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Patti Miller has taught creative writing, with a particular focus on autobiographical writing, for more than 20 years. Patti's memoir The Joy of High Places was published by NewSouth in 2019 and her book Writing True Stories was published by Allen & Unwin in 2017.
Patti was included in UQP's Reading the Landscape which was published in celebration of its 70th anniversary. Released in 2018, it's a collection of stories from some of their best authors.
Her memoir Ransacking Paris was published by Penguin Books Australia in 2015.
Her novel The Mind of a Thief (2012), was long-listed and short-listed for several awards and won the 2013 NSW Premier’s Prize for History.
She is the author of Australia’s bestselling autobiographical writing texts, Writing Your Life and The Memoir Book as well as The Last One Who Remembers (memoir), Child (novel) and Whatever The Gods Do (memoir).
She is published regularly in newspapers and magazines including essay pieces in the Good Weekend magazine (The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age) and is available for speaking engagements to clubs and other groups. She has a BA (Communications) and MA (Writing) from UTS.
At the Australian Writers’ Centre, you learn from the best – and Patti is the best life writing teacher in Australia. Nearly 40 of her former students have been successfully published.
Patti teaches Life Writing, Life Writing Masterclass and Memoir Writing in Paris.
“Patti is excellent in her teaching, facilitating and guiding role, alternating between supporting and extending us and our writing. I learnt a lot and surprised myself with how easy it was to let words pour out on the page. An excellent boost for re-energising and re-focusing any writer, but especially for emerging writers or those who have mainly written in their professional lives.”
– Anni Webster
“Patti’s approach to the topic was a good balance of presentation and writing exercises. I gained so much valuable information and have told many people that it is not an exaggeration for me to say it was ‘life changing’. Patti has a great ability to provide honest feedback while at the same time being very encouraging. She creates an atmosphere of support where even the least experienced life writer (I put myself in that group) feels inspired, not diminished by the more experienced participants.”
– Linda Chaousis
“Patti was an inspiration. Her encouragement and quality presentation brought out the best in the participants. The experience and the setting was most rewarding.”
– Mary Windsor
“I found Patti interacted with us all without judgement, with compassion, with insight and with truth. She knows her subject well and it comes over that she enjoys teaching. The benefits of the course will possibly be ongoing. Not only was it enjoyable, with no pressure to ‘perform’ or come up with anything too intellectual, but it gave structure and method to life writing.”
– Robyn Elliott
“Patti was a great instructor – best writing course I’ve taken so far. It provided concrete examples on how to progress writing as well as new ways to access new ideas and ways to write.”
– Laura Ryan
