John Marsden (writer)

Australian writer and school principal (born 1950)

For other uses, see John Marsden (disambiguation).

John Marsden

Born|  (1950-09-27) 27 September 1950 (age 72)
Victoria, Australia
Occupation| Writer
Nationality| Australian
Period| 1987–present
Genre| Young adult fiction

John Marsden (born 27 September 1950[1]) is an Australian writer and unlicensed alternative school principal.[2] Marsden's books have been translated into eleven languages.[3][4]

While working as a teacher, Marsden began writing for children, and had his first book, So Much to Tell You, published in 1987. Since then, he has written or edited over 40 books and has sold over 5 million books throughout the world.[5]

In 2006, Marsden started an alternative school, Candlebark School in the Macedon Ranges.[6] Marsden has since reduced his writing to focus on teaching and running the school. In 2016, he opened the arts-focused secondary school, Alice Miller School, also in the Macedon Ranges.[7] He is also the patron of youth media organisation Express Media. He has no academic education in pedagogy and is not state licenced.

## Early life[edit]

Marsden was born in Victoria and spent the first 10 years of his life living in the country towns of Kyneton, Victoria, and Devonport, Tasmania.[4] He is a great-great-great-great nephew of colonial Anglican clergyman and magistrate Rev. Samuel Marsden.[4] When he was 10 years old, Marsden moved to Sydney and attended The King's School, Parramatta.[4] Marsden was accepted into Sydney University to study a double degree in Law and Arts,[4] but eventually dropped out. He has worked at different jobs, including an abattoir, working in a mortuary, delivering pizzas, working as a motorbike courier, working as a nightwatchman, selling encyclopaedias, and working with chickens.[8]

## Writing career[edit]

### Early career[edit]

While working at the prestigious Geelong Grammar School's Timbertop campus as an English teacher, Marsden made the decision to write for teenagers, following his dissatisfaction with his students' apathy towards reading,[4] or the observation that teenagers simply weren't reading anymore.[8] Marsden then wrote So Much to Tell You in only three weeks, and the book was published in 1987.[4] The book sold record numbers and won numerous awards including "Book of the Year" as awarded by the Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA).[9][10][11][12]

In the five years following the publication of So Much To Tell You, Marsden published six more books. Notable works from this period are Out of Time, which was nominated by the CBCA as a notable book for older readers, and Letters From the Inside and a sequel to So Much to Tell You called Take My Word For It, which were both shortlisted for the CBCA's Children's Book of the Year: Older Readers award.[12][13] Upon publication in the United States, Letters From the Inside received accolades from The Horn Book Magazine and the American Library Association.[14] American novelist Robert Cormier found the novel "unforgettable" and described John Marsden as a "major writer deserving of world-wide acclaim".[15]

### Later career[edit]

Further information: Tomorrow series § Reception

In 1993, Marsden published Tomorrow, When the War Began, the first book in the Tomorrow series and his most acclaimed and best-selling work to date. Marsden went on to write seven books in the Tomorrow series, together with a follow-up trilogy, The Ellie Chronicles, despite originally intending for the entire series to only consist of a trilogy.

At the same time as writing the Tomorrow series, Marsden wrote several other novels such as Checkers, edited works such as This I Believe, wrote children's picture books such as The Rabbits, poetry such as Prayer for the Twenty-First Century, and non-fiction works such as Everything I Know About Writing and Secret Men's Business.[1]

### Themes[edit]

Marsden's earlier works are largely novels aimed at teenage or young adult audience.[1] Common themes in Marsden's works include sexuality, violence in society, survival at school and in a harsh world, and conflict with adult authority figures.[1] However, Marsden also has declared that he wishes to write about "things that have always been important for humans... [such as] love, for a start. And the absence of love. The way people relate to each other. The way people solve problems. Courage. Spirit. The human spirit."[8]

### Awards and commendations[edit]

Marsden has won every major writing award in Australia for young people's fiction[16] including what Marsden describes as one of the highlights of his career,[17] the 2006 Lloyd O'Neil Award for contributions to Australian publishing.[18] This award means that Marsden is one of only five authors to be honoured for lifelong services to the Australian book industry.[19] John Marsden was also nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in 2008, the world's largest children's and youth literature award and the second largest literature prize in the world.[19]

Internationally, he has twice been named among Best Books of the Year by the American Library Association and once by Publishers' Weekly (USA), has been runner-up for Dutch Children's Book of the Year and short-listed for the German Young Readers' Award, won the Grand Jury Prize as Austria's Most Popular Writer for Teenagers, and won the coveted Buxtehude Bull in Germany.[5][16] However, despite his number of awards, Marsden has said that he generally does not care about awards (with the exception of the Lloyd O'Neil Award and The Melbourne Prize for Literature).[18]

In 1996, Marsden's books took the top six places on the Teenage Fiction best-seller lists for Australia.[1] Also in 1996, he was named "Australia's most popular author today in any literary field" by The Australian.[1] In 1997, Australian readers voted three of his books into Australia's 100 most-loved books of all time.[1]

In 2014, Lyndon Terracini announced that Opera Australia had co-commissioned Kate Miller-Heidke to write an opera based on Marsden's The Rabbits.[20] The work, The Rabbits, premiered in 2015 in Perth, and was staged in Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane, winning several awards.

In December 2018, Marsden was awarded the Dromkeen Medal, in recognition of his outstanding achievement in children’s and young adult literature.[21]

## Published works and awards[edit]

### The Tomorrow series[edit]

Title | Year | Notes

|
|

Tomorrow, When the War Began | 1993 |

* Winner, Australian Multicultural Children's Book Award 1994[22]
* Selected, American Library Association list of Best Books for Young Adults 1996[23][24]
* Selected, American Library Association list of 100 Best Books for Teens 1966–2000[25]
* Selected, American Library Association list of Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults 1998, Nominated 2011[26][27]
* Winner, Fanfare Horn Book Best Book 1996[23]
* Winner, Children's Yearly Best-Ever Reads (CYBER) Best Book for Older Readers 2000, 2001, 2002[22][28]
* Selected, Whitcoulls top 100 books, 2008 (No. 63)[23]
* Selected, COOL Awards (Canberra's Own Outstanding List) 1995[23]
* Winner, KOALA (Kids Own Australian Literature Awards) 1995[22][23]
* Winner, YABBA (Young Australian Best Book Award) 1995[22][23]
* Winner, WAYRBA (West Australian Young Readers' Books Award) 1995[22]
* Winner, BILBY Awards (Books I Love Best Yearly) 1998[22][23]
* Nominated, South Carolina Book Award 1998[29]
* Winner, New South Wales Talking Book Award[22]

The Dead of Night | 1994 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1995[12]
* Selected, COOL Awards (Canberra's Own Outstanding List) 1998[30]

The Third Day, The Frost | 1995 |

* Winner, Buxtehude Bull Prize 1999[31][32]
* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1996[12]
* Winner, WAYRBA (West Australian Young Readers' Books Award) 1998[22]
* Selected, COOL Awards (Canberra's Own Outstanding List) 1999[33]
* Also titled A Killing Frost

Darkness, Be My Friend | 1996 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1997[12]

Burning for Revenge | 1997 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1998[12]
* Winner, Nielsen BookData/Australian Booksellers Association Book of the Year Award 1997[22][34]
* Winner, WAYRBA (West Australian Young Readers' Books Award) 1999[22]

The Night is for Hunting | 1998 |

* Selected, COOL Awards (Canberra's Own Outstanding List) 2000[22][35]
* Winner, WAYRBA (West Australian Young Readers' Books Award) 2000[22]
* Shortlisted, Nielsen BookData/Australian Booksellers Association Book of the Year Award 1999[32]

The Other Side of Dawn | 1999 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 2000[12]
* Winner, YABBA (Young Australian Best Book Award) 2000[32]

The Ellie Chronicles
While I Live | 2003 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 2004[36]

Incurable | 2005 |
Circle of Flight | 2006 |

### Other works[edit]

Title | Year | Notes

|
|

So Much to Tell You | 1987 |

* Winner, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1988[9][10][11][12]
* Winner, Victorian Premier's Literary Award Alan Marshall Award 1988[10][22][37]
* Winner, Christopher Award Books for Young People 1990[11][22][38]
* Selected, American Library Association list of Best Books for Young Adults 1990[11][22]
* Selected, American Library Association list of Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults 1999[39]
* Winner, KOALA (Kids Own Australian Literature Awards) 1989[11][22][40]
* Selected, COOL Awards (Canberra's Own Outstanding List) 1995[11][22]
* Winner, Young Adult Book Award (New South Wales, Australia) 1998[22]

The Journey | 1988 |
The Great Gatenby | 1989 |
Staying Alive in Year 5 | 1990 |
Out of Time | 1990 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1991[12]

Letters from the Inside | 1991 |

* Shortlisted, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1992[12][13]
* Winner, Fanfare Horn Book Best Book 1995[14]
* Winner, Grand Jury Prize for Australia's favourite young person's novel 1996[22]
* Selected, American Library Association list of Best Books for Young Adults 1995[14]
* Selected, American Library Association list of Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults 2002[41]

Take My Word for It | 1992 |

* Shortlisted, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1993[12][13]

Looking for Trouble | 1993 |
Everything I Know About Writing | 1993 |
Cool School | 1996 |

* Winner, KOALA (Kids Own Australian Literature Awards) 1998[22][40]

Creep Street | 1996 |
Checkers | 1996 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers 1997[12]

This I Believe | 1996 |

* Editor[42]

For Weddings and a Funeral | 1996 |

* Editor

Dear Miffy | 1997 |
Prayer for the Twenty-First Century | 1997 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Picture Book 1998[12]

Norton's Hut | 1998 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Picture Book 1999[12]
* Illustrated by Peter Gouldthorpe

The Rabbits | 1998 |

* Winner, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Picture Book 1999[12][13][22]
* Illustrated by Shaun Tan

Secret Men's Business | 1998 |
Winter | 2000 |
Marsden on Marsden | 2000 |
The Head Book | 2001 |
Millie | 2002 |

* Notable Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Picture Book 2003[12][43]
* Illustrated by Sally Rippin

The Magic Rainforest | 2002 |
A Day in the Life of Me | 2002 |

* Illustrated by Craig Smith

The Boy You Brought Home | 2002 |
A Roomful of Magic | 2004 |

* Illustrated by Mark Jackson and Heather Potter

I Believe This | 2004 |

* Editor[44]

Hamlet: A Novel | 2008 |
Home and Away | 2008 |

* Honour Book, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Picture Book 2009[12][45]
* Illustrated by Matt Ottley

South of Darkness | 2014 |
The Art of Growing Up | 2019 |

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g "Marsden, John – Teaching Australian Literature". Teaching Australian Literature. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
2. ^ "John Marsden – A different school of thought". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 30 May 2005. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
3. ^ "So Much to Tell You (John Marsden, summary)". ulike.net. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
4. ^ a b c d e f g "John Marsden – Biography" (PDF). John Marsden Official Site. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
5. ^ a b "John Marsden Biography". Pan Macmillan Australia. Archived from the original on 25 February 2011. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
6. ^ Bedford, Kathy (17 September 2007). "'Simple philosophy' guides Marsden's school". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
7. ^ Romensky, Larissa (1 February 2016). "Author John Marsden opens second school". ABC News. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
8. ^ a b c "John Marsden". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 4 November 2004. Archived from the original on 3 August 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
9. ^ a b "Winners and Commended Books 1980 – 1989". The Children's Book Council of Australia. Archived from the original on 16 December 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
10. ^ a b c "John Marsden – So Much To Tell You". Audio Books Direct. Archived from the original on 7 March 2011. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
11. ^ a b c d e f "So Much To Tell You by John Marsden". Library Thing. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Authors and Illustrators – M". CMIS. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
13. ^ a b c d "Winners and Shortlists 1990 – 1999 – CBCA". The Children's Book Council of Australia. Archived from the original on 27 December 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
14. ^ a b c "Letters From The Inside by John Marsden". Library Thing. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
15. ^ Cromier, Robert. "Letters from the Inside". Retrieved 7 July 2012.
16. ^ a b "John Marsden – Griffith REVIEW". Griffith Review: A quarterly of writing and ideas. Archived from the original on 5 March 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
17. ^ "Get Ahead Kids: John Marsden Interview". Get Ahead Kids. 2009. Archived from the original on 1 September 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
18. ^ a b "John Marsden – Interview". The Blurb: A Source for Australian Arts and Entertainment. Archived from the original on 30 November 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
19. ^ a b "John Marsden – Saxton Speakers Bureau". Saxton Speakers Bureau. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
20. ^ "Rabbits let loose as Opera Australia's Lyndon Terracini opts for high drama" by Matthew Westwood, The Australian, 12 August 2014
21. ^ "Dromkeen Medal". State Library Victoria. Retrieved 13 December 2018.
22. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u "Marsden, John 1950–". Contemporary Authors. New Revision Series. 1 January 2004. Archived from the original on 5 November 2012. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
23. ^ a b c d e f g "Tomorrow When The War Began by John Marsden". Library Thing. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
24. ^ "ALA 1996 Best Books for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association. 1996. Archived from the original on 17 March 2010. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
25. ^ "American Library Association's 100 Best Books for Teens". Archived from the original on 12 June 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
26. ^ "ALA 1998 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association. 1998. Archived from the original on 6 December 2008. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
27. ^ "ALA Nominations". American Library Association Young Adult Library Services Association. 18 October 2010. Archived from the original on 17 January 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
28. ^ "Australian Children's Choice Awards". CMIS. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
29. ^ "Tomorrow When The War Began". Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Archived from the original on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
30. ^ "The Dead of the Night by John Marsden". Library Thing. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
31. ^ "The Books Tomorrow-Movies – The No. 1 Fansite for John Marsden's 'Tomorrow, When The War Began', the Tomorrow Series and the upcoming Tomorrow Movies". Archived from the original on 9 October 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
32. ^ a b c "TripAtlas – About Tomorrow Series". TripAtlas. Retrieved 20 October 2010.[permanent dead link]
33. ^ "The Third Day, The Frost by John Marsden". Library Thing. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
34. ^ "The Nielsen BookData Booksellers' Choice Award – Australian Booksellers Association". www.booksellers.org.au. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
35. ^ "The Night is for Hunting (The Tomorrow Series #6) by John Marsden". Library Thing. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
36. ^ "notables04pb". The Children's Book Council of Australia. Archived from the original on 25 August 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
37. ^ "Victorian Premier's Award". La Trobe University: Children's and Young Adult Literature. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
38. ^ "Christopher Awards – Books for Young People". Children's Literature Web Guide. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
39. ^ "ALA 1999 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults". American Library Association Young Adult Library Services Association. 1999. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
40. ^ a b "Koala Book Awards". Library Thing. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
41. ^ "ALA 2002 Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults". American Library Association Young Adult Library Services Association. 2002. Archived from the original on 14 February 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
42. ^ John Marsden, ed. (1996). This I Believe. Random House Australia. ISBN 978-0091831127. OCLC 38389492.
43. ^ "notables03pb". The Children's Book Council of Australia. Archived from the original on 19 February 2011. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
44. ^ John Marsden, ed. (2004). I Believe This. Random House Australia. ISBN 9781740513623. OCLC 224076448.
45. ^ "Winners 2009 – CBCA". The Children's Book Council of Australia. Archived from the original on 5 January 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2010.

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Works by John Marsden

Novels|

| Tomorrow series|

* Tomorrow, When the War Began (1993)
* The Dead of the Night (1994)

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* So Much to Tell You (1987)
* Letters from the Inside (1991)
* Checkers (1996)
* Winter (2000)

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* Tomorrow, When the War Began (2010 film)
* Tomorrow When the War Began (2016 TV series)

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