Kathryn Heyman

THE ACCOMPLICE describes one of the most shocking events of the seventeenth century: the wreck of the Dutch ship Batavia off the coast of Western Australia, and the extraordinary events that befell its stranded survivors. Combining a gripping narrative with vivid historical detail, THE ACCOMPLICE is a beautiful, terrifying, deeply moving novel of love and anarchy.

The Accomplice

Their love knows no limits - but the further you go, the more dangers there are. Love becomes obsession and lust becomes control. A riveting thriller in the tradition of Gone Girland Before I Go to Sleep.

Storm and Grace

Space and Silence in Creative Practice

How Far from Here is Home

Two Tales in One Act

The Princess who Couldn't Fly, and a Word Or Two about the Crippled King

James Bradley

Sophie Cunningham

Carrie Tiffany

In sparkling prose and with a desire to express essential truths of life in stories ranging from historical sagas to incisive observations of contemporary life, the distinct voices of the students of Faber Academy at Allen & Unwin are united in this volume. Under the expert guidance of course directors Kathryn Heyman, Sophie Cunningham and Carrie Tiffany, a group of talented new writers embarked on the six-month creative writing course in Sydney and Melbourne in 2013. They shared their challenges and achievements, enhanced their creativity and practiced their craft. With witty, poignant and thrilling narratives, this anthology offers the work of these emerging Australian writers to the world. Contributors are: Jenna Frost, Dave Verey, Maria Haughey, Ayla Sunday, Andrew Doyle, Shay Ongan, James Walden, Mandy Geddes, Barbara Hughes, Julian Canny, Kathryn Coughran, John Salmon, Samantha Sharpe, Hilary Badger, Hwei Oh, Robyn Harris, Ellen Rodger, Meredith Tucker.

Writing a Novel Anthology, 2013

In March 2011, a group of new writers gathered on the Terrace of Australian publisher Allen & Unwin for the introduction to the first ever Faber Academy at Allen & Unwin 'Writing a Novel' course under the tutelage of award winning authors Kathryn Heyman and James Bradley. There was, on that night, a sense of thrill and also mystery. Six months later, as the work in this volume testifies, those writers have, to a one, demonstrated commitment, passion, willingness to work, to play, to create, to take risks and to trust. This anthology records those achievements. The diversity of genre, subject and style in this volume is an eloquent reminder of the fact that despite our contemporary anxiety about the future of books and writing, literature hasn't gone anywhere: there are new and exciting voices emerging all around us, possessed not just of the desire to tell stories but to say something that matters, to articulate something new and important about the world. Most of the names of the writers whose work appears in this volume are likely to be unfamiliar at present, but there is no doubt many will not remain so. They are: Adrienne Adams, Maralyn Bennett, Geoffrey Burgess, Georgina Crawford, Jami Crittle, Diana Daly, Fred Fink, Sally Gibbons, Deborah Guyon, Emma Harcourt, Rowena Helston, Debra Jopson, Elizabeth Jurman, Catriona Ling, Ann McCutcheon, Lyn McDonald, Kate O'Brien, Mariza O'Keeffe, Jo Riccioni, Jane Riley, Robert Scoble, Jacqueline Stack, Kerry Stephenson, Luke Sullivan, Carolyn Swindell, Brigitte Trenear and Susan Wyndham.

Faber Academy Anthology

Writing a Novel, Sydney March 2011-August 2011

There is warmth, humour and compassion, and a resolution that's nothing short of inspiring ... brilliantly original ... This ranks up there with Kate Grenville or Peter Carey.' Judith White, The Bulletin on Captain Starlight's Apprentice. What remains after everything is washed away? Funny, moving and utterly compelling, Floodline tells of the unexpected salvation that can be found on the edge of disaster. When the city of Horneville is destroyed by a flood on the eve of a huge gay mardis gras, Mikey Brown - the feisty, sexy and dynamic host of a Christian shopping channel - knows exactly what she needs to do. Taking her sons with her, she sets out on a grand mercy mission. The journey is more than a flood clean - up for Mikey - she wants to save the city and teach the godless inhabitants a lesson. Her husband was lost to her after attempting to 'mission' to this same festival and this is her chance to lay the past to rest. Mustard - an enthusiastic, ebullient, 8 year old - doesn't believe his father is dead. In fact, he is determined to find him and knows that Horneville is the place to start looking. If anyone can bring him back, Mustard can. Down in the city, the floodwater surrounding the Horneville City Hospital is steadily rising, turning what has been a place of refuge into a disaster zone. Deep in the hospital chaos, Nurse Gina Donaldson is forced to make a life and death decision with shattering repercussions. The arrival of Mikey's little troupe helps Gina find hope in the most unlikely places. Both Mikey and Gina must stare down their pasts in order to find salvation, but will they have the courage? This extraordinary novel is a brilliant feat of imagination and characterization from an acclaimed writer at the height of her great powers. It is surprising, revelatory and original in every way. 'Powerful and accomplished ... Heyman reveals her pedigree as a playwright and poet in stunning language and original imagery ... Profoundly moving.' The Scotsman on The Breaking.

Floodline

Inspired by the life of one of the last Australian bushrangers, Kathryn Heyman's Odyssean tale celebrates the magnificent imaginative power of the human spirit. Jess is a stunt-rider who can outride any man. In the early days of film she finds her calling, playing wild outlaw women who answer to no-one, until an enormous betrayal leads her closer to the outlaw life than she had ever imagined. A generation later, Rose, heavily pregnant, migrates to Australia. But the new country is not all that she had hoped and neither is motherhood. Very quickly, she finds herself estranged from those she loves, incarcerated and terrified. Jess's story will save her life. 'the writing is extraordinary...a story about love and adventure, motherhood and being set adrift' -- Pip Williams, author of The Dictionary of Lost Words 'An imaginative gusto that echoes the great Angela Carter...Delightful.' -- The Times 'There is warmth, humour and compassion, and a resolution that's nothing short of inspiring. Brilliantly original...this ranks up there with Kate Grenville or Peter Carey.' -- The Bulletin 'A tour de force.' -- The Age

Captain Starlight's Apprentice

In early 2012 in Sydney and Melbourne, forty-one new novelists embarked on 'Writing a Novel' - a six-month creative writing course, under the auspices of Faber Academy at Allen & Unwin. Course directors James Bradley, Sophie Cunningham and Kathryn Heyman walked alongside these new writers as they risked metaphorical life and limb, to reveal their determination, commitment, willingness, courage and importantly their talent. This anthology is a taster of the new writing growing in Australia. Writing which is marked by its energy, insight and range. The diversity of genre, subject and style in this volume is an eloquent reminder of the fact that despite our contemporary anxiety about the future of books and writing, literature hasn't gone anywhere. There are new and exciting voices emerging all around us, possessed not just of the desire to tell stories but to say something that matters, to articulate something new and important about the world. Contributors are: Marita Hastings, Sally Abbott, Deborah Biancotti, Margaret Meran Trail, Elizabeth Cunningham, Julie Morgan King, Laura McAuliffe, Rowena Robertson, Paulene Turner, Lisa Breeze, Jo McKay, Kerri Turner, Stephanie King, Chris Brophy, Linda Dement, Nik Rodden, Peter Ward, Jill Gientzotis, Caroline Beecham, Sienna Brown, Gita Mammen, Bethany Adams, Elisabeth Passmore, Keith Whalley, Steph Little, Catherine Horan, Cynthia Pretty, Stuart McCullough, Becky Keft, Isabel Noriega, Elizabeth Jones, Birgit Daller, Maria Boyd, David McMahon, Hannah Bent, and Louisa McGauley.

Writing a Novel Anthology, 2012

Eleven-year-old Sarah is a watcher. She sees the way the smoke rises from the sulphide works to wreath the little Australian town of Boolaroo; she watches Dad, when he's not being a policeman, breaking horses in the back paddock behind the house. Sarah Sweet has learnt to observe, to be quiet, to avoid notice, filled with a rage so intense it threatens to overwhelm her. THE BREAKING is the story of a family tainted by its force, of a young life haunted by it, but also of the strength it gives to fight back. In its evocation of the parched landscape of rural Australia, the strange cadences of the language and the filmic vividness of its characters, THE BREAKING is a unique, lyrical testament to the power of the human spirit.

The Breaking

"World-famous free-diver Storm Hisray hits Grace Cain like a bolt from the blue. Instantly smitten, she abandons her life in the city to follow him to his idyllic Pacific island. There he teaches Grace the ways of the deep, and she learns to sink to unimaginable depths on one single breath. As their world narrows to the two of them, she learns, too, the exquisite pleasures of her body - but also that storm hides as many secrets as the sea. As he pushes Grace further and further beyond her limits--both in and out of the water--her resistance grows, but so does Storm's need to control her. With a secret of her own to protect, Grace starts to realise that she is in deeper and more dangerous water than she has ever imagined possible. Brilliant, mesmerising, incendiary and haunting, Storm and Grace explores the dazzling thrill of the deep, and the terrors that lie in its shadows. 'Heyman has crafted a remarkable novel that compresses and concentrates its power before exploding with a terrible, urgent truth: love and death, the closer they get to the bottom of the ocean, are inseparable. Read it and you will not forget it.' Malcolm Knox, author of The Wonder Lover. ' ... took my breath away: the poetry of its sentences; the sensory richness of its moments; the depths and turns of its story--beguiling and brutal.' Ashley Hay, author of The Railwayman's Wife ."--Back cover.

Sarah Sweet is a watcher. She sees the way the smoke rises from the sulphide works to wreath the little Australian town of Boolaroo; she watches Dad, when he's not being a policeman, breaking horses in the back paddock behind the house. Sarah has learnt to observe, to be quiet, to avoid notice, filled with a fury so intense it threatens to overwhelm her. The Breaking is the story of a family tainted by the force of rage, of a young life haunted by it, but also of the strength it gives to fight back. In its evocation of the parched landscape of rural Australia, the strange cadences of the language and the filmic vividness of its characters, The Breaking is a unique, lyrical testament to the power of the human spirit. 'The Breaking is a book of opposites: rural heat, city rain; male power and female powerlessness; paternal tenderness and a lover's violence; silences and singing. This strong first novel is remarkable for its depiction of a family drama played out in an arid small town, with the local lock-up in the backyard, and Sarah Sweet's slow education in love and change, courtesy of a glowing, nail-biting taxi driver." Scottish Writer of the Year Judging Committee 'Powerful and accomplished ... Heyman reveals her pedigree as a playwright and poet in stunning language and original imagery ... profoundly moving.' The Scotsman 'Haunting ... compelling ... the magnetism of a violent man is made palpable.' The Times 'Fizzes with childhood energy, frustration and hilarity... Heyman's words and style leap at you with real punch.' Scotsman Weekend 'Astounding ... a writer of immense promise.' Sunday Tribune 'A pleasure ... this is a novel which never betrays its promise. The rawness of the emotion and the beauty of its conveyance into words is a potent combination which will not easily be forgotten.' Australian Book Review 'Gripping ... Heyman's poetic style adds an extra dimension to this gripping tale.' Belfast Telegraph

Marah and Charis have left Australia to pursue very different careers. Marah, a trainee opera diva, tries hard to keep her weight, her life, her self under control; Charis works nights as a telegram girl, zooming across London on her motorbike dressed as a French maid or a pregnant bride.

Keep Your Hands on the Wheel

A tale of passion and courage ... Heyman weaves the strands together with an imaginative gusto that echoes the great Angela Carter ... delightful - The Times. There is warmth, humour and compassion, and a resolution that's nothing short of inspiring ... brilliantly original ... this ranks up there with Kate Grenville or Peter Carey' - Judith White, The Bulletin. In 1952 Rose Dobell joins the post-war migration from Britain to Australia, lured by her husband's promises of oranges and sunshine, of a wonderful new life for them and for the baby growing inside her. New motherhood, though, is less glorious than she had hoped and the loss of home harder to bear than she imagined. Rose soon finds herself estranged from those she loves, incarcerated and terrified. In the midst of her fear, she has a thrilling vision: a woman, wild and joyous, riding on horseback, firing a pistol gleefully into the air. The woman is Jessie Ariel. Rodeo-rider. Film star. Outlaw. Her story will save Rose's life. Inspired by the life of one of the last Australian bushrangers, Kathryn Heyman's Odyssean tale celebrates the magnificent imaginative power of the human spirit.

Sarah Sweet is a watcher. She sees the way the smoke rises from the sulphide works to wreath the little Australian town of Boolaroo; she watches Dad, when he's not being a policeman, breaking horses in the back paddock behind the house. Sarah has learnt to observe, to be quiet, to avoid notice, filled with a fury so intense it threatens to overwhelm her.The Breaking is the story of a family tainted by the force of rage, of a young life haunted by it, but also of the strength it gives to fight back. In its evocation of the parched landscape of rural Australia, the strange cadences of the language and the filmic vividness of its characters, The Breaking is a unique, lyrical testament to the power of the human spirit.'The Breaking is a book of opposites: rural heat, city rain; male power and female powerlessness; paternal tenderness and a lover's violence; silences and singing. This strong first novel is remarkable for its depiction of a family drama played out in an arid small town, with the local lock-up in the backyard, and Sarah Sweet's slow education in love and change, courtesy of a glowing, nail-biting taxi driver.

This is the story of one of the most shocking events of the seventeenth century: the wreck of a Dutch ship, the Batavia, off the west coast of Australia, and the extraordinary events that befell its stranded survivors.

'There is warmth, humour and compassion, and a resolution that's nothing short of inspiring...brilliantly original...This ranks up there with Kate Grenville or Peter Carey.' Judith White, The Bulletin on Captain Starlight's Apprentice What remains after everything is washed away? Funny, moving and utterly compelling, Floodline tells of the unexpected salvation that can be found on the edge of disaster. When the city of Horneville is destroyed by a flood on the eve of a huge gay mardis gras, Mikey Brown - the feisty, sexy and dynamic host of a Christian shopping channel - knows exactly what she needs to do. Taking her sons with her, she sets out on a grand mercy mission. The journey is more than a flood clean-up for Mikey - she wants to save the city and teach the godless inhabitants a lesson. Her husband was lost to her after attempting to 'mission' to this same festival and this is her chance to lay the past to rest. Mustard - an enthusiastic, ebullient, 8 year old - doesn't believe his father is dead. In fact, he is determined to find him and knows that Horneville is the place to start looking. If anyone can bring him back, Mustard can. Down in the city, the floodwater surrounding the Horneville City Hospital is steadily rising, turning what has been a place of refuge into a disaster zone. Deep in the hospital chaos, Nurse Gina Donaldson is forced to make a life and death decision with shattering repercussions. The arrival of Mikey's little troupe helps Gina find hope in the most unlikely places. Both Mikey and Gina must stare down their pasts in order to find salvation, but will they have the courage? This extraordinary novel is a brilliant feat of imagination and characterization from an acclaimed writer at the height of her great powers. It is surprising, revelatory and original in every way. 'Powerful and accomplished...Heyman reveals her pedigree as a playwright and poet in stunning language and original imagery...Profoundly moving.' The Scotsman on The Breaking

A roadmap of recovery and transformation, this is the story of becoming heroic in a culture which doesn't see heroism in the shape of a girl.At the age of twenty, after a traumatic sexual assault trial, Kathryn Heyman ran away from her life and became a deckhand on a fishing trawler in the Timor Sea.Coming from a family of poverty and violence, she had no real role models, no example of how to create or live a decent life, how to have hope or expectations. But she was a reader. She understood story, and the power of words to name the world. This was to become her salvation.After one wild season on board the Ocean Thief, the only girl among tough working men, facing storms, treachery and harder physical labour than she had ever known, Heyman was transformed. Finally, she could name the abuses she thought had broken her, could see 'all that she had been blind to, simply to survive'. More than that, after a period of enforced separation from the world, she was able to return to it newly formed, determined to remake the role she'd been born into.A reflection on the wider stories of class, and of growing up female with all its risks and rewards, Fury is a memoir of courage and determination, of fighting back and finding joy.'Fury is searing, thrilling and redemptive. This book is a demonstration of how courage and fury and words can save you. They can make you the heroine of your own story.' ANNA FUNDER, Miles Franklin Prize-winning author of All That I Am 'I read this book in one jaw-clenching, gut-wrenching, fist-pumping sitting. Distressing, thrilling, immaculate-and vitally important.' CLARE WRIGHT, Stella Prize-winning author of The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka

Fury

A roadmap of recovery and transformation, this is the story of becoming heroic in a culture which doesn't see heroism in the shape of a girl. At the age of twenty, after a traumatic sexual assault trial, Kathryn Heyman ran away from her life and became a deckhand on a fishing trawler in the Timor Sea. Coming from a family of poverty and violence, she had no real role models, no example of how to create or live a decent life, how to have hope or expectations. But she was a reader. She understood story, and the power of words to name the world. This was to become her salvation. After one wild season on board the Ocean Thief, the only girl among tough working men, facing storms, treachery and harder physical labour than she had ever known, Heyman was transformed. Finally, she could name the abuses she thought had broken her, could see 'all that she had been blind to, simply to survive'. More than that, after a period of enforced separation from the world, she was able to return to it newly formed, determined to remake the role she'd been born into. A reflection on the wider stories of class, and of growing up female with all its risks and rewards, Fury is a memoir of courage and determination, of fighting back and finding joy. 'Fury is searing, thrilling and redemptive. This book is a demonstration of how courage and fury and words can save you. They can make you the heroine of your own story.' ANNA FUNDER, Miles Franklin Prize-winning author of All That I Am 'I read this book in one jaw-clenching, gut-wrenching, fist-pumping sitting. Distressing, thrilling, immaculate-and vitally important.' CLARE WRIGHT, Stella Prize-winning author of The Forgotten Rebels of Eureka

A raw, painfully honest, heartbreaking account of a young woman raising herself out of abuse and poverty to become her own hero.

Kathryn Heyman

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