Hannah Ianniello

Although early video fotage of Hannah as a young woman clearly encapsulates her desire to become a writer 'of some kind', it took her many years to feel confident enough to really apply herself to a long-form piece. Before tackling this overwhelming, and potientially self-indulgent task, Hannah wrote songs and poetry, and dabbled in short stories.

 

After performing in bands for many years, and working part time in publishing, Hannah finally enrolled in a Masters of Creative Writing in an effort to build knowledge and the confidence to write. By the end of the two years, she had begun her first novella, a television series, and had her first poem published in a university publication.

 

Hannah began teaching at the University of Notre Dame, Sydney, not long after finishing her Masters, and from that experience decided to enrol in a PhD. This gave her three and a half years to develop her skills as a novelist, interrogate the writing process with fellow students and inspiring professional writers and also develop her academic writing and research skills.

 

Throughout this process, one thing became particularly evident: learning music for most of her childhood helped in many many ways. Not only does Hannah seek music in all of her writing, but the discipline required to learn an instrument is much like the discipline required to learn and practice writing. So many mistakes are made, so much goes unheard, but in the end, she hopes the music will come through.

 

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