1994 in Australian literature

This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 1994.

Events

• Rodney Hall (writer) won the Miles Franklin Award for The Grisly Wife

Major publications

Novels

• Thea Astley — Coda
• Lily Brett — Just Like That ^[1]
• Peter Carey — The Unusual Life of Tristan Smith
• Helen Demidenko – The Hand That Signed the Paper
• Richard Flanagan — Death of a River Guide
• Kate Grenville — Dark Places
• Adib Khan — Seasonal Adjustments
• Drusilla Modjeska — The Orchard ^[2]
• Tim Winton — The Riders

Short stories

• Marian Eldridge — The Wild Sweet Flowers ^[3]
• Lucy Sussex – The Lottery : Nine Science Fiction Stories (edited) ^[4]

Science fiction and fantasy

• Greg Egan — Permutation City
• Sean McMullen – Voices in the Light ^[5]
• George Turner – Genetic Soldier ^[6]

Crime and mystery

• Jon Cleary – Autumn Maze
• Peter Corris
  • Casino ^[7]
  • Get Even ^[8]
  • The Time Trap ^[9]
• Marele Day – The Disappearances of Madalena Grimaldi ^[10]
• Garry Disher – Crosskill ^[11]
• Kerry Greenwood – Blood and Circuses ^[12]
• Nicholas Hasluck – A Grain of Truth ^[13]
• Barry Maitland – The Marx Sisters ^[14]
• Shane Maloney – Stiff ^[15]
• Dorothy Porter — The Monkey's Mask ^[16]

Children's and young adult fiction

• Pamela Allen — Clippity-Clop
• Gary Crew — The Watertower
• Mem Fox — Tough Boris
• Jackie French — Somewhere Around the Corner

Poetry

• Robert Adamson — Waving to Hart Crane ^[17]
• Bruce Beaver — Anima and Other Poems ^[18]
• Peter Boyle — Coming Home from the World ^[19]
• Dorothy Hewett — Peninsula ^[20]
• Rhyll McMaster — Flying the Coop: New and Selected Poems 1972-1994 ^[21]
• Jan Owen — Night Rainbows ^[22]

Drama

• Beatrix Christian — Blue Murder
• Michael Gow — Sweet Phoebe
• Hannie Rayson — Falling From Grace ^[23]
• David Williamson — Sanctuary

Non-fiction

• John Birmingham — He Died with a Felafel in His Hand
• Gillian Bouras — Aphrodite and the Others ^[24]
• Robert Dessaix — A Mother's Disgrace ^[25]
• Tim Flannery — The Future Eaters
• Jan Ruff O'Herne — Fifty Years of Silence
• Susan Varga — Heddy and Me ^[26]
• Donna Williams — Somebody Somewhere

Awards and honours

• Patsy Adam-Smith AO "for service to community history, particularly through the preservation of national traditions and folklore and recording of oral histories" ^[27]
• Laurie Hergenhan AO "for service to Australian literary scholarship and to education" ^[28]
• Joan Phipson AM "for service to children's literature" ^[29]
• Judith Rodriguez AM "for service to Australian literature, particularly in the area of poetry" ^[30]

Lifetime achievement

Award	Author
Christopher Brennan Award [31]	Judith Rodriguez
Patrick White Award [32]	Dimitris Tsaloumas

Literary

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
The Age Book of the Year Award [33]	Peter Carey	The Unusual Life of Tristan Smith	University of Queensland Press
ALS Gold Medal [34]	Louis Nowra	Radiance and The Temple	Currency Press
Colin Roderick Award [35]	Patrick Buckridge	The Scandalous Penton: A Biography of Brian Penton	University of Queensland Press
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards – Book of the Year [36]	Adib Khan	Seasonal Adjustments	Allen and Unwin
Nita Kibble Literary Award [37]	Marion Halligan	Lovers' Knots	Heinemann
Western Australian Premier's Book Awards – Book of the Year [38]	Dorothy Hewett	Peninsula	Fremantle Arts Centre Press

Fiction

International

Award	Category	Author	Title	Publisher
Commonwealth Writers' Prize [39]	Best Novel, SE Asia and South Pacific region	David Malouf	Remembering Babylon	Random House
	Best First Novel, SE Asia and South Pacific region	Fotini Epanomitis	The Mule's Foal	Allen & Unwin

National

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature [40]	Frank Moorhouse	Grand Days	William Heinemann
The Age Book of the Year Award [33]	Peter Carey	The Unusual Life of Tristan Smith	University of Queensland Press
The Australian/Vogel Literary Award [41]	Darren Williams	Swimming in Silk	Allen and Unwin
Miles Franklin Award [42]	Rodney Hall	The Grisly Wife	Macmillan
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards [36]	Adib Khan	Seasonal Adjustments	Allen and Unwin
Victorian Premier's Literary Awards [43]	John A. Scott	What I Have Written	McPhee Gribble
Western Australian Premier's Book Awards [38]	Joan London	Letter to Constantine	Fremantle Arts Centre Press

Poetry

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature [40]	Andrew Lansdown	Between Glances	Fremantle Arts Centre Press
The Age Book of the Year Award [33]	Dorothy Porter	The Monkey's Mask	Hyland House
Anne Elder Award [44]	Not awarded
Grace Leven Prize for Poetry [45]	Not awarded
Mary Gilmore Award [46]	Deborah Staines	Now, Millenium	Spinifex Press
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards [36]	Barry Hill	Ghosting William Buckley	Heinemann
Victorian Premier's Literary Awards [43]	Robert Gray	Certain Things	Heinemann
Western Australian Premier's Book Awards [38]	Dorothy Hewett	Peninsula	Fremantle Arts Centre Press

Children and Young Adult

Award	Category	Author	Title	Publisher
Children's Book of the Year Award [47]	Older Readers	Isobelle Carmody	The Gathering	Penguin Books
		Gary Crew	Angel's Gate	Heinemann
	Picture Book	Gary Crew & Peter Gouldthorpe	First Light	Lothian
New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards [36]	Young People's Literature	Ursula Dubosarsky	The White Guinea Pig	Viking Books
Victorian Premier's Prize for Young Adult Fiction [43]		Ursula Dubosarsky	The White Guinea-Pig	Viking Books

Science fiction and fantasy

Award	Category	Author	Title	Publisher
Australian SF Achievement Award [48]	Best Australian Long Fiction	George Turner	The Destiny Makers	Morrow
	Best Australian Short Fiction	Leanne Frahm	"Catalyst"	Terror Australis

Non-fiction

Award	Author	Title	Publisher
Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature [40]	Susan Maushart	Sort of a Place Like Home: Remembering the Moore River Native Settlement	Fremantle Arts Centre Press
The Age Book of the Year Award [33]	Jim Davidson	Lyrebird Rising	Melbourne University Press

Births

A list, ordered by date of birth (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of births in 1994 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of death.

• 18 April — Alexandra Adornetto, actress and author who writes for children and young adults ^[49]
• 25 June — Robbie Coburn, poet ^[50]

Deaths

A list, ordered by date of death (and, if the date is either unspecified or repeated, ordered alphabetically by surname) of deaths in 1994 of Australian literary figures, authors of written works or literature-related individuals follows, including year of birth.

• 28 January — Frank Hardy, novelist, best known for Power Without Glory (born 1917) ^[51]
• 7 February — Rosemary Wighton, literary editor, author and advisor to the South Australian government on women's affairs (born 1925) ^[52]
• 29 May — Nene Gare, writer and artist, best known for The Fringe Dwellers (born 1919) ^[53]
• 7 September — James Clavell, novelist, screenwriter, director, and World War II veteran and prisoner of war (born 1921) ^[54]
• 9 September — Hugh Atkinson (novelist), novelist, journalist, screenwriter and documentary film maker (born 1921) ^[55]
• 16 December — Mary Durack, author and historian (born 1913) ^[56]

See also

• 1994 in Australia
• 1994 in literature
• 1994 in poetry
• List of years in literature
• List of years in Australian literature

References

1. "Just Like That by Lily Brett". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
2. "The Orchard by Drusilla Modjeska". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
3. "The Wild Sweet Flowers by". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
4. "The Lottery : Nine Science Fiction Stories edited by Lucy Sussex". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
5. "Voices in the Light by Sean McMullen". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
6. "Genetic Soldier by George Turner". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
7. "Casino by Peter Corris". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
8. "Get Even by Peter Corris". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
9. "The Time Trap by Peter Corris". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
10. "The Disappearances of Madalena Grimaldi by Marele Day". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
11. "Crosskill by Garry Disher". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
12. "Blood and Circuses by Kerry Greenwood". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
13. "A Grain of Truth by Nicholas Hasluck". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
14. "The Marx Sisters by Barry Maitland". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
15. "Stiff by Shane Maloney". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
16. "The Monkey's Mask by Dorothy Porter". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
17. "Waving to Hart Crane by Robert Adamson". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
18. "Anima and Other Poems by Bruce Beaver". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
19. "Coming Home from the World by Peter Boyle". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
20. "Peninsula by Dorothy Hewett". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
21. "Flying the Coop: New and Selected Poems 1972-1994 by Rhyll McMaster". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
22. "Night Rainbows by Jan Owen". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
23. "Falling From Grace by Hannie Rayson". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
24. "Aphrodite and the Others by Gillian Bouras". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
25. "A Mother's Disgrace by Robert Dessaix". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
26. "Heddy and Me by Susan Varga". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
27. "Patricia Jean Adam-Smith, OBE". honours.pmc.gov.au. Archived from the original on 25 December 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
28. "Professor Laurence Thomas Hergenhan". honours.pmc.gov.au. Archived from the original on 11 December 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
29. "Joan Margaret Phipson". honours.pmc.gov.au. Archived from the original on 25 December 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
30. "Judith Catherine Rodriguez". honours.pmc.gov.au. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
31. "Austlit — FAW Christopher Brennan Award". Austlit. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
32. "Austlit — Patrick White Award - Past Winners". Austlit. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
33. ""Carey wins 'The Age' Book of the Year with the help of Tristan Smith"". The Age, 3 December 1994, p3. ProQuest   2521772149 . Retrieved 28 May 2024.
34. "ALS Gold Medal — Previous Winners". Association for the Study of Australian Literature. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
35. "Colin Roderick Award - Other Winners". James Cook University. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
36. "Adib cooks himself a winner". Sydney Morning Herald, 1 October 1994, p11. ProQuest   2527414236 . Retrieved 8 May 2024.
37. "Kibble Literary Award". Australian National University . 9 June 2009. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
38. ""Prodigal poet homoured"". The Sydney Morning Herald, 21 October 1994, p14. ProQuest   2527564281 . Retrieved 14 September 2025.
39. "Commonwealth Writers' Prize Regional Winners 1987-2007" (PDF). Commonwealth Foundation. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
40. "Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature – Past Literary Award Winners". State Library of South Australia. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
41. "Austlit — The Australian/Vogel National Literary Award 1994". Austlit. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
42. "Second Franklin 'transforms" the year for Hall". The Canberra Times, 31 May 1994, p3. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
43. ""Opera critic writes a winner"". The Age, 15 October 1994, p8. ProQuest   2521649019 . Retrieved 12 January 2025.
44. "Austlit — Anne Elder Award 1992-94". Austlit. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
45. "Austlit — Grace Leven Poetry Prize 1994-2001". Austlit. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
46. "Mary Gilmore Award". Association for the Study of Australian Literature . Retrieved 10 February 2024.
47. ""CBCA - Previous Winners - 1946 Onwards"" (PDF). CBCA. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
48. ""Ditmar Awards 1994"". SFADB. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
49. "Austlit — Alexandra Adornetto". Austlit. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
50. "Austlit — Robbie Coburn". Austlit. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
51. "Francis Joseph (Frank) Hardy (1917–1994)by Paul Adams". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
52. "Rosemary Wighton (1925-1994)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
53. "Nene Gare (1919-1994)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
54. "Austlit — James Clavell (1921-1994)". Austlit. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
55. "Hugh Atkinson (1921-1994)". AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. The University of Queensland. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
56. "Dame Mary Gertrude Durack (1913–1994) by Malcolm Allbrook". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 1 December 2023.