Sara Warneke (2 July 1957 – 27 September 2011), better known by her pen name Sara Douglass, was an Australian

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

writer who lived in

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

. She was a recipient of the Aurealis Award for best fantasy novel.

Biography

A great-granddaughter of psychic Robert James Lees, Douglass was born in

Penola, South Australia Penola ( ) is a town in the Australian state of South Australia located about southeast of the state capital of Adelaide in the wine growing area known as the Coonawarra. At the 2021 Australian Census, the town of Penola had a population of 1 ...

. She attended

Annesley College Annesley Junior School, formerly known as Methodist Ladies' College and Annesley College, is an independent day school for girls and boys from two years old to year 6. It is located in Wayville, a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It has a co-e ...

, in

Wayville Wayville is an inner-southern suburb of Adelaide in the City of Unley. It is most notable for hosting of the Royal Adelaide Show at the Adelaide Showgrounds. The suburb is bordered to the north by Adelaide's South Parklands, to the west by Ade ...

, a suburb of

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. She studied for her BA while working as a registered nurse, and later completed her PhD in early modern English History. She became a lecturer in medieval history at

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 1 ...

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2022, Bendigo has a popula ...

. While there she completed her first novel, ''BattleAxe'', which launched her as a popular fantasy author in Australia, and later as an international success. Until the mid-2000s, Douglass hosted a

bulletin board A bulletin board (pinboard, pin board, noticeboard, or notice board in British English) is a surface intended for the posting of public messages, for example, to advertise items wanted or for sale, announce events, or provide information. ...

on her

website A website (also written as a web site) is any web page whose content is identified by a common domain name and is published on at least one web server. Websites are typically dedicated to a particular topic or purpose, such as news, educatio ...

, with the aim of encouraging

creative thinking Creativity is the ability to form novel and valuable ideas or works using one's imagination. Products of creativity may be intangible (e.g. an idea, scientific theory, literary work, musical composition, or joke), or a physical object (e.g. a ...

and

constructive criticism Criticism is the construction of a judgement about the negative or positive qualities of someone or something. Criticism can range from impromptu comments to a written detailed response. , ''the act of giving your opinion or judgment about the ...

of others' work. She maintained an online blog about the restoration project of her house and garden entitled Notes from Nonsuch in Tasmania. In 2008, Douglass was diagnosed with

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different ...

. She underwent treatment, but in late 2010 the cancer returned. She died on 27 September 2011, aged 54.

Works

Fantasy fiction

Douglass mainly focused her efforts on fantasy writings. Her first trilogy, '' The Axis Trilogy'', is set in the fantasy world of Tencendor. Of ''The Axis Trilogy'', '' Enchanter'' and '' StarMan'' won the 1996 Aurealis Fantasy division award and ''

Battleaxe A battle axe (also battle-axe, battle ax, or battle-ax) is an axe specifically designed for combat. Battle axes were designed differently to utility axes, with blades more akin to cleavers than to wood axes. Many were suitable for use in one ha ...

'' was nominated for the 1995 award. Douglass's second series, '' The Wayfarer Redemption'', two stand alone novels and her most recent series, ''Darkglass Mountain'' also focus on the fantasy world used in ''The Axis Trilogy''. ''The Wayfarer Redemption'' also did well in the Aurealis Fantasy division with all three novels reaching the finals for their published years. In addition to the fantasy novels set in the world of Tencendor and Escator, Douglass wrote two unrelated historical fantasy series, ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...

'' trilogy and ''

The Troy Game ''The Troy Game'' is a quartet of fantasy novels by Australian author Sara Douglass consisting of four books: ''Hades' Daughter'', ''God's Concubine'', ''Darkwitch Rising'' and ''Druid's Sword''. It centres on a group of characters who are rei ...

''. Some of these novels also reached the Aurealis Fantasy division finals with '' The Nameless Day'' and '' The Crippled Angel'' from ''

'' finishing as finalists and '' The Wounded Hawk'' winning the award in 2001. ''

Hades' Daughter ''Hades' Daughter'' is a fantasy novel by Australian writer by Sara Douglass, the first book in the Troy Game series. It is inspired, with some differences, by the legend of Theseus. Plot summary ''Hade's Daughter '' opens at the Troy Game q ...

'' and '' Darkwitch Rising'' from ''

'' also were finalists in the Fantasy division.

Other works

Douglass also wrote a non-fiction book, '' The Betrayal of Arthur'', and several short stories.

Bibliography

Note: In the US, and most European countries, ''The Axis Trilogy'' and ''The Wayfarer Redemption'' have been combined into one six-book series, ''Wayfarer Redemption''.

''The Axis Trilogy''

In the United States, these novels were published as the first three books of the Wayfarer Redemption series. *''

'' (1995) (published as ''The Wayfarer Redemption'' in the United States) *'' Enchanter'' (1996) *'' StarMan'' (1996)

''The Wayfarer Redemption''

*'' Sinner'' (1997) *''

Pilgrim The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

'' (1998) *''

Crusader Crusader or Crusaders may refer to: Military * Crusader, a participant in one of the Crusades * Convair NB-36H Crusader, an experimental nuclear-powered bomber * Crusader tank, a British cruiser tank of World War II * Crusaders (guerrilla), a C ...

'' (1999)

''The Crucible''

* '' The Nameless Day'' (2000) * '' The Wounded Hawk'' (2001) * '' The Crippled Angel'' (2002)

''The Troy Game''

* ''

'' (2002) * ''Gods' Concubine'' (2004) * '' Darkwitch Rising'' (2005) * '' Druid's Sword'' (2006)

''Darkglass Mountain''

*''The Serpent Bride'' (2007) *''The Twisted Citadel'' (2008) *''The Infinity Gate'' (2010) Prequels to 'Darkglass Mountain' trilogy * ''Beyond the Hanging Wall'' (1996) - set just prior to the events in the trilogy. * ''

Threshold Threshold may refer to: Science Biology * Threshold (reference value) * Absolute threshold * Absolute threshold of hearing * Action potential * Aerobic threshold * Anaerobic threshold * Dark adaptation threshold * Epidemic threshold * Flicke ...

'' (1997) - set approximately 2,000 years before the events in the trilogy. Note: The ''Darkglass Mountain'' series, is a sequel to the ''Axis Trilogy'' and the ''Wayfarer Redemption''.

Other

* ''The Devil's Diadem'' (2011) * '' The Hall of Lost Footsteps'' (a collection of stories,

Ticonderoga Publications Ticonderoga Publications is an Australian independent publishing house founded by Russell B. Farr in 1996, which specializes in science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories. Farr now runs the publisher alongside Liz Grzyb, an award winni ...

, due 2011)

Short stories

* "Of Fingers and Foreskins" (1996) in ''

Eidolon In ancient Greek literature, an eidolon (; 'image, idol, double, apparition, phantom, ghost'; plural: eidola or eidolons) is a spirit-image of a living or dead person; a shade or phantom look-alike of the human form. In the Homeric epic, it ...

'' #21 and The Best of Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy 1996 (ed.

Jonathan Strahan Jonathan Strahan (born 1964, Belfast, Northern Ireland) is an editor and publisher of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. His family moved to Perth, Western Australia in 1968, and he graduated from the University of Western Australia with a ...

and Jeremy Byrne) * "The Evil Within" (1998) in ''

Dreaming Down-Under ''Dreaming Down-Under'' is a 1998 speculative fiction anthology edited by Jack Dann and Janeen Webb. Publishing history ''Dreaming Down-Under'' was first published in Australia in November 1998 by Voyager Books in trade paperback format. In 1 ...

'' (ed.

Janeen Webb Janeen Webb (''née'' Pemberton) is an Australian writer, critic and editor, working mainly in the field of science fiction and fantasy. Biography The daughter of a Second World War Australian Army commando and salesman, Webb was brought up in ...

and

Jack Dann Jack Dann (born February 15, 1945) is an American writer best known for his science fiction, as well as an editor and a writing teacher, who has lived in Australia since 1994. He has published over seventy books, the majority being as editor or c ...

) and ''

The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror ''The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror'' was a reprint anthology published annually by St. Martin's Press from 1988 to 2007. In addition to the short stories, supplemented by a list of honorable mentions, each edition included a number of retrospect ...

'' (ed.

Ellen Datlow Ellen Datlow (born December 31, 1949) is an American science fiction, fantasy, and horror editor and anthologist. She is a winner of the World Fantasy Award and the Bram Stoker Award ( Horror Writers Association). Career Datlow began her car ...

and

Terri Windling Terri Windling (born December 3, 1958, in Fort Dix, New Jersey) is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. She has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, and the Bram St ...

) * "The Field of Thorns" (2000) in ''

Australian Women's Weekly ''The Australian Women's Weekly'', sometimes known simply as ''The Weekly'', is an Australian monthly women's magazine published by Are Media in Sydney and founded in 1933. For many years it was the number one magazine in Australia before bein ...

'' * "St Uncumber" (2001) in ''Australian Women's Weekly'' * "The Mistress of Marwood Hagg" (2003) in ''Gathering the Bones'' (ed.

Dennis Etchison Dennis William Etchison (March 30, 1943 – May 29, 2019) was an American writer and editor of fantasy and horror fiction.

Ramsey Campbell Ramsey Campbell (born 4 January 1946) is an English horror fiction writer, editor and critic who has been writing for well over fifty years. He is the author of over 30 novels and hundreds of short stories, many of them winners of literary awa ...

& Jack Dann) * "This Way to the Exit" (2008) in ''Dreaming Again'' (ed. Jack Dann)

Non-fiction

* ''Images of the Educational Traveller in Early Modern England'' (E. J. Brill, 1995) * ''The Betrayal of Arthur'' (1998)

Awards and nominations

Aurealis Awards The Aurealis Award for Excellence in Speculative Fiction is an annual literary award for Australian science fiction, fantasy and horror fiction. Only Australians are eligible for the award. History The Aurealis Award was established in 1995 by ...

Fantasy division *Finalist: ''Battleaxe'' (1995) *Won: ''Enchanter'' and ''Starman'' (1996) tie with

's ''

The Memory Cathedral ''The Memory Cathedral: A Secret History of Leonardo da Vinci'' is a 1995 historical fantasy fiction novel by Jack Dann. It follows Leonardo da Vinci constructing his flying machine and then travelling to the East. Background It was first publis ...

'' *Finalist: ''Sinner'' (1997) *Finalist: ''Pilgrim'' (1998) *Finalist: ''Crusader'' (1999) *Finalist: ''The Nameless Day'' (2000) *Won: ''The Wounded Hawk'' (2001) *Finalist: ''The Crippled Angel'' (2002) *Finalist: ''Hades' Daughter'' (2002) *Finalist: ''Darkwitch Rising'' (2005)

Australian Shadows Award

*Finalist: "This Way to the Exit" (''Dreaming Again'', ed. Jack Dann, HarperVoyager 2008)

References

External links

*
Sara's home at Nonsuch

a
SFFWorld.com
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Douglass, Sara 1957 births 2011 deaths Australian fantasy writers Australian people of English descent People from Penola, South Australia Australian women novelists Deaths from ovarian cancer in Australia Deaths from cancer in Tasmania 20th-century Australian novelists Australian women science fiction and fantasy writers Australian science fiction writers 20th-century Australian women writers Pseudonymous women writers 20th-century pseudonymous writers