Stephen Kenneth Kelen (born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in 1956), known as S. K. Kelen, is an Australian poet and educator. S. K. Kelen began publishing

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

in 1973, when he won the Poetry Australia Farmers Poetry Prize for young poets and several of his poems were published in that journal. Kelen attended the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

, where he studied

Philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

and

Literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

. After graduating he worked in Sydney in various jobs then Canberra as a civil servant, and reviewed books for the

Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in 1 ...

. He has also been a visiting professor at the

University of South Dakota The University of South Dakota (USD) is a public research university in Vermillion, South Dakota, United States. Established by the Dakota Territory legislature in 1862, 27 years before the establishment of the state of South Dakota, USD is t ...

in 1996, and

Asialink Asialink is a think-tank that promotes better relations between Australia and Asian economies. Asialink works alongside several philanthropic organizations to engage in civic and cultural relations that lead to business ties. History Asialink w ...

Writer in Residence in Vietnam in 1998. In 2005 he completed a Ph.D. from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...

. He taught poetry, creative writing and literary studies at the

University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public university, public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is from Belconnen Town Centre, and from Canberra's Civic, Australian ...

and taught in high schools and colleges in the ACT.

Recognition

Kelen's collection ''Earthly Delights'' was a joint winner of the Judith Wright Prize in 2007. Other awards won by Kelen include the 1973 Poetry Australia Prize (writers under 18 years of age), an ACT Creative Arts Fellowship in 2000, and the CAPO (

Capital Arts Patrons Organisation Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...

) Award in 2001 and in 2004 and 2007 - 2008

Australia Council Creative Australia, formerly known as the Australia Council for the Arts and the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announ ...

Grants for Established Writers for poetry writing.

Awards

Award for individual works

*Island Earth: New and selected poems. 2012 selected work poetry *2013 - shortlisted

ACT Book of the Year The ACT Book of the Year is an annual prize of $10,000 awarded for a literary work of fiction, nonfiction or poetry written by an author from the Australian Capital Territory. The award was inaugurated in 1993 with $5,000 prize money. Winners ...

Award *Earthly Delights 2006 selected work poetry **2007 - shortlisted The Age Book of the Year Award — Dinny O'Hearn Poetry Prize **2007 - joint winner Australian Capital Territory Poetry Award — Judith Wright Award for a Published Collection by an Australian Poet Joint winner with Diane Fahey for Sea Wall and River Light. *Goddess of Mercy : Poems, 2002, selected work poetry **2003 - shortlisted

The Age Book of the Year ''The Age'' Book of the Year Awards were annual literary awards presented by Melbourne's ''The Age'' newspaper. The awards were first presented in 1974. After 1998, they were presented as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival Melbourne Writer ...

Award — Dinny O'Hearn Poetry Prize **2003 - shortlisted

Victorian Premier's Literary Awards The Victorian Premier's Literary Awards were created by the Victorian Government with the aim of raising the profile of contemporary creative writing and Australia's publishing industry. As of 2013, it is reportedly Australia's richest literary ...

— The C. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry **2003 highly commended Australian Capital Territory Book of the Year Award *Shimmerings: Poems, 2000 selected work poetry **2002 - shortlisted Festival Awards for Literature (SA) — John Bray Award for Poetry *"Near the Jungle" 1976. short story 1976 - runner-up,

University of Sydney Union The University of Sydney Union (USU) is Australia's largest independent student-led member organisation located at University of Sydney in Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia. The current iteration of USU formed in 1972, as an amalgamation ...

Short Story Competition *"Koki Market" 1976 - winner, University of Sydney Union Poetry Competition

Book and Chapbook Publications

* The Gods Ash Their Cigarettes. St Lucia, Qld: Makar Press, 1978. * To the Heart of the World’s Electricity. Broadway, NSW: Senor Press, 1980. * Atomic Ballet. Sydney: Hale & Iremonger, 1991. * Dingo Sky. Sydney: Angus & Robertson, 1993. * West of Krakatoa: Poems. Ainslie, ACT: Limestone Press, 1994. * Trans-Sumatran Highway, and other poems. Cook, ACT: Polonius Press, 1995. * Postcards from the Universe. Cambridge, UK: Folio / Salt, 1998. * Dragon Rising: Poems. Hanoi, Viet Nam: The Gioi Publishers, 1998. * Shimmerings: Poems. Wollongong, NSW: Five Islands Press, 2000. * Goddess of Mercy: Poems. Blackheath, NSW: Brandl & Schlesinger, 2002. * Earthly Delights. Canberra: Pandanus Books, 2006. * Island Earth: New and selected poems. Blackheath, NSW: Brandl & Schlesinger, 2012 *Don Juan Variations. Sydney: Vagabond Press, Rare Object Series, 2012 * Yonder Blue Wild. Macao, PRC: flying island books, 2018 * A Happening in Hades. Waratah, NSW: Puncher & Wattmann, 2020 * Love's Philosophy. Sydney, NSW: Gazebo Books / Life Before Man, 2020 * The Cult of What Comes Next. Waratah, NSW: Puncher & Wattmann, 2025

Anthologies

* Poems included in ~ * Anthology of Australian Religious Poetry, ed. Les Murray (Melbourne: Collins/Dove, 1986) * The Penguin Book of Modern Australian Poetry, ed. John Tranter & Philip Mead (Melbourne: Penguin, 1991) * Oxford Book of Modern Australian Verse, ed. Peter Porter (Oxford University Press, 1996) * Family Ties: poems of the Australian Family ed. Jennifer Strauss (Oxford University Press, 1998) * Landbridge: Contemporary Australian Poetry ed. John Kinsella (Fremantle Arts Centre Press, 1999) * Open Boat, Barbed Wire Sky: Poems for the Refugees ed Sue Hicks and Danny Gardner (Live Poets’ Press, Sydney 2003) * The Best Australian Poems 2003 ed Peter Craven (Black Ink, Melbourne 2003) * The Best Australian Poems 2004 ed Les Murray (Black Ink, Melbourne 2003) * Windchimes: Asia in Australian Poetry ed Noel Rowe and Vivian Smith (Pandanus, Canberra 2006) * Best Australian Poems 2007, ed. Peter Rose (Black Inc, Melbourne 2007) * Best Australian Poetry 2007, ed. John Tranter (UQP, St Lucia, 2007) * Che Guevara in Verse ed. Gavin O’Toole and Georgina Jimanez (Aflame Books, Wiltshire, 2007 * Over There – Poems from Singapore and Australia ed. John Kinsella and Alvin Pang * Penguin Anthology of Australian Poetry, ed John Kinsella, (Penguin, 2008) * The Perfume River: An Anthology of Writing from Vietnam, ed.

Catherine Cole Catherine Cole is an Australian author and academic. She lives between Australia, South West France and the UK. Cole's work in the fields of fiction, poetry, non-fiction, and academic writing has been widely published both in Australia in the UK, ...

(UWA Publishing 2010) * The Best Australian Poems 2012 ed John Tranter (Black Ink, Melbourne 2012) * The Turnrow Anthology Of Contemporary Australian Poetry, ed. John Kinsella, Jack Heflin and William Ryan (Desperation Press/Tunrow Books, USA 2013) * The Best Australian Poems 2014 ed Geoff Page (Black Ink, Melbourne 2014) * The House is Not Quiet and The World is Not Calm: poetry from Canberra, ed Kit Kelen and Geoff Page (Association of Stories, Macao, 2014) * Contemporary Australian Poetry, ed Martin Langford, Judith Beveridge, Judy Johnson, David Musgrave (Puncher &Wattmann, Sydney, 2016)

Literary publications

Poems, short stories and book reviews have appeared in Australian and overseas magazines, including: The (Melbourne) Age, Agenda (UK),

The American Pen ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns 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 English. ''The' ...

(US), Antipodes (US), ANU Reporter, Aspect,

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of b ...

Australian Book Review ''Australian Book Review'' is an Australian arts and literary review. Created in 1961, ''ABR'' is an independent non-profit organisation that publishes articles, reviews, commentaries, essays, and new writing. The aims of the magazine are " ...

, Block, The Bulletin,

Chili Verde Review Chili or chilli may refer to: Food * Chili pepper, the spicy fruit of plants in the genus ''Capsicum''; sometimes spelled "chilli" in the UK and "chile" in the southwestern US * Chili powder, the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties ...

(US), Canberra Times,

Cimarron Review ''The Cimarron Review'' is a major American literary journal published quarterly by the Oklahoma State University. It was founded in 1967, and its current editor is Lisa Lewis. The magazine has its headquarters in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Contribut ...

(US), Compass, Cordite, Diwan (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Eclectica, Editions, Education, Etchings, Final Taxi Review, fieralingue, foam:e, Fulcrum, Heat, Hobo, Honi Soit, Imago, Iron (UK), Island, JAAM (NZ), Jack (US), Jacket, Journal of Poetics Research,

The Literary Review ''The Literary Review'' is an American literary magazine founded in 1957. Publication was suspended in 2022, and the website notes: "Given the extenuating circumstances and the impact of Covid-19 on institutions of higher education, we do not ...

(US), The Longneck (US), Madame Bull's Tavern (Canada),

Magic Sam Samuel Gene Maghett (February 14, 1937 – December 1, 1969), known as Magic Sam, was an American Chicago blues musician. He was born in Grenada County, Mississippi, and learned to play the blues from listening to records by Muddy Waters and ...

, Masthead, Meanjin, Metre (Ireland), Meuse, Muse, Narcissus,

Nation Review ''Nation Review'' was an Australian Sunday newspaper, which ceased publication in 1981. It was launched in 1972 after independent publisher Gordon Barton bought out Tom Fitzgerald (economist), Tom Fitzgerald's ''Nation (Australia), Nation'' publ ...

Newcastle Herald The ''Newcastle Herald'' (formerly branded as ''The Herald'') is a local tabloid newspaper published daily, Monday to Saturday, in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. It is the only local newspaper that serves the greater Hunter Region and ...

, New Poetry, Nguoi HaNoi ‘Hanoi People’ (Vietnam), Nimrod International: journal of poetry and prose (US), Otis Rush, Outrider, Overland, The Pen (UK), Poetry Australia, Poetry Canada, Poetry Kanto (Japan), Poetry Review (UK), poetryX, Poets Choice '76, '77, 78, 79, Polar Bear, Prague Literary Review (Czech), Prism International (Canada), P-76,

The Reader ''The Reader'' () is a novel by German law professor and judge Bernhard Schlink, published in 1995. The story is a parable dealing with the difficulties post-war German generations have had comprehending the Holocaust; Ruth Franklin writes th ...

, Salt, Melbourne Sunday Herald, Scripsi, Siglo,

Slow Dancer ''Slow Dancer'' is the sixth album by Boz Scaggs, originally released by Columbia in 1974. It was produced by former Motowner Johnny Bristol of " Hang On In There Baby" fame. The album was initially released with a cover photo of Scaggs walkin ...

(UK),

South Dakota Review The ''South Dakota Review'' (''SDR'') is a quarterly literary magazine published by the University of South Dakota. History and profile ''SDR'' was founded in 1963 by John R. Milton and is currently edited by Lee Ann Roripaugh. Past associate ...

(US), Southerly, Stand (UK), Surfers Paradise,

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper in ...

, Taj Mahal Review (India), Tien Ve, Thylazine, Timber Creek Review (US), Union Recorder, Verse (US), Vietnam Cultural Window (Vietnam), Voice and Verse (Hong Kong), Voices, Your Friendly Fascist. Poems have also been broadcast by the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

on the Poet's Tongue, a First Hearing and '' Poetica''. Other broadcasts on 5UV Writers Radio,

2JJ Triple J is an Australian government-funded national radio station founded in 1975 as a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It aims to appeal to young listeners of alternative music, and plays far more Australian conten ...

, 2SER-FM, 2CN, Canberra Artsound.

References

S. K. Kelen (1956– )
Australian Poetry Library, (425 poems).
S.K. Kelen
at AustLit University of Queensland {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelen, S K Australian male poets 1956 births Living people University of Sydney alumni University of South Dakota faculty University of Adelaide alumni Academic staff of the University of Canberra 20th-century Australian poets 21st-century Australian poets Australian people of Hungarian descent