When Hazel Rowley died, the Australian biographer was at the peak of her career, having cemented a reputation for writing richly engaging and throughly researched biographies of figures including Christine Stead, black American writer Richard Wright, and power couples Simone de Beauvoir and Jean Paul Sartre, and Eleanor and Franklin D Roosevelt. 

But how did the Adelaide academic achieve her success?  A new anthology of her writing on biography, Life As Art, by her sister Della Rowley, with an introduction by Drusilla Modjeska provides insights into Hazel’s tenacity.

In this episode, Della Rowley shares  her personal memories of her older sister nd talks about the financial aspect of Hazel’s increasing success, while Drusilla Modjeska remembers her discussions with Hazel about the ethical  boundaries of biography.

When Hazel Rowley died, the Australian biographer was at the peak of her career, having cemented a reputation for writing richly engaging and throughly researched biographies of figures including Christine Stead, black American writer Richard Wright, and power couples Simone de Beauvoir and Jean Paul Sartre, and Eleanor and Franklin D Roosevelt.&nbsp;
But how did the Adelaide academic achieve her success?&nbsp; A new anthology of her writing on biography, Life As Art, by her sister Della Rowley, with an introduction by Drusilla Modjeska provides insights into Hazel&rsquo;s tenacity.
In this episode, Della Rowley shares&nbsp; her personal memories of her older sister nd talks about the financial aspect of Hazel&rsquo;s increasing success, while Drusilla Modjeska remembers her discussions with Hazel about the ethical&nbsp; boundaries of biography.

What is the secret to writing a really juicy biography? Author Caroline Baum interviews seasoned players and persistent newcomers who share their experience of navigating sensitive territory in the search for the real story behind a person’s life. Whether they are writing about the famous or the forgotten, whether their version of events is authorised or
unauthorised, biography is a high-stakes quest full of twists and turns.

What is the secret to writing a really juicy biography? Author Caroline Baum interviews seasoned players and persistent newcomers who share their experience of navigating sensitive territory in the search for the real story behind a person&rsquo;s life. Whether they are writing about the famous or the forgotten, whether their version of events is authorised or unauthorised, biography is a high-stakes quest full of twists and turns.

Life Sentences Podcast

What is the secret to writing a really juicy biography? Author Caroline Baum interviewsseasoned players and persistent newcomers who share their experience of navigating sensitive territory in the search for the real story behind a person’s life. Whether they are writing about the famous or the forgotten, whether their version of events is authorised or unauthorised, biography is a high-stakes quest full of twists and turns.

What is the secret to writing a really juicy biography? Author Caroline Baum interviewsseasoned players and persistent newcomers who share their experience of navigating sensitive territory in the search for the real story behind a person&rsquo;s life. Whether they are writing about the famous or the forgotten, whether their version of events is authorised or unauthorised, biography is a high-stakes quest full of twists and turns.

Advertisement