DUNGOG writer and emerging novelist Shannon Benton has been awarded a fellowship with the Association for the Study of Australian Literature (ASAL) and The Copyright Agency.
Shannon is developing her novel Fragmented, a work of literary fiction that engages with themes of memory, authorship and myth, set between Victoria’s Mulberry Hill and Hanging Rock.
Her work explores memory, place and creative identity, often drawing on Australian literary history and landscape.
“The fellowship will significantly increase my visibility within the national literary landscape, opening pathways for future publication, collaboration, and engagement with publishers and literary organisations,” Shannon told NOTA.
“It will also allow me to represent and advocate for regional voices, contributing to broader conversations about access, place, and storytelling in contemporary Australian writing.”
Shannon’s writing has previously been recognised through a range of emerging writer opportunities.
She was shortlisted for the Newcastle Writers Festival Fresh Ink Emerging Writers Prize and for The Best Australian Yarn, and her work has been published in Mona Magazine.
She is currently undertaking advanced study through the Faber Writing Academy’s Writing a Novel program.
Shannon also works in allied health and aged care, specialising in report writing and narrative-based documentation.
She was previously a contributing reporter for Dungog News Of The Area.
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