About Natasha Neary
writer
Natasha wanted to be Joan Wilder from the day, as a kid, when she fell in love with the film Romancing The Stone.
Her shortlisting for HarperCollins' 2023 Banjo Prize was a major milestone.
An award-winning former news journalist with a Masters in Creative Writing, her job has seen her interview Cherie Blair, cult leader Ma Sheela of the Raj Neeshis, pop stars and celebrity chefs from Guy Sebastian to Rene Redzepi, and convicted killers - all in the search for a good story.
In her 20s, Natasha moved to Paris, aspiring to become the next Hemingway, but was generally found guzzling Cotes du Rhone and confit de canard in the Marais, or serving the likes of Brooke Shields and Andre Agassi a lobster at Buddha Bar. She later travelled the world as a Sydney publicist of hotels, celebrity chefs and property developers.
Her childhood was divided between Perth’s beaches and Sweden's forests, leaving her torn between Vegemite and Kalles Kaviar. She’s now a dedicated hedonist who rarely finds a food or wine she doesn’t like. She finds alphabetising the spice drawer a good salve for writer’s block.
Natasha was raised in the cultural hub of Fremantle, home of some of the world's greatest authors: Tim Winton, Craig Silvey, Kim Scott and Ben Elton. She has now gravitated to another literary hub, on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, living within coo-ee of Michael Robotham, Sarah Turnbull, and now, Geraldine Brooks.
She is an accidental member of three book clubs.
Her bibliotherapy comes via a robust writing group born out of lockdown, the @AllWriteClub