Holden Sheppard

Summary

Holden Sheppard is an award-winning West Australian author known for his acclaimed coming-of-age novel Invisible Boys, which won several accolades including the 2018 Hungerford Award. He currently serves as the Deputy Chair of WritingWA and as an ambassador for Lifeline WA, and was formerly host of the Fremantle Press podcast. Holden's energy, humour and enthusiasm have made him a popular guest author, MC and facilitator.

Biography

Holden Sheppard is an award-winning author born and bred in Geraldton, Western Australia. His debut novel Invisible Boys (Fremantle Press, 2019) won several accolades including the 2018 City of Fremantle Hungerford Award. In 2020, Invisible Boys was shortlisted for the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards and named as a Notable Book by the Children's Book Council of Australia.

Holden's writing has been published in Griffith Review, Westerly, page seventeen, Indigo Journal and the Bright Lights, No City anthology. He has written articles for 10 Daily, the Huffington Post, the ABC, DNA Magazine and FasterLouder. He graduated with Honours from Edith Cowan University’s writing program and won a prestigious Australia Council ArtStart grant in 2015.

Holden currently serves as the Deputy Chair of WritingWA and as an ambassador for Lifeline WA, and was formerly host of the Fremantle Press podcast. He has always been a misfit: a gym junkie who has played Pokémon competitively, a sensitive geek who loves aggressive punk rock, and a bogan who learned to speak French. He lives in Perth’s northern suburbs with his husband.

Relevant qualifications

Bachelor of Arts (First Class Honours) - Edith Cowan University (2013)
Bachelor of Arts (Writing and French) - Edith Cowan University (2010)

Recent experience

Edith Cowan University: School of Arts and Humanities - Guest Lecturer (May 2020)
Centre for Stories: Stories from Home - Guest Author (April 2020)
Express Media: Toolkits - Guest Author: Voice, Dialogue and Perspective [YouTube Live Event] (April 2020)
Fremantle Library: City of Fremantle Book Club - Guest Author (March 2020)
University of Western Australia: Big Picture Project - Guest Lecturer and Interviewee (March 2020)