JACQUE DUFFY has written and illustrated seven children’s books in a series. These books were sought and purchased by the Queensland State Government and placed into schools and libraries. One book has been used by mental health groups as a counselling tool for children made homeless after numerous natural disasters in Australia and New Zealand. It has now been digitized by the Queensland Education Department for special needs children.

In 2014 her picture book, The Bear Said Please, will be released by Wombat books. This book is also to be used in the National Curriculum Grammar Strategies book in schools alongside books by Mem Fox, Jackie French, Jeannie Baker and Narelle Oliver.

Jacque is an active member of SCBWI and various writing and illustrating organisations in Australia and internationally. She is heavily involved in the literary and arts communities, attends and presents at conferences, festivals, television and radio interviews, and conducts workshops. Her artwork has won many major awards and is in galleries and private collections around the world.

KATHRYN FOX  is the award winning, internationally acclaimed bestselling author of six  forensic thrillers. Her books are published in over a dozen languages. Her first novel, Malicious Intent, won the 2005 Davitt award and was shortlisted for the Ned Kelly award for best debut crime novel.

A physician with a special interest in forensic medicine, Kathryn’s writing has been featured widely in newspapers and magazines. She has appeared extensively on TV and radio discussing the issues that inspire her stories.

Her seventh thriller, Fatal Impact, will be released April 2014.

 

SCOTT BAKER is a filmmaker who has recently returned from middle earth, working with Peter Jackson on his epic trilogy – ‘The Hobbit.’

From a young age, Scott was a storyteller, making up elaborate reasons why he wasn’t able to tidy his room when confronted by a sceptical mother. He moved from Yorkshire England to the blue mountains of NSW when he was three years old. He grew up learning martial arts, reading fantasy novels and watching movies at every opportunity. He spent his youth playing sports designing elaborate stories to shift the blame for anything that was done wrong onto his older brother.

After studying TV and film production at university, he worked as a consultant in the film industry before lecturing at the Australian National University in digital video. He moved to Canberra to train in the sport of Taekwondo with sights set on the 2004 Olympics, but injury would keep him out of the selections.

‘The Rule of Knowledge’ is Scott’s first novel. He is currently working on the development of two feature films and his second novel. He lives somewhere on the highway between Sydney and Canberra in a little red Hyundai Excel.

 

SHANE FOLEY has been drawing comics forever but it wasn’t until 1984 he was chosen as a top 30 finalist, worldwide, in a Marvel Comics Try Out competition.

Encouraged by this recognition of his skills as an illustrator and story-teller, he continued submitting and by the early 90s his comics were regularly published. He has created both comic strips and stand alone stories, as well as creating a full colour monthly strip. Since 2005 he has been a regular contributor to Alter Ego magazine, edited by Roy Thomas, the man most responsible for writing the Avengers and Conan the Barbarian.

Shane is a respected comic historian, especially knowledgeable about Jack Kirby, co-creator of the Marvel heroes and recognized as one of the greatest comic artists of all time. His abiding passion is for the unique medium of the comic, combining words and pictures into a cohesive story-telling whole and, thanks to the growth of the graphic novel, a medium which is fast entering a new ascendancy.

 

SHANNON CURTIS has worked in diverse roles such as office admin manager, customer service rep, logistics supervisor, distribution coordinator, dangerous goods handler, event planner, switch bitch and betting agent, and decided to try writing a story like those she loves to read when she found herself at home after the birth of her first child. Her first three books were shortlisted for Favourite Romantic Suspense for 2011, 2012, 2013 by the Australian Romance Readers Association. She is also the conference coordinator for Romance Writers of Australia’s 2014 Conference.

 

 

if:book Australia explores new forms of digital literature, investigates the changing connections between writers and readers, and demonstrates the challenges and opportunities for readers, writers and creative professionals at the intersection of technology and publishing. EMILY CRAVEN is Digital Producer at Queensland Writers Centre and freelance creative practitioner, and is passionate about ebooks and digital strategies for writers. Her latest comedy novel is set in Facebook.