Kate Constable (born 1966) is an Australian author. Her

first novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

was '' The Singer of All Songs'', the first in the ''Chanters of Tremaris'' trilogy. It was later followed by '' The Waterless Sea'' and ''

The Tenth Power ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

''.

Biography

Constable was born in Sandringham,

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

. When she was six, her family moved to

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

for her father's work as a pilot. She enrolled in an Arts/Law degree at

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

. She finished her degrees in seven years, working part-time in various jobs. She settled into the job that was to become her main source of income for the next thirteen years: phone sales, administration assistant and occasional receptionist at

Warner Music Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and th ...

. She started writing after many years at law school and at Warner. In 1993 her first short story, "Graham Remains", was published in the literary magazine ''

Meanjin ''Meanjin'' (), formerly ''Meanjin Papers'' and ''Meanjin Quarterly'', is an Australian literary magazine. The name is derived from the Turrbal word for the spike of land where the city of Brisbane is located. It was founded in 1940 in Brisban ...

''. In 1996 she won second prize in the annual HQ short story competition. After her first attempt at a novel, she met and fell in love with the man who is now her husband. She started to write fantasy books, the first of which became known as '' The Singer of All Songs''. In 2001, she and her husband had a baby daughter, and ''The Singer of All Songs'' was accepted for publication only a few weeks later.

Bibliography

Novels

''Chanters of Tremaris'' *'' The Singer of All Songs'' (2002) *'' The Waterless Sea'' (2005) *''

'' (2006) *''Chanters of Tremaris Trilogy'' (2009, omnibus of the three novels) Other novels *''The Taste of Lightning'' (2007) *''Always Mackenzie'' (2008, book 4 in the ''Girlfriend Fiction'' series) *''Cicada Summer'' (2009) *''Winter of Grace'' (2009, book 10 in the ''Girlfriend Fiction'' series) *''Dear Swoosie'' (2010, with Penni Russon, book 17 in the ''Girlfriend Fiction'' series) *''Crow Country'' (2011) *''New Guinea Moon'' (2013) *''The January Stars'' (2020) *Tumbleglass (2023)

Short fiction

*"Graham Remains" (1993) in ''

Awards and honors

Aurealis Awards * Best young-adult novel *2007 Nomination for ''The Taste of Lightning'' *2009 Short-listed (Best Children's Long Fiction) for ''Cicada Summer'' The Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year Awards *2003 Notable Book (Older Readers) for ''Singer of All Songs'' *2004 Notable Book (Older Readers) for ''The Waterless Sea'' *2008 Notable Book (Older Readers) for ''The Taste of Lightning'' *2010 Notable Book (Older Readers) for ''Winter of Grace'' *2012 Winner: Children's Book of the Year Award: Younger Readers for ''Crow Country'' Other Awards *2009 joint winner Children's Peace Literature Award for ''Winter for Grace'' *2021 short-listed Prime Minister's Literary Award for January Stars

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Constable, Kate 1966 births Living people Australian fantasy writers Australian women novelists Writers from Melbourne 20th-century Australian novelists Women science fiction and fantasy writers 20th-century Australian women writers People from Sandringham, Victoria University of Melbourne alumni