Erin Gough is a celebrated Australian author, best known for her work in young adult queer fiction. Originally from Sydney, Gough has made a significant impact on the literary world since the publication of her debut novel, "The Flywheel," in 2015. However, it was her second novel, "Amelia Westlake," that truly solidified her reputation as a skilled and compelling storyteller.
"Amelia Westlake" was the winner of the Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature in 2019 and the Young Adult Book Prize in 2018. The novel was also shortlisted for the Indie Book Awards and the Young Adult Fiction Victoria Premier's Literary Award in 2019, as well as the finals for the Queensland Literary Awards in 2018. "Amelia Westlake" was later republished in the United States under the title "Amelia Westlake Was Never Here." Gough's first novel, "The Flywheel," was also published in the United States and Germany under the title "Get it Together Delilah!" and won the Ampersand Prize. It was also shortlisted for the Gold Inky by the Centre for Youth Literature and the Book of the Year for Older Readers by CBCA.
In addition to her novels, Gough has also made a name for herself in the world of short fiction. Her work has been featured in several anthologies and journals, including Going Down Swinging, Best Australian Stories, Southerly, Overland, and The Age. She has also been a writer in residence at various schools and has lectured in numerous creative writing seminars and workshops. Gough's short stories have been broadcast on radio and she has worked as a freelance writer and columnist.
Gough's awards for her short fiction include first place in the Banjo Patterson National Short Story Competition, the Wimmera Literary Competition, the University of British Columbia "Ubyssey" Literary Competition, and the FAW Frank Page Award for Short Story Writing. She is also a past recipient of the Varuna Eleanor Dark Flagship Fellowship for Fiction, an Australian Society of Authors Mentorship, a Bundanon residency, and an Australia Council Emerging Writers Grant.