Awards and achievements.

 2012 winner of the Dobbie Award

 2012 winner of the Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA)- Australian Newcomer of the year

 2012 shortlisted Booksellers Choice Award

 2012 finalist Melbourn Prize- Best Writing Award

 2020 winner Indie Book Awards Book of the Year and Fiction Book of the Year

 2020 shortlisted for ALS Gold Medal

Favel Parrett's ideas on the writing process and her life as a writer.

She doesn't write in order but works scene to scene. Each scene is written separately, often out of order
and when each scene is close to perfection they are placed in the story and made into a cohesive plot.
Parrett was disciplined in her writing process and persisted to write every day for around five hours. She
mentions in an interview that she drafts and redrafts her books often. Favel Parrett uses images of
setting and even characters to help her visualize and understand people and places (for example she
wrote a book set in Prague and had to use several images to help immerse herself in the scene). She also
typically has people close to her like her grandfather to help express their story and assist with small
details to help the audience perceive the worlds she creates.

https://taswriters.org/close-and-personal-with-favel-parrett/

https://thegarretpodcast.com/favel-parrett/
TASMANIA AND THE BRUNY LANDSCAPE Hobart capital city of
Tasmania. Harry and Aunty
Significant novel locations: Jean travelled here to visit
the Royal Hobart Regatta at
the beginning of the novel.

The Curren family was also

on their way there before
the car accident.

Bruny Island, an island off the south-

eastern coast of Tasmania where the
Curren family live and the novel ‘Past The
Shallows’ takes place.

Cloudy Bay. The Curren family have

visited here. There is reference to a
photo of the mum on the dunes here.

Environmental landscape of the area:

Bruny island is the location of several small towns. Outside of these settlements, there are large
areas off grazing fields and dry eucalyptus forest. There are two long beaches on the seaward
side (Cloudy Bay and Adventure Bay), however most of the island is covered in rugged bush
land. The western side of the island is far more sheltered, ideal for fishing and recreational
boating.

ABALONE AND THE FISHING INDUSTRY IN SOUTHERN TASMANIA

What is abalone?
Abalone is a mollusk that lives in coastal seawater. It has a single shell on top of its body which
clings to rocks. Abalone has meat tasting similar to scallops and is often fried, steamed,
poached or eaten raw.

Significance to coastal Tasmania?

Abalone is Tasmania’s most valuable wild marine source and provides one of the state’s largest
export incomes. 1850 tons of live weight abalone are harvested annually and over 95% is
exported – mainly to the Asian markets of China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Taiwan. This
huge industry of abalone exports provides jobs and keeps the economy ROLLING.

History of fishing in the area:

Fishing in Tasmania has always played an important role in the economy and providing people
with jobs and an income. In the 1930’s fishing became a very important industry in the
D’entrecasteaux channel, the body of water between Bruny Island and the coast of South-East
Tasmania (see map above.) Scallops are abundant in this region, and up until 1969 fishing
dredges (which are dragged along the sea floor) were used to collect scallops. After this time
scuba divers collected the scallops as it is more environmentally friendly. Other common fish in
this area are flathead, mackerel, squid, pike, Australian salmon, cod, shark, barracuda and many
more.

Biographical Details

 Born 1974
 Born in the outer suburbs of Melbourne
 Age 8 moved to Hobart, Tasmania
 Age 15 moved to the remote south coast of the Island – her childhood remote and
isolated setting influenced the setting of Past the Shallows – blend of memory and
fiction
 Parents had a troubled marriage
 Has a brother who she adores and seeks out as a source of companionship –
represented in Harry character – She says “the way I feel about Harry is the way I feel
about my little brother”
 Travelled to Antarctica in 2012
 Says that when she was a child, she used to dig up discarded ‘treasures’ on the beach –
seen in the beginning of Past the Shallows
 Attended school camps at Bruny Island
 Loved to surf – aspect of her context seen throughout Past the Shallows
 Started off writing short stories for magazines
 Did not begin seriously writing until she returned to TAFE in her early 30s
 Past the Shallows published in 2011
 Doesn’t write her chapters in order but scene by scene/ moment by moment – when
she thinks the scene is almost complete, she assembles the novel in a way she thinks
works best
 Past the Shallows took 3 years to write
 Took part in the Australian Society of Authors mentorship program in 2009
 Editor Julia Stiles helped Parrett to find the structure of her novel

Significant moments of influence in Parrett’s life
- Parrett’s experience living in Hobart for seven years as a child.
-