Henry Savery was a businessman, forger, convict and author. Savery was condemned to hang for his forging attempts, but instead he was transported for life, arriving in Hobart Town in 1825. In Hobart, he was imprisoned for debts again where he wrote sketches depicting the people and activities of the colony. These were published by Andrew Bent in The Colonial Times as ‘The Hermit of Van Diemen’s Land’ under the pseudonym Simon Stukeley. When the essays were released as a compilation in 1829 it became the first book of essays published in Australia.
In 1831, Savery also wrote the first novel written and printed in colonial Australia entitled Quintus Servinton: A Tale Founded upon Incidents of Real Occurrence. This semi-biographical morality tale provides a rare, first-hand account of the life and experiences of an educated convict. Savery was granted his ticket of leave in 1832, but in 1840 was again found guilty of forgery. He was sent to Port Arthur and died on 8 February 1842. The Henry Savery National Short Story Award is held every two years and is open to all Australian writers.
