About
Marian Edmunds
The Writing Business
- Worked on world news at Financial Times when the Berlin Wall fell, Nelson Mandela was released and became president, Bill Clinton entered and left the White House, Paul Keating was Australian prime minister, the Tate Modern gallery moved from idea in a former power station to reality, and a Brit did not win Wimbledon.
- Collaborates with architects on winning (or placed) proposals and narratives. A meeting of pencil & pens (and computers). At Archwriter.
- Content mentor for Kayako, November 2016-October 2017 until they improved so much, no more mentoring was needed.
- Graduated from Birkbeck, University of London with a BSc (Hons) Economic and Social Policy.
- A journalist in Australia, Hong Kong, London and roaming.
- Specialised in travel, tourism & hotel writing. How to see the world and earn a living.
- Had a newspaper column ‘Off Pat by Marian Edmunds’ at 19 in the then Coffs Harbour Advocate and always wondered who ‘Pat’ was. The editor chose the name.
- Always planned to write. Apparently, I told Kathy on the school bus to swimming when we were 12.
- Co-author Navigational Tips For Living In An Imperfect World (You’re all right as you are if only you knew it!) This book is (intentionally) an easy read that recognises past patterns of yourself and those around you and shows you how to read people, and how to communicate.
- Two novels, 3 bits of novels and many short stories, in progress.
- I started out in the real-life version of Porpoise Spit ( for fans of Muriel’s Wedding), reached the FT in London (right near the set of Bridget Jones) and then back to NSW where a TV scene starring Rachel Griffiths was filmed in my office. Weird I know.
- ‘Blue Blue Sky’, a story in city-pick New York, literary travel anthology amid stories by Truman Capote, David Byrne, Jonathan Franzen, Bob Dylan and F. Scott Fitzgerald.
- ‘The Prodigal Daughter, tiny memoir piece, Griffith Review.
- ‘Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush’ about Turkish baths I’ve had in city-pick Istanbul literary travel anthology.
- I am building a dossier of my print journalism, slowly. I have boxes of clippings to scan but sometimes would rather swim, read, or even write.
Marian is creative, thorough and adheres to deadlines.
Editor, in-flight magazine
Marian Edmunds, who began her career as a cadet journalist on the Coffs Harbour Advocate [as it then was] and four years later moved to the Daily News, wrote a lament for the loss of the two dailies (―Death of the local rag is not good news‖, Australian, Media section, 5 December 2011, pp.28, 26). It‘s an excellent article. — Australian Newspaper History Group
I used Marian many times as a freelancer and always found her copy to be excellent and on time.
Special Reports, Australian Financial Review