Ben Walter, Adam Ouston, Robbie Arnott, Michael Blake
Adam Ousten
Four good friends who meet regularly to talk about writing have been shortlisted in the Tasmanian Premiers Literary Prizes, which will be announced at a function at Government House on Wednesday 2nd December.
Adam Ouston and Ben Walter are in contention for the University of Tasmania Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript, while Robbie Arnott and Michael Blake are up for the Tasmanian Young Writers Fellowship.
Ouston and Walter began meeting to edit each other’s work five years ago after working together at Fullers Bookshop. They were soon joined by Arnott, while Blake has been a more recent addition. In the years since, these four writers have become the most prominent new Tasmanian literary voices. They have also been published and/or won competitions nationwide, and all have been or are about to be featured in the Transportation anthologies by Tasmanian publisher Transportation Press. The publication record of these writers has been most recently recognised with their taking four of the seven shortlisting places available in the unpublished manuscript categories of the Premiers Literary Prizes.
‘Together, these two prizes – one longstanding, one fresh – offer young and emerging writers a platform to showcase their work, raise their profiles, and take their careers to the next level.’ – Ralph Crane
More information about the Premiers Literary Prizes is available at http://www.arts.tas.gov.au/industry_development/premiers_literary_prizes
Ben Walter’s work has appeared in most Australian literary publications and has in the last year been shortlisted for both the major fiction and poetry prizes run by Overland Magazine. His poetry manuscript, Lurching, was shortlisted for the Tasmanian Premier’s Literary Awards in 2013. His latest poetry manuscript, High Places, has been shortlisted for the 2015 University of Tasmania Prize.
Adam Ouston’s work has appeared in places such as The Canary Press, Southerly, Island Magazine, Voiceworks, Crikey, The Lifted Brow, Junkee, The Review of Australian Fiction, and the 2014 Transportation anthology. He is the recipient of the 2014 Erica Bell Literary Award for his manuscript The Party, which has also been shortlisted for the 2015 University of Tasmania Prize.
Robbie Arnott, who won the 2014 Scribe Nonfiction Prize for Young Writers, is a general annoyance and left-arm, medium-pace bowler.
Michael Blake is a writer of short fiction. He also teaches writing and prints t-shirts.
