Ian B.G. Burns

Ian is the fourth generation in his family to become a published author (his uncle John preceding him). His maternal grandfather, Bernard Capes, wrote nearly forty novels and other books from the late 1890s up until his death in the 1918 'flu pandemic – all by hand, sometimes four being published in a year, a number going to additional editions. Several of his books and short stories can still be found on the internet, and some of his 'horror' fiction has found its way into two anthologies in recent times (The Black Reaper, Dancing Shadows).

Bernard's son, Renalt, had three books published in the late 1940s, one of which is still available on the internet, as well as having a screenplay produced.

Ian’s own writing began in secondary school, and extended into comedy sketches and lyrics for the stage in his early twenties. Later he found himself writing for the Education Department, and, after going into private practice, writing reports, proposals, and scripts for training videos and television commercials.

The catalyst for fiction writing was a story a colleague told him one day about a bunch of kids riding home on the back of a huge horse, which insisted on walking through a dam!

This led to his first book, Scratcher, published in 1987.

Since then he has written Lissie Pendle, The Search for Quong, Ranga Plays Australia, The Day and Night Machine, and Possum and Python for children and, for adults, Thomas Bulford’s English Companion, Thomas Bulford’s Essays on Life, Language & Love, The Alone Man, and Four Hander: Paths to Murder.

Ian is active in his local community, having being involved in Scouting for more than thirty years, founded a Friends environmental group and is an active member of another, was President of a badminton association, and has arranged for a group of family and friends to provide long-term support to third-world people seeking financial assistance to grow their businesses. He received a Commonwealth Community Australia Day Award in 2006.

He has three adult children and nine grandchildren.