Maria Tumarkin came to Australia with her family from the former Soviet Union in 1989. She is a writer, broadcaster and historian, and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Melbourne. Her first book, Traumascapes, was shortlisted in the 'First Book of History' category for the 2006 Victorian Premier's Literary Awards. She held a post-doctoral fellowship at Swinbune University of Technology, Melbourne, and in 2018 was teaching creative writing at the University of Melbourne.