Nicholas Hasluck

The Honourable Justice Nicholas Paul Hasluck AM (born 17 October 1942) is an Australian novelist, poet and short story writer, and judge. He lives in Perth, Western Australia with his wife, Sally-Anne, and has two children.

Nicholas Hasluck was born in Canberra. His father, Sir Paul Hasluck was a minister in the Federal Government under Robert Menzies, and was later appointed Governor-General of Australia. Nicholas went to school at Scotch College, Perth, and Canberra Grammar School, before studying law at the University of Western Australia (1963) and Oxford (1966). After completing his studies he worked briefly in Fleet Street in London as an editorial assistant before returning to Australia in 1967 to work as a barrister sometimes in partnership with Robert Holmes à Court. He was deputy chair of the Australia Council from 1978 to 1982 and was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM).

On 1 May 2000, Hasluck was appointed as a judge on the Supreme Court of Western Australia, which is the highest ranking court in the Australian State of Western Australia.

Hasluck started writing at school, producing poetry and essays for the school magazine and was first professionally published in 1964 with a poem appearing in Westerly literary magazine.

Hasluck's books fall into two categories, which he describes as 'moral thriller genre and satire', with the thriller interesting him the most. He cites the American writers William Faulkner, Saul Bellow, Norman Mailer and Gore Vidal as being his main literary influences.

In 2006, Hasluck became Chairperson of the Commonwealth Writers' Prize.

• 1984 - winner The Age Book of the Year Award Imaginative Writing Prize and Book of the Year The Bellarmine Jug
• 1987 - shortlisted Miles Franklin Award for Truant State
• 1991 - shortlisted Miles Franklin Award for The Country Without Music
• 1991 - joint winner Western Australian Premier's Book Awards for The Country Without Music
• 1999 - shortlisted Western Australian Premier's Book Awards for Our Man K