Born and raised in Perth, Maureen Sexton moved to South Australia in January 1997. She has described herself as an internationalist, and has been interested and active in the environment movement, social justice issues and politics. She has two sons and a profoundly disabled daughter. Her first attempts at writing were lullabies and poems for her children.
Maureen has been a very active member of the writing community in Adelaide. She was Vice-President of the Society of Women Writers (SA) 1998-99, Secretary 1997-98 and Newsletter Editor 1997-99. She was a committee member of Friendly Street Poets 1998-99 and an active member of Henley Scribblers 1997-99 and Flinders Writers 1998. In Perth she was the organizer of Lunchlines, Edith Cowan University Poetry/Prose Readings in 1996. She has been a member of many writing groups nationally, a regular reader at poetry/prose readings in Adelaide and Perth. In the late 1990s she studied for a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Writing.
As well as the published work and their awards listed here, Maureen has received awards for unpublished work. Her 50 word prose entry "Traits" won an in-house competition of the Society of Women Writers (SA) 1997. In the FAW (Vic) Bendigo Regional Branch Literary Competition 1998 her poem "What Does a Poet Do?" won 2nd Prize in the Mini-Literary Competition for humorous poetry and her poem "Free Thought" was Commended in the Pieces of Eight Literary Competition. She has won four in-house competitions of the Society of Women Writers (SA) with her poem "Bringing Home the Bacon" (1997), prose pieces "Over Confidence" (1997) and "A Celebration" (1998) and her poem "Water Rescue" (1999). In 1998 her poem "Patchwork" was Commended in the Holiday Fantasia Competition. Her poem "Man in the Moon" was Highly Commended in the Julie Lewis Literary Award 1999 and "6 O'Clock Ritual" was Commended in the Bronze Quill Literary Competition in the same year.
