i have been recognised by a variety of literary awards in australia. these include:

2024

AAWP/Spineless Wonders Novella Prize – won

Judge’s report:

The prose of Eggshell rockets along with gorgeously vibrant pace, peppered with tender wit, killer dialogue and incredible comic timing and pathos. The reader, these readers, found themselves immediately aligned with Kira, the observant, intelligent and understandably uncertain 1^st person protagonist, with her gaggle of hilarious friends, who do battle with snobby racist peers, and saccharine teachers. The story is set both at home, with Kira’s Cantonese grandmother, Apoh, and at the Lonsdale Heights school, which [quote] ‘was not known for storing the brightest bulbs in the box’. Kira is an ‘eggshell’ baby, according to Apoh — white on the outside and yellow on the inside — born following her mother’s one night stand at a night club with a white man. Kira has lived with the terse but loving Apoh ever since. She has to manage the difficult task of straddling the Chinese heritage of home life, alongside the delinquency and aspirational hypocrisy of white-dominated Australian public schools in 2000s Adelaide. The work non-peevishly and joyously traverses its prickly themes of class and race with humour and astonishing grace. Reminiscent of early Alan Warner work, The sopranos, there is a deftness to the descriptions of setting and vividness of character that herald a talented writer of astute sensibility. Eggshell paints the foibles of youth and anguishes of facing an adult future, ‘without an extra million dollars in [a] bank account’ with a lightness of touch and potential for wide appeal that is rare.

Kat Muscat Fellowship – shortlisted

2023
Richell Prize for Emerging Writers – shortlisted

Judge’s report:

Written in a fresh, engaging and open manner this creative non-fiction immediately captures the judges’ attention and plunged them into the energies of an extended Chinese family making a life for themselves in Adelaide. The violence committed upon the young protagonist is heartbreakingly senseless, and the long-lasting effects of direct racism are relayed without self-pity or excuse. Paradoxically, in losing her voice once, the writer has found and honoured it in this vivid expression of self.

20/40 Prize for Novella Writing (Finlay Lloyd) – shortlisted

2022
Deborah Cass Prize – shortlisted

University of Queensland Press Mentorship Prize for memoir – ‘When I was Your Dog’ – shortlisted

2019
Deakin University Non-Fiction Prize in partnership with Express Media for memoir ‘Let’s Eat食飯!‘ – won

Judge’s report:

Let’s Eat食飯! is marked by an original voice that’s funny, touching and charming. Drawing together elements of Chinese, Hong Kong and Australian culture, the result is a compelling and wildly entertaining family story. I can’t wait to see what Olivia writes next – Julia Carlomango