Anthea Hodgson is a country girl at heart, having grown up in the wheatbelt of WA, surrounded by paddocks, wheat, sheep and her parent’s books. She had a few ambitions as a child. To stay up past 9pm, ride a horse, to write a novel, and to marry Harrison Ford. When Anthea moved to Perth, it was mostly to be closer to the airport that would take her to Mr Ford, but it also worked out well for her education, so that was nice. 

She is now based in the city, with her husband, two teenagers and her writing partner and professional Labrador, Possum.

When she’s trying to be interesting, Anthea likes to reference her time as a radio producer in commercial radio and at the ABC, where she wrote interviews for people who actually were interesting, so she knows what that looks like.

 She had an all too brief career as an actress in a straight-to-video movie once, charming Sir Richard Attenborough with both her acting chops and her ability to drink tea, and encouraging Dominic West to keep with the whole acting gig, in case he ever got to play Prince Charles in The Crown.

 Anthea’s first novel, The Drifter, was published in 2016, followed by The Cowgirl in 20018; both novels exploring generational farming, modern values, and themes of home and freedom from a cast of characters and countryside lovingly based on the small community of Yealering.

 Anthea’s most recent novel, The War Nurses, brings the story of the 65 nurses of the Vyner Brooke, and the victims of the Bangka Island Massacre to a broader audience. She was inspired to honour her great aunt Minnie Hodgson, who died in the massacre, along with all the amazing nurses who were bombed, imprisoned, beaten and starved during WW2, and who survived, with great dignity, courage, strength and love.

Anthea regards The War Nurses as her finest professional achievement.

 Harrison Ford would be lucky to have her.