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Stephanie Patricia Johnson MNZM (born 1961) is a poet, playwright, and short story writer from New Zealand. She lives in Auckland with her husband, film editor Tim Woodhouse, although she lived in Australia for much of her twenties.[1] Many of her books have been published there, and her non-fiction book West Island, about New Zealanders in Australia, is partly autobiographical.[1]

Background

Johnson was born in Auckland in 1961.[2]

Career

Johnson has taught creative writing at the University of Auckland, the University of Waikato, Auckland University of Technology and Massey University.[3] She co-founded the Auckland Writers' Festival with Peter Wells, and served as creative director and trustee.[3][4][5]

Published works

Johnson has published novels, poetry, plays, and collections of short stories.

Novels and short stories

  • The Glass Whittler (1989, New Women's Press), short stories
  • Crimes of Neglect (1992, New Women's Press), novel
  • All the Tenderness Left in the World (1993, Otago University Press), short stories
  • The Heart’s Wild Surf (1996, Random House), novel
  • The Whistler (1998, Vintage, Random House), novel
  • Belief (2000, Vintage, Random House), novel
  • The Shag Incident (2002, Vintage, Random House), novel
  • Music From A Distant Room (2004, Vintage, Random House)
  • Drowned Sprat and Other Stories (2005, Vintage, Random House), short stories
  • John Tomb's Head (2006, Vintage, Random House), novel
  • Swimmers' Rope (2008, Vintage, Random House) novel
  • The Open World (2012, Vintage, Random House), novel
  • The Writing Class (2013, Vintage, Random House), novel
  • The Writers’ Festival (2015, Vintage, Random House), novel
  • Playing for Both Sides (2016, Bridget Williams Books), creative non-fiction
  • West Island: Five Twentieth-century New Zealanders in Australia (2019, Otago University Press), creative non-fiction
  • Everything Changes (2021, Penguin Random House), novel

Plays and radio dramas

  • Accidental Phantasies (1985), stage play
  • Castle In the Harbour (1987), radio drama
  • Folie à Deux (1995, with Stuart Hoar), stage play
  • Hard Hitting Documentary (1995), radio drama
  • Sparrow’s Pearls (1996), radio drama
  • Trout (1996), radio drama

Poetry

  • The Bleeding Ballerina (1987, Hard Echo Press), poetry
  • Moody Bitch (2003, Godwit), poetry

Honours and awards

In 1985, Johnson won the Bruce Mason Playwriting Award.[6]

In the Montana New Zealand Book Awards, The Whistler, was shortlisted for the fiction award in 1999[4] and Belief was shortlisted in 2001.[2]

The Shag Incident was awarded the Deutz Medal for Fiction at the 2003 Montana New Zealand Book Awards.[7]

Johnson also won the 1996 Dymocks/Quote Unquote Reader's Poll, Best New Zealand Book for The Heart’s Wild Surf and Crimes of Neglect, was shortlisted for the 1993 Wattie Book Awards.[8]

Music From a Distant Room (in 2006) and John Tomb's Head (in 2008) were nominated for International Dublin Literary Award.[9][10]

In the 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours, Johnson was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to literature.[11]

In 2022, she received the Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement in Fiction.[12]

Fellowships and residencies

Johnson received the 2000 New Zealand Post Katherine Mansfield Prize, allowing her to travel to Menton, France.[4] She received the University of Auckland Literary Fellowship in 2001.[2] In 2016 she was selected as the Randell Cottage Writer in Residence.[3][13]

References

  1. ^ a b Noted. "Writer Stephanie Johnson on five pioneering Kiwis who crossed the ditch". Noted. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Stephanie Johnson". New Zealand Book Council. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  3. ^ a b c "The Writers". Randell Cottage Writers Trust. 14 January 2010. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  4. ^ a b c "Stephanie Johnson". Penguin New Zealand. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  5. ^ "People". Auckland Writers Festival. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  6. ^ Edmond, Murray. "Plays and playwrights - Theatre into the 2000s". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  7. ^ "Past Winners by Author". New Zealand Book Awards Trust. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  8. ^ "Stephanie Johnson". Academy of New Zealand Literature. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  9. ^ "2006 Longlist". International DUBLIN Literary Award. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  10. ^ "The International DUBLIN Literary Award – Nominations". Christchurch City Libraries. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  11. ^ "Queen's Birthday honours list 2019". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 3 June 2019. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  12. ^ Chumko, André (1 December 2022). "Writers honoured by prime minister for their contribution to New Zealand literature". Stuff. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  13. ^ "Stephanie Johnson Selected as Writer in Residence". Scoop News. 3 December 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
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