KIM SWIVEL
ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor of Arts
University of Sydney and University of New England, in English, History, and Classics in
Translation (Greco-Roman Literature), 1995.
Master of Creative Writing
Macquarie University, 2022, earning the Award for Academic Excellence, and the Faculty of
Arts Fred Rush Convocation Prize for writing. High Distinction average: 91.5%.
Doctor of Philosophy – Literature
I am currently undertaking a PhD in Literature at Macquarie University under the
supervision of novelist and cultural historian Professor Hsu-Ming Teo, and via a Research
Excellence Scholarship. This research explores the representation of Jewish people and
history in Australian fiction.
EDITORIAL WORK HISTORY
Random House Australia, editor, 1996 – 2001
Freelance 2001 – present
For over 25 years, I have worked with a broad range of acclaimed and award-winning
Australian authors of fiction and narrative non-fiction. Recent highlights include: Sue
Woolfe, Do You Love Me or What? (Simon & Schuster); Helen Ennis, Olive Cotton (Fourth
Estate); Megan Rogers, The Heart is a Star (Fourth Estate), Robyn Cadwallader, The Fire and
the Rose (HarperCollins Australia) and Jock Serong, Cherrywood (HarperCollins Australia).
PUBLICATIONS HISTORY
Under the name Kim Kelly, I have published thirteen works of fiction:
Black Diamonds (2007; 2021) Brio Books
This Red Earth (2013; 2021) Brio Books
The Blue Mile (2014; 2021) Brio Books
Paper Daisies (2015; 2021) Brio Books
Wild Chicory (2015; 2021) Brio Books
Jewel Sea (2016; 2021) Brio Books
Lady Bird & The Fox (2018; 2021) Brio Books
Sunshine (2019; 2021) Brio Books
Walking (2020; 2021) Brio Books
Her Last Words (2020; 2021) Brio Books
The Truth & Addy Loest (2021) Brio Books
The Rat Catcher: A Love Story (2022) Brio Books
Ladies’ Rest and Writing Room (2023) Finlay Lloyd
All titles are presently in print in Australia and New Zealand, and are available in audiobook
and special reading formats.
CRITICAL RECEPTION
‘colourful, evocative and energetic’ – Kerryn Goldsworthy, Sydney Morning Herald,
Spectrum
‘Kelly’s prose is gorgeous; reading this book is like studying a painting by a master or
listening to a symphony.’ – Elizabeth Caulfield Felt, Historical Novel Review. Editor’s Choice.
‘It is uplifting to know that there are people who can write like this with clarity, a bit of
devilment and a hint of a smile. Why can’t more people write like this?’ – Frank O’Shea, The
Age
‘Kim Kelly’s spry and endearing period novella … offers an elegant tonic for grief.’ – Cameron
Woodhead and Steven Carroll, Sydney Morning Herald/The Age.
‘Kelly’s book put me in mind almost immediately of Madeleine St John … [Her] evocation of
1920s Sydney is convincingly electric.’ – Bram Presser, A Book For Ants
More reviews at: https://kimkellyauthor.com/they-said-what/
WRITING AWARDS & RECOGNITION
− Winner, Finlay Lloyd 20/40 Prize for the novella, Ladies’ Rest and Writing Room,
2023.
− Winner, Fred Rush Convocation Prize for outstanding creative writing, Macquarie
University, 2023.
− Shortlisted, Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize (Overland), for ‘Unnoted: Birdsong on
the Road to Nowhere’, 2023.
− Longlisted, ARA Historical Novel Prize, for The Rat Catcher, 2022.
− Shortlisted, Viva la Novella, for The Rat Catcher, 2021.
− Writing Residency, Rosie Scott Writer’s Studio, 2020.
− Shortlisted, NLA Fellowship for Australian Writing 2016 and 2018.
− Third place in The Hope Prize for short story, ‘Messerschmitt’, Hope Shines, S&S,
2018.
MEDIA, PUBLIC SPEAKING AND JUDGING
I am an experienced guest speaker and workshop convenor, having participated in a wide
variety of events, including:
− Speaker at NSW Parliament House, annual Horizon Author Lunch, 2024, 2022.
− Judge, Finlay Lloyd 20/40 Prize 2024.
− Speaker, online seminar, ‘A Fraction Too Much Holocaust Fiction’, 2023.
− Guest lecturer Macquarie University, Department of English, 2023.
− TV appearance on Prime7 as judge for Banjo Paterson Writing Awards, 2021.
− Australian Writers Centre workshop, Sydney, 2019.
− Regional Festivals: Mudgee Readers Festival, 2022, 2019; Outback Writers
Festival, 2024, 2019; Bathurst Writers Festival, 2015-2024; Scone Writers
Festival 2017; Orange Writers and Readers Festival, 2015, 2016, 2023.
− Historical Novel Society of Australasia conferences 2015, 2017, 2021, 2023.
− In conversation with Julia Zemiro, Customs House Library, 2014.
− Frequent regional library talks throughout New South Wales, 2014 – .
− Various ABC and commercial regional radio/print media interviews, 2007 – .
BOOK REVIEWS
Newtown Review of Books, 2018-23
Titles reviewed include: Doll’s Eye by Leah Kaminsky (Penguin); The True Story of Maddie
Bright by Mary-Rose MacColl (A&U); The Day They Shot Edward by Wendy Scarfe
(Wakefield); Bodies of Men by Nigel Featherstone (Hachette); The Dead Still Cry Out by
Helen Lewis (Text); The Good Germans: Resisting the Nazis 1939-1945 by Catrine Clay
(Hachette). All reviews can be found at: https://newtownreviewofbooks.com.au/
