Marianne Musgrove

www.mariannemusgrove.com.au

South Australian author, Marianne Musgrove, writes novels and poetry for young people. For over a decade, she has been running lively and engaging workshops for primary and secondary students on the craft of book writing. With a wide selection of props and practical examples, Marianne describes her creative process, how she conducts research and interviews, how to blend fact and fiction, the art of plotting and characterisation, editing, title and cover art selection, and getting published. 

Drawing on her background as a social worker, she also runs Worry Coping, Resilience & Mindfulness Workshops for Everyday Kids based on her novel, The Worry Tree.

Marianne enjoys bringing to light the hidden stories in our community. Frieda is about a German girl who migrates to Adelaide in 1914. After WW1 breaks out, Frieda’s budding friendships are tested when her father is falsely accused of being a spy and is interned. Marianne’s current project, Blackbird, is the fictional story of the kidnapping (blackbirding) of a South Sea Islander boy in the 1880’s who is sent to work in the sugarcane fields of Queensland.

Garnering awards here and overseas, Marianne is winner of the 2007 Australian Family Therapists' Award for Children’s Literature (The Worry Tree), winner of the 2011 Swiss Prix Chronos (Don’t Breathe a Word), and was short-listed for the 2013 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards (The Beginner’s Guide to Revenge). In 2016, she became a May Gibbs Children’s Literature Trust fellow and a Max Fatchen fellow. In 2023, she is completing her upcoming blackbirding novel.

 A born storyteller, Marianne draws from her own experiences and imagination to captivate you in her presentation.’ – Lorraine P., librarian, Adelaide

‘Following Marianne’s visit, our students were much more enthusiastic about our creative writing assignments.’ – K.Persaud, teacher, Adelaide

Coming soon  

Blackbird  It's 1883 and a South Sea islander boy has been kidnapped by blackbirders and sold to Australian sugarcane plantation owners. His twin, Narua, must find his brother and bring him home.