Sara Douglass
Sara Warneke (2 June 1957 – 27 September 2011), better known by her pen name Sara Douglass, was an Australian fantasy writer who lived in Hobart, Tasmania. She was a recipient of the Aurealis Award for best fantasy novel. Biography. A great-granddaughter of psychic Robert James Lees, Douglass was born in Penola, South Australia. She attended Annesley College, in Wayville, a suburb of Adelaide. She studied for her BA while working as a registered nurse, and later completed her PhD in early modern English History. She became a lecturer in medieval history at La Trobe University, Bendigo. While  there she completed her first novel, "BattleAxe", which launched her as a popular fantasy author in Australia, and later as an international success. Until the mid-2000s, Douglass hosted a bulletin board on her website, with the aim of encouraging creative thinking and constructive criticism of others' work. She maintained an online blog about the restoration project of her house and garden entitled Notes from Nonsuch in Tasmania. In 2008, Douglass was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She underwent treatment, but in late 2010 the cancer returned. She died on 27 September 2011, aged 54. Works. Fantasy fiction. Douglass mainly focused her  efforts on fantasy writings. Her first trilogy, "The Axis Trilogy", is set in the fantasy world of Tencendor. Of "The Axis Trilogy", "Enchanter" and "StarMan" won the 1996 Aurealis Fantasy division award and "Battleaxe" was nominated for the 1995 award. Douglass's second series, "The Wayfarer Redemption", two stand alone novels and her most recent series, "Darkglass Mountain" also focus on the fantasy world used in "The Axis Trilogy". "The Wayfarer Redemption" also did well in the Aurealis Fantasy division with all three novels reaching the finals for their published years. In addition to the fantasy novels set in the  world of Tencendor and Escator, Douglass wrote two unrelated historical fantasy series, "The Crucible" trilogy and "The Troy Game". Some of these novels also reached the Aurealis Fantasy division finals with "The Nameless Day" and "The Crippled Angel" from "The Crucible" finishing as finalists and "The Wounded Hawk" winning the award in 2001. "Hades' Daughter" and "Darkwitch Rising" from "The Troy Game" also were finalists in the Fantasy division. Other works. Douglass also wrote a non-fiction book, "The Betrayal of Arthur", and several short stories. Bibliography. Note: In the US, and most European countries, "The Axis Trilogy" and "The  Wayfarer Redemption" have been combined into one six-book series, "Wayfarer Redemption". Section::::"Darkglass Mountain". Prequels to 'Darkglass Mountain' trilogy Note: The "Darkglass Mountain" series, is a sequel to the "Axis Trilogy" and the "Wayfarer Redemption". Awards and nominations. Aurealis Awards. Fantasy division