Bill Marsh - Great Australian Outback School Stories

Bill Swampy Marsh is an award-winning writer/performer of stories, songs and plays. He spent most of his youth in rural south-western New South Wales. Bill was forced to give up any idea he had of a career as a cricketer when a stint at agricultural college was curtailed because of illness, and so began his hobby of writing. After backpacking through three continents and working in the wine industry, his writing hobby blossomed into a career.

His first collection of short stories, Beckom (Pop. 64) , was published in 1988; his second, Old Yanconian Daze , in 1995; and his third, Looking for Dad , in 1998. During 1999, Bill released Australia , a CD of his songs and stories. That was followed in 2002 by A Drovers Wife and Glory, Glory A Tribute to the Royal Flying Doctor Service in 2008. He has written soundtrack songs and music for the television documentaries The Last Mail from Birdsville The Story of Tom Kruse , Source to Sea The Story of the Murray Riverboats and the German travel documentaries Traumzeit auf dem Stuart Highway , RFDS Clinic Flights (Tilpa & Marble Bar) plus RFDS Clinic Flights (Einsatz von Port Hedland nach Marble Bar) .

Bill runs writing workshops in schools and communities and is a teacher of short story writing within the Adelaide Institute of TAFEs Professional Writing Unit. He has won and judged many nationwide short story writing and songwriting competitions and short film awards.

Bill is the author of the very successful series of Great Australian stories, including: Great Australian CWA Stories (2011), New Great Australian Flying Doctor Stories (2010), The ABC Book of Great Aussie Stories for Young People (2010), Great Australian Stories Outback Towns and Pubs (2009), More Great Australian Flying Doctor Stories (2007), Great Australian Railway Stories (2005), Great Australian Droving Stories (2003), Great Australian Shearing Stories (2001) and Great Australian Flying Doctor Stories (1999). Bills story of Goldie was published in 2008. Swampy , a revised edition of Bills first three story collections, was published in 2012 and the compilation The Complete Book of Australian Flying Doctor Stories was published in 2013.

More information about the author can be found at
www.billswampymarsh.com