Awards and honours

* 1989

, shortlist, ''Ride a Cock Horse'' * 1990

The Australian/Vogel Literary Award ''The Australian''/Vogel Literary Award is an Australian literary award for unpublished manuscripts by writers under the age of 35. The prize money, currently A$20,000, is the richest and most prestigious award for an unpublished manuscript in ...

, winner, ''The Mint Lawn'' * 1996

, shortlist, ''The Grass Sister'' * 2003

, winner, ''A Map of the Gardens'' * 2011

Colin Roderick Award The Colin Roderick Award is presented annually by the Foundation for Australian Literary Studies at Queensland's James Cook University for "the best book published in Australia which deals with any aspect of Australian life". It was first presented ...

, winner, ''

Foal's Bread ''Foal's Bread'' is a 2011 novel by Australian author Gillian Mears. It was the winner of the 2012 ALS Gold Medal, the Age Book of the Year for Fiction, the Prime Minister's Literary Award for Fiction, and the Victorian Premier's Literary Award f ...

'' * 2012

Barbara Jefferis Award The Barbara Jefferis Award is an Australian literary award prize. The award was created in 2007 after being endowed by John Hinde upon his death to commemorate his late wife, author Barbara Jefferis. It is funded by his $1 million bequest. Origi ...

, shortlist,

'' * 2012

Miles Franklin Award The Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize awarded to "a novel which is of the highest literary merit and presents Australian life in any of its phases". The award was set up according to the will of Miles Franklin (1879–195 ...

, shortlist, ''

'' * 2012 Australian Literature Society,

Gold Medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

, ''

'' * 2012

Prime Minister's Literary Awards The Australian Prime Minister's Literary Awards (PMLA) were announced at the end of 2007 by the incoming First Rudd ministry following the 2007 election. They are administered by the Minister for the Arts.Foal's Bread ''Foal's Bread'' is a 2011 novel by Australian author Gillian Mears. It was the winner of the 2012 ALS Gold Medal, the Age Book of the Year for Fiction, the Prime Minister's Literary Award for Fiction, and the Victorian Premier's Literary Award f ...

Works

Novels

*''The Mint Lawn'', Allen & Unwin, 1991, *''The Grass Sister'', Alfred A. Knopf, 1995, *''

'', Allen & Unwin, 2011,

Short stories

*''Ride a Cock Horse'' Pascoe Publishing, 1988, * *''Collected stories'', University of Queensland Press, 1997, *''A map of the gardens: stories'', Pan Macmillan Australia, 2002,

Non-fiction

*''Paradise is a place'', Photographer Sandy Edwards, Random House Australia, 1997,

Essays

*''Alive in Ant and Bee '' *
Fairy Death
''

Children's book

*''The Cat with the Coloured Tail'', Walker Books, 2015, (illustrated by Dinale Dabarera)

References

External links

* * 1964 births 2016 deaths Australian women short story writers Writers from New South Wales University of Sydney alumni University of Technology Sydney alumni Australian women novelists 20th-century Australian novelists 21st-century Australian novelists 20th-century Australian women writers 21st-century Australian women writers ALS Gold Medal winners People from Grafton, New South Wales Deaths from multiple sclerosis 20th-century Australian short story writers 21st-century Australian short story writers {{Australia-writer-stub

Life

Awards and honours

Works

Novels

Short stories

Non-fiction

Essays

Children's book

References

Further reading

External links