Two first-time novelists - Jon Bauer and Kirsten Tranter - are among the eight writers long-listed for this year’s Miles Franklin prize. Kim Scott’s nomination follows on from his regional Commonwealth Prize win and Chris Womersley’s Bereft comes on top of his Indie Awards win earlier this week. The prize is one of the country’s most venerable and prestigious literary awards.
The long list is: Jon Bauer, Rocks in the Belly; Honey Brown, The Good Daughter; Patrick Holland, The Mary Smokes Boys; Melina Marchetta, The Piper’s Son; Roger McDonald, When Colts Ran Vintage; Stephen Orr, Time’s Long Ruin; Kim Scott, That Deadman Dance; Kirsten Tranter, The Legacy; and Chris Womersley, Bereft.
Kirsten Tranter wrote on gender imbalance in literary journals and magazines last week for the Dailies.