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Image courtesy Salon du Livre Océanien de Rochefort, 2014
Philip McLaren Philip McLaren i(A21527 works by)
Born: Established: 1943 Redfern, Inner Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, ;
Gender: Male
Heritage: Aboriginal ; Aboriginal Kamilaroi
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BiographyHistory

Philip McLaren was born in Redfern, although his family comes from the Warrumbungle Mountain area, New South Wales and he is a descendant of the Kamilaroi people.

McLaren has worked as a television producer, a director, designer, illustrator, architect, sculptor, lifeguard and copywriter. He has been a creative director in television, advertising and film production companies both in Australia and overseas.

His filmography includes, as art director, The Mavis Bramston Show (1964), The Mike Walsh Show (1973), Grand Old Country (known in the USA as The Ronnie Prophet Show) (1975), and It's a Knockout (1985) and, as production designer, The Beachcombers (1972), Country Joy (1979), and the 1983 film Hostage.

After this varied career, McLaren focused on writing and was among the first Aboriginal writers to write a thriller. His first novel, Sweet Water -- Stolen Land, won the David Unaipon Award in 1992. He subsequently published a number of other novels, including crime thrillers Scream Black Murder, Lightning Mine, and Murder in Utopia: the latter won the 2010 Prix Litteraire des Recits de l'ailleurs, a French award for international literature.

McLaren holds a Doctor of Creative Arts and has worked as a lecturer at Southern Cross University.

Most Referenced Works

Personal Awards

Awards for Works

y separately published work icon Murder in Utopia Utopia ( trans. Phillippe Boisserand with title Utopia ) France : Traversees Noumea , 2007 Z1702843 2007 single work novel crime (taught in 1 units) 'A reformed alcoholic, New York doctor Jack Nugent, takes on the challenge of running the medical centre at utopia in remote Central Australia. After two and a half years of advertising the position, there were no other applicants for the job. Nugent becomes engrossed in the exotic Aboriginal people and culture and is outraged by the government neglect he sees everywhere. Unexpectedly, he is swept up in a bizarre ritual murder investigation, in such a remote place he must assist the state coroner by gathering evidence and provide police with his forensic findings. Vital evidence goes missing and every avenue Nugent takes is blocked. He falls in love with Carla, a black lawyer, who helps him overcome the obstacles police and the Aboriginal community place in his path, a better social outcome for this ancient desert community depends largely on them.' (From the publisher's website.)
2010 nominated Ned Kelly Awards for Crime Writing — Best Novel
2010 winner Prix Litteraire des Recits de l'Ailleurs
y separately published work icon There'll Be New Dreams Broome : Magabala Books , 2001 Z901276 2001 single work novel (taught in 1 units) 'A human and pacey novel about marriage, kidnap, courtroom battles, the charm of youth and the tragedy that lurks in a darkened alley. A dynamic work done by one of Australia's most highly regarded Indigenous writers.' Source: Publishers blurb.
2004 shortlisted Prix Litteraire des Lyceens et Apprentis de la Region Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur Award for Nouveaux Reves
y separately published work icon Sweet Water : Stolen Land St Lucia : University of Queensland Press , 1993 Z32091 1993 single work novel historical fiction (taught in 8 units) 'The destinies of two families, black and white, are fatally interwoven... in this frontier novel. Racial brutality and the tragic account of the Myall Creek massacre underscore the story of Ginny and Wollumbuy, Kamilaroi people of Warrumbungle Range. Mysterious killings follow the arrival Karl and Gundrun Maresch, a German couple who establish a Lutheran mission near the young settlement of Coonabarabran.' (Source: Publisher's blurb)
1992 winner Queensland Literary Awards — Unpublished Indigenous Writer : David Unaipon Award
VIEW ALL AWARDS
Last amended 28 Sep 2017 15:45:32
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