Mr Grant Caldwell
Lecturer, Creative Writing
Qualifications
B.Comm (Uni of Melb.), TSTC (Uni of Melb.), MA (Creative Writing - Uni. of Melb.)
Biography
Grant Caldwell has been teaching Creative Writing at the University of Melbourne since 1995. His creative work, poetry, stories and extended narratives, have been published widely in Australia since the early 1970s, as well as overseas in Canada, Colombia, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand and U.S.A; and been translated into Spanish, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese and Japanese. He has received two Australia Council for the Arts Established Writer Fellowships, and two Arts Victoria Grants. His books have been nominated for the Age Book of the Year Award, and a Human Rights Award. In mid 2007 he was appointed the Managing Editor of Blue Dog, the Poetry Journal (refereed) of the Australian Poetry Centre; he is an inaugural board member of the Australian Poetry Centre, and was a member of the Steering Committee for the Melbourne UNESCO City of Literature Bid, (2007) and the Steering Committee for the Centre for Books and Ideas (2007). He was born in Melbourne, and has lived and worked in London, Morocco, Ibiza and Sydney. He has had seven books of creative work published with a new collection of poetry due out mid 2010. In 1991 co-wrote/-directed/-performed Call It Poetry - Tonight a poem-play, for The Sydney Theatre Company (later an ABC documentary). He completed a Masters in Creative Writing in 2004 and is currently researching and writing a doctorate, which he began in 2005.
Current research
The psychology of composition, ancient Chinese philosophy and creativity, the teaching of creative writing, contemporary poetry and fiction (especially Australian).
Knowledge transfer
Community involvement
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Board member The Australian Poetry Centre
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Judge of FAW Colin Thiele Poetry Award
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Judge of Val Vallis Poetry Prize ($4000)
Public readings and workshops
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Passionate Tongues Brunswick Poetry 2008
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Melbourne Poets Union Poetry at Victorian Writers Centre 2008
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La Mama Reconciliation Reading 2008
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2008 Tokyo Poetry Festival: Meiji University;
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Castlemaine Poetry 2008
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Bunjarra (Upwey) Word Tree Reading 2009
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Merimbula (NSW) Poetry Workshop for South Coast Writers 2008
Membership
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Membership of Australian Poetry Centre, Victorian Writers Centre, Melbourne Poets Union, Overload Poetry Festival.
Administration
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Co-coordinator of Creative Writing: Ideas & Practice (the core first year subject) 106105
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Coordinator: Creative Writing Honours
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Coordinator: Novels 106310
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Coordinator: Radical Fiction 106371
University committees
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Undergraduate Studies Committee
Teaching
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106105 Creative Writing – Ideas and Practice
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106310 Novels
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106371 Radical Fiction
Full subject descriptions are available on the University of Melbourne Handbook.
Research student supervisions
PHD:
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Dorothy Simmons
MA:
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Rohan Wilson
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Peter Barden
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Paul Belanger
2009 Minor Thesis Supervision:
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Angela Gash
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Hayley Kaso
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Cameron Lowe
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David Baru
- Thomas Lee-Steere
- Rebecca Croser
- Virginia Greaves (Practical Project)
Publications
Books
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2003 Dreaming of Robert de Niro (Five Islands Press, Wollongong) poetry
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1996 You Know What I Mean (Hale & Iremonger, Sydney) poetry (Nominated for The Age Book of the Year Award)
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1992 The Life of a Pet Dog (Five Islands Press, Wollongong) poetry
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1991 Malabata (Harper Collins, Imprint, Sydney) novel (Nominated for Australian Human Rights Award)
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1990 Einstein, Buddhism & My Stiff Neck (Off The Page, Sydney) audio cassette - poetry
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1988 The Revolt of the Coats (Angus & Robertson, Sydney) stories
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1984 The Nun Wore Sunglasses (Glandular Press, Sydney) poetry
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1982 The Bells of Mr. Whippy (East End Art, Sydney) poetry
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1979 The Screaming Frog That Ralph Ate (SCOPP, Sydney) poetry
Book chapters and work anthologised
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2007 - The Road South - Anthology of Contemporary Australian poetry - ed. Ron Pretty. Published by Bengal Creations (Kolkuta, India)
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2006 Yapanchita - International Anthology of poetry - Yapanchitra Books, Kolkuta, India
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2005: Travellers' Tales: Best Stories Under the Sun vol 2 (Central Queensland Uni. Press)
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2000: New Music, (Australian Contemporary poetry) ed John Leonard (Five Islands Press)
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1999: My Secret Life ed. B. Roberts & I. McBryde (Melbourne Poetry Festival)
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1994: Top Lines, eds. Dot Jensen & Maureen Granger (Phoenix Education Publishers)
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1992: Perseverence Poets' Collection: ed. Louise Craig (Perseverence Poets)
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1989: Expressway (stories), ed Helen Daniels (Penguin)
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1989: Blowing Out the Candles ed. Jeltje van Ooij (Collective Effort Press)
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1987: Writers In the Park Anthology ed. George Pappelinas (Harold Park Hotel/Sydney)
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1985: Off the Record (poetry) ed. Pi O (Penguin)
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1985: Minute to Midnight ed. Anna Couani, Chris Kelen, Carmel Kelly, Mark Roberts (Red Spark Press)
Journal articles
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"The Psychology of Composition (The Unconscious Metaphor)". In/Stead Issue 1 (Double Dialogues Vol 6) 2005.
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"World Haiku": A Review and essay on the Wolrd Haiku Anthology (Ginyu - Japan). Published (in English and Japanese) in Ginyu Magazine No. 30 (Japan) and Blue Dog (Australia - refereed journal). Vol. 5 No. 10. 2006.
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"How and What do Creative Writing Teachers Teach and What do Creative Writing Students Learn" in Canadian Online Journal, Educational Insights. Volume 11 No. 1 April, 2007.
Conference papers
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Art and Pain II Conference (Double Dialogues #6; Anatomy and Poetics: SCA University of Melbourne 2004. "The Psychology of Composition (The Unconscious Metaphor)".
Creative works
Major (recent)
2003 Dreaming of Robert de Niro (Five Islands Press, Wollongong) poetry collection.
Minor (since 2004)
Numerous poems published in the following journals, newspapers and magazines: Blast, Space, Cordite, Heat, Blue Dog, Famous Reporter, Going Down Swinging, Unusual Work, Poetry Ireland Review, Meanjin, SaltLick, The Age, Cloudspeak (U.S.A), Haiku Harvest (U.S.A.), Ginyu (Japan), Waxwing (Ireland), Yapanchita (India), Moving Galleries (poetry on city trains).
International festivals attended
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1996: Attended Medellin (Colombia) International Poetry Festival
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2005: Attended Wellington (New Zealand) International Poetry Festival
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2008 Tokyo Poetry Festival (Japan)
Academic record and recent awards
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1971 - B.Comm TSTC (University of Melbourne)
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2004 - Completed MA (Creatve Writing - English, University of Melbourne)
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2005 - Began part time PhD thesis: the psychology of composition
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2007 - Awarded Writer's Residence, Heinrich Boll Cottage, C. Mayo, Ireland
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2007 - Awarded Australia Council for the Arts Self-Organised Residence Funding Grant
Other awards
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1991 Nominated for Human Rights Award
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1992 Australia Council Established Writers Fellowship (category B)
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1993 VicArts Grant
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1994 Australia Council Established Writers Fellowship (category A)
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1994 VicArts Grant
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1996 Shortlisted for Age Book of the Year Award
