Kirsten grew up in Sydney and studied English and Fine Arts at the University of Sydney. She lived in New York between 1998 and 2006, where she completed a PhD in English on Renaissance poetry at Rutgers University. She now lives in Sydney with her husband and son. Kirsten’s first novel, The Legacy, was published to international critical acclaim in 2010. The Legacy was shortlisted for the ABIA Literary Fiction award, the ALS Gold Medal, and longlisted for the Miles Franklin award. Her second novel, A Common Loss, will appear in 2012. Kirsten has published poetry, fiction, literary criticism, and articles on contemporary fiction. The Legacy was completed with the assistance of an Emerging Writer’s Grant from the Literature Board of the Australia Council for the Arts. Kirsten has also been awarded support from the Cultural Fund of the Copyright Agency Limited. Kirsten is one of the founders of the new award for Australian women’s writing, The Stella Prize, and the discussion series and blog When Genres Attack! You can read an interview in Readings Newsletter here, and Miram Cosic’s profile piece on Kirsten in The Australian here. Follow Kirsten on Twitter @ktranter