Heather Rose (born 1964) is an Australian author born in Hobart, Tasmania. She is the author of the acclaimed memoir Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here. She is best known for her novels The Museum of Modern Love, which won the 2017 Stella Prize, and Bruny (2019), which won Best General Fiction in the 2020 Australian Book Industry Awards. She has also worked in advertising, business, and the arts.

Heather Rose
BornHeather Rose
1964 (age 59–60)
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Pen nameAngelica Banks (with Danielle Wood), (for children's novels)
OccupationNovelist
LanguageEnglish
EducationHobart College
Notable awardsStella Prize
2017 The Museum of Modern Love

Early life and education edit

Heather Rose was born in Hobart, Tasmania in 1964.[1] By the age of sixteen she had a weekly column in the Hobart Mercury, and in 1981 won the Tasmanian Short Story Prize. She left school in 1982 and travelled widely through Asia and Europe.[2] Returning to Australia in 1986, Rose became an advertising copywriter in Melbourne, until she returned to Tasmania 10 years later.[1] Her first novel, White Heart, was published in 1999. Apart from writing fiction, Rose has had an extensive career in advertising, business, and the arts.[3][4][5]

Writing career edit

Memoir edit

Heather's most recent work is a memoir - Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here - published in November, 2022. It has been widely reviewed[6][7][8][9] and is shortlisted for the Indie Book Awards 2023.[10]

Novels edit

Four of Rose's adult novels have been set in TasmaniaBruny, White Heart, The Butterfly Man, and The River Wife. The Museum of Modern Love is set in New York.

Rose's first adult novel, White Heart, was published in 1999 by Transworld. It tells the story of two children growing up in Tasmania. One of them becomes involved in the Native American ritual of sun dancing and the other becomes a Tasmanian tiger hunter. Murray Waldren in The Australian said: "Spirituality permeates Heather Rose's first novel, White Heart, as much as the past haunts it. This story is a complex of interwoven, sometimes chimeric themes...A-class debut."[11]

Rose's second novel, The Butterfly Man, was published by UQP in 2005,[12] It recounts the story of Lord Lucan the British Peer who disappeared from his family home in London after the murder of the family nanny in 1974. It is set in Hobart, Tasmania. The Butterfly Man won the Davitt Award for Crime Fiction Novel of the Year in 2006,[13][14] was shortlisted for the Nita B Kibble Award,[15] and longlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 2007.[16]

The River Wife, Rose's third novel for adults, was published in 2009 by Allen & Unwin and described as "a beautiful, modern fable about the price we pay for love – a magical and original novel".[17] It is set in the central highlands of Tasmania and has received significant acclaim from reviewers and readers where it has been hailed for the beauty of its storytelling.[18] An abridged version of The River Wife was broadcast on Radio National in 2010.[19]

Rose has said of her first three novels: "I am passionately Tasmanian and my family has lived here many generations. I think of this book (The River Wife) as the third in a trilogy of books that dives into the Tasmanian landscape. The first—White Heart—is a sweeping view of the island told through the lens of childhood. The second—The Butterfly Man—dives closer into the seasons and landscape of Mt Wellington, the mountain that is the backdrop to Hobart. And The River Wife dives even more deeply into the central highlands, the very heart of Tasmania, and finds there a story, a myth, a fable that is uniquely Tasmanian. Perhaps it is no surprise that is it also a love story.[20]

Rose's fourth adult novel, The Museum of Modern Love, is set in New York and inspired by the performance artist Marina Abramović.[21] It was published by Allen & Unwin in Australia in August 2016.[22] The novel won the 2017 Stella Prize,[23] the 2017 Christina Stead Prize for Fiction in the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards[24] and the 2017 Margaret Scott Prize and the People's Choice Award in the Tasmanian Premier's Literary Prizes.[25] It was shortlisted for the Australian Literary Society Gold Medal[26] and the Queensland Premier's Prizes.[27] It was also long listed for the 2018 International Dublin Literary Award.[28] The Museum of Modern Love was launched in the United States at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, and has been translated into numerous languages.[29] The Museum of Modern Love has been optioned for film by multi-award-winning production team GoodThing Productions.[30]

Bruny (2019) has been described as "more a hand grenade than a book".[31] A political satire, thriller, family saga and love story, Bruny is a prescient look at the new world order and the relationship between China and Australia.[32] Bruny won the General Fiction Book of the Year in the Australian Book Industry Awards,[33] and was shortlisted for the Independent Bookseller Awards for Fiction.[34] 'Bruny' has been optioned by Film Art Media. It is in development as a television series with producers Charlotte Seymour and Sue Maslin AO.[35]

Children's novels edit

In 2013 Rose published her first children's novel Finding Serendipity co-authored with fellow award-winning writer Danielle Wood under the pen name Angelica Banks and published in Australia by Allen & Unwin.[36][37] It has also been published in Germany by Magellan[38] and in the United States with Henry Holt (Macmillan).[39]

The second book in the Tuesday McGillycuddy series, A Week Without Tuesday, was published in Australian in 2015,[40] in Germany in 2015 and in the United States in 2016.[41] It was shortlisted for the 2015 Aurealis Awards for Best Children's Fantasy Novel.[42]

The third book in the series, Blueberry Pancakes Forever, was published in Australia and Germany in 2016,[43] and in the United States in 2017.[44] It was shortlisted for the 2016 Aurealis Awards for Best Children's Fantasy Novel.[42]

Adaptations to theatre and film edit

In January 2022, the world premiere of a play adapted from The Museum of Modern Love by Tom Holloway was staged at the Sydney Festival.[45] Holloway’s script won Best Adaptation of the book to the stage in the 2024 AWGIE Awards.

The Museum of Modern Love has been optioned for film by multi-award-winning production team GoodThing Productions.

In April 2022 Screen Australia announced funding for a number of projects, including a six-part television series based on Bruny. It is to be written by playwright Suzie Miller, produced by Sue Maslin and Charlotte Seymour.[46]

Other writing edit

Rose has also been published in several collections, including Some Girls Do edited by Jacinta Tynan (2007), Mosaic (2008) edited by Rosalind Bradley, and Dirty Words: A Literary Dictionary of Sex Terms (2008) edited by Ellen Sussman.[47]

She has also had fiction and non-fiction, including reviews, published in Island magazine,[48] Art & Australia,[21] Art Monthly[49] and Meanjin.[50]

Business and the arts edit

In 1999, Rose co-founded an advertising agency, Coo'ee Tasmania, a member of the international Coo'ee Network across Europe, Australasia and the United States, with Rose as managing director.[51] Growth of Coo'ee and the success of its campaigns led to Rose being named Telstra Tasmanian Business Woman of the Year 2004.[52] Rose was chair of the Coo'ee Network of agencies across Australasia from 2005 to 2007.[53]

In 2007 Coo'ee Tasmania left the Coo'ee Network and partnered with Green Team Global in New York.[53] Green Team Australia became Australia's first "green" advertising agency specialising in community engagement.[54] Green Team Australia has won over 25 international creative awards.

In 2008 Rose was appointed chair of the Festival of Voices, a Hobart-based arts festival celebrating song, music and the voice. Over the following three years she built the festival into one of the state's leading annual festivals.[55]

The festival and Green Team Australia received both the Tasmanian and the national 2010 Australian Business Arts Foundation (ABAF) Award for SMEs, through a partnership created by Rose.[56]

She is a mentor in the Tasmanian Leaders Program, which trains business people in leadership excellence.[57]

Rose was a founding board member of the Macquarie Point Development Corporation from 2012 to 2016.[58][59]

Rose was appointed as a trustee of the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery in 2020.[60]

Awards and honours edit

Books edit

Other awards edit

  • 2004 – Winner the Telstra Tasmanian Business Woman of the Year[72][4][73][74]
  • 2010 – Winner the national Australian Business Arts Foundation SME Award[75]
  • 2011 – Winner the national Australian Business Arts Foundation Woodside Better Business Award, for her extensive philanthropic contribution to Festival of Voices[76][77][78]

Selected bibliography edit

Adult novels edit

  • White Heart (1999, Transworld Publishers)
  • The Butterfly Man (2005, UQP)
  • The River Wife (2009, Allen & Unwin)
  • The Museum of Modern Love (2016, Allen & Unwin)
  • Bruny (2019, Allen & Unwin)

Children's novels edit

  • Tuesday McGillycuddy series (as Angelica Banks, with Danielle Wood)
    • Finding Serendipity (2013, Allen & Unwin) (Magellan, Germany) (Henry Holt, USA)
    • A Week Without Tuesday (2015, Allen & Unwin) (Magellan, Germany) (Henry Holt, USA)
    • Blueberry Pancakes Forever (2016, Allen & Unwin) (Magellan, Germany) (Henry Holt, USA)

Memoir edit

  • Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here (2022, Allen & Unwin)

References edit

  1. ^ a b Pierce, Peter (17 February 2017). "The Mischievous Artistry of Heather Rose: The Museum of Modern Love". Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  2. ^ "Allen & Unwin – Author Display". Allenandunwin.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  3. ^ "Environment a concern for businesswomen – Breaking News – Business – Breaking News". The Sydney Morning Herald. 25 July 2007. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  4. ^ a b "Heather Rose on finding her muse". The Mercury. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  5. ^ "What to read in 2019". 24 December 2018.
  6. ^ Chenery, Susan (27 October 2022). "'Joy is my daily practice': Heather Rose on overcoming tragedy and choosing to live a happy life". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  7. ^ "Luminous: Read Our Review of Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here by Heather Rose". Better Reading. 16 November 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
  8. ^ Nott, Nanci (1 November 2022). "Book review: Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here, Heather Rose". ArtsHub Australia. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
  9. ^ "Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here by Heather Rose review – one woman's quest for joy". the Guardian. 10 November 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
  10. ^ "2023 Shortlist". Indie Book Awards. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
  11. ^ Murray Waldren, The Australian, 17 November 1999
  12. ^ "UQP – Heather Rose". Uqp.uq.edu.au. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  13. ^ "The Butterfly Man by Heather Rose". Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  14. ^ a b "The Davitt Awards – Sisters in Crime Australia". www.sistersincrime.org.au. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  15. ^ "Awards & fellowships | State Library of New South Wales". Sl.nsw.gov.au. 3 April 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  16. ^ "Aussie and NZ authors make IMPAC Award longlist". Books+Publishing. 14 November 2006. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
  17. ^ "The River Wife". Allenandunwin.com. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  18. ^ Heather Rose. "The River Wife by Heather Rose – Reviews, Discussion, Bookclubs, Lists". Goodreads.com. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  19. ^ "The River Wife: Ep 1 of 15". ABC Radio National. 15 March 2010. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
  20. ^ "Allen & Unwin – Heather Rose". Allenandunwin.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  21. ^ a b "Art & Australia magazine | Vol 49 No 3 Autumn 2012: Sitting with Marina, Heather Rose". Artaustralia.com. 15 April 2010. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
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  24. ^ Morris, Linda (22 May 2017). "Leah Purcell's The Drover's Wife takes out Book of the Year". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
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  27. ^ "Queensland Literary Awards 2017 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 5 September 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
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  29. ^ "The New York Times profiles Heather Rose". 7 January 2019.
  30. ^ "Good Thing Productions | the Museum of Modern Love".
  31. ^ "'More a hand grenade than a book'". 8 November 2019.
  32. ^ "Writer Heather Rose on a bridge too far". 27 September 2019.
  33. ^ "2020 Archives".
  34. ^ "Chaos in a local microcosm". 18 October 2019.
  35. ^ "TV Deal Announced for Bruny, by best-selling novelist by Heather Rose". 26 May 2020.
  36. ^ "Allen & Unwin - Australia".
  37. ^ "Finding Serendipity - Competition - Competitions - Reading Matters - My Book Corner". Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
  38. ^ "Angelica Banks". LovelyBooks. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
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  40. ^ "Allen & Unwin - Australia".
  41. ^ "A WEEK WITHOUT TUESDAY | Kirkus Reviews".
  42. ^ a b "Aurealis Awards, Previous years' results" (PDF). Aurealis Awards. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
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  44. ^ "Blueberry Pancakes Forever: Review". Kirkus Media LLC. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
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  46. ^ "Screen Australia announces over $1 million to develop 31 projects". Screen Australia. 13 April 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2022.
  47. ^ "Authors · The Naher Agency". Naher.com.au. Archived from the original on 28 May 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
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  49. ^ "Under our skin Issue 273". Art Monthly (273). September 2014. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  50. ^ "Autumn 2016". 15 March 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  51. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  52. ^ "TAS – Telstra Business Women's Awards". Telstrabusinesswomensawards.com. Archived from the original on 12 June 2009. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  53. ^ a b Jana, Reena (4 September 2007). "Greenwashing, Be Gone! A tool to help companies assess their eco-friendliness". BusinessWeek. Archived from the original on 2 November 2007. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  54. ^ "Heather Rose". Greenteamglobal.com. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  55. ^ "Home - Festival of Voices". Archived from the original on 4 November 2020. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
  56. ^ "Past AbaF Award winners". Abaf.org.au. Archived from the original on 19 October 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  57. ^ "The Tasmanian Leaders Inc – Leadership Champions". www.tasmanianleaders.org.au. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  58. ^ "Corporation Board – Macquarie Point Development Corporation". Retrieved 8 January 2018.
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  60. ^ "Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery | Board and Executive".
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  62. ^ Australian Book Industry Awards
  63. ^ "Davitt Awards 2020 shortlists announced". Books+Publishing. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  64. ^ Booksellers Choice Awards
  65. ^ Indie Book Awards – Best Fiction
  66. ^ "Mark & Evette Moran Nib Literary Award - Waverley Council".
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  69. ^ a b "Aurealis awards, previous years' results, best science fiction novel" (PDF).
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  76. ^ "Winners announced for AbaF Awards 2011 on The Art.Base". Art.Base. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  77. ^ "Abaf Awards Recognise Best Business/Arts Partnerships". Pro Bono Australia. 12 October 2011. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  78. ^ "Festival of Voices and Heather Rose". ABAF. Archived from the original on 16 July 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.

External links edit

  Media related to Heather Rose at Wikimedia Commons