FICTION AWARDS
The CYA Conference award ceremony 2013
Mike the Spike won first prize in the 2013 CYA Conference Competition, chapter books category. It is a novel aimed at readers aged 7 to 9, and deals with a topic many kids can relate to – nits!
Mike the Spike was published by New Frontier Publishing in August 2014 as part of their Little Rockets series.
On the writers’ panel at Freecon 2012 (I’m the one in blue)
Switch Back won third prize in the 2009 CYA Conference Competition, chapter books category. Aimed at readers aged 8 to 12, this is a time travel story with a difference. Sometimes it’s not enough to walk in someone else’s shoes – you need to try out their skin too!
Switch Back led to an invitation to speak on the writers’ panel at Sydney’s Freecon, a sci fi and fantasy convention. It was such a buzz! I got to rub shoulders with some great writers.
Press photo for Ashley’s Guitar. That red-and-white thing is a guitar, by the way!
Ashley’s Guitar won first prize in the Charlotte Duncan Award 2009. It is a short story aimed at readers 9-12 years old. It follows the emotional journey of a young girl coping with the death of her best friend. It is a story about despair, hope, and the power of music.
It can be read online by clicking here.
Here Comes Hercules was nominated for The Fantastic Book Awards 2019. It’s book 1 of the Hopeless Heroes series, humorous adventure books for children aged 7+. Comprising 10 books, Hopeless Heroes was published by Sweet Cherry Publishing in 2017 to 2019.
NON-FICTION AWARDS
Signing books and talking spooks at Berkelouw Books Cronulla
Aliens, Ghosts and Vanishings, Penguin Random House. Australia’s strangest myths and mysteries that might just possibly be true!
On the Children’s Book Council of Australia list of notable books in 2017
The Whitley Award!
My That’s Gross series, Pascal Press, won the Whitley Award for Best Children’s Series in 2015. Presented by the Royal Zoological Society, the award recognises contributions to increasing knowledge and awareness of native Australian fauna.
The books are aimed at 8 – 12 year olds, and are filled with gross and frightening facts about Aussie animals. Emphasis on the gross!
Breaking the Law, Heinemann Library – this book made the Children’s Book Council of Australia list of notable books in 2008. Who said the law was boring??
Aimed at 10 – 14 year olds, Breaking the Law examines the principles of justice, the court system, the various roles people play in the legal system and how disputes are settled. The companion book is called Making the Law.
Stella Tarakson 