Jena Woodhouse Explained

Jena Woodhouse is a Brisbane-based Australian novelist and poet.

Career

Born Jennifer May Spurway, in Rockhampton in 1949, Woodhouse is a graduate of the University of Queensland obtaining a B.A.Hons in Russian language and literature. Later Woodhouse completed an M.A. in creative writing at Queensland University of Technology. AustLit lists 562 published works by Woodhouse^[1] that include the domestic fiction ‘Farming Ghosts’ (2009),^[2] and the short story collection ‘Dreams of Flight’ (2014).^[3]

Woodhouse's published poetry collections include 'Eros in Landscape' (1989),^[4] 'Passenger on a Ferry' (1994)^[5] and 'Green Dance: Tamborine Mountain Poems' (2018).^[6]

Woodhouse's poetry has been recognised both in Australia and internationally. Amongst Woodhouse's awards is a High Commendation for ‘The Termitary’ in the 2007 Fellowship of Australian Writers Tom Collins Poetry Prize (Western Australia)^[7] and second place for ‘Galahs near Booranga’ in the 2017 Henry Kendall Poetry Award (Victoria).^[8] Woodhouse has been short-listed three times for the Montreal International Poetry Prize for ‘A Bird and the River ‘ (2013),^[9] ‘Evening Stroll by the Canal’ (2015),^[10] and more recently for ‘Lament for a Daughter’ (2020).^[11]

Woodhouse's poems have also been set to music. Woodhouse's poem sequence 'The River’ formed the basis of Betty Beath’s song cycle ‘River Songs’ (1991) for soprano^[12] and her poems 'Turquoise Lullaby', ' Every Shadow‘ and 'When Evie Dances’ (2018) forms the text for Beath's song cycle 'Evie Dances’ for mezzo-soprano.^[13] Woodhouse's poem 'The She Wolf' is the text of one of five songs in Beath's song cycle ’Points in a Journey’ (1987) for soprano.^[14]

Prose

• Jena Woodhouse (2009) Farming Ghosts, Port Adelaide: Ginninderra Press.
• Christina Houen and Jena Woodhouse (eds) (2006) Hidden Desires: Australian Women Writing, Ginninderra Press.
• Jena Woodhouse (1993) Metis, The Octopus and the Olive Tree, Nundah: Jam Roll Press.

Poetry

• Jena Woodhouse, Larisa Chen (illustrator) (1989) Eros in Landscape Brisbane: Jacaranda Press.
• Jena Woodhouse (1994) Passenger on a Ferry, St Lucia: University of Queensland Press.
• Jena Woodhouse (2018) Green Dance: Tamborine Mountain Poems Calanthe Press.

External links

• Jena Woodhouse | AustLit: Discover Australian Stories
• Jena Woodhouse
• Jena Woodhouse
• 1. River Mother, River Child 2. Boy and the River
• The She wolf
• A Poet in our Midst: Jena Woodhouse | State Library Of Queensland

Notes and References

1. Web site: Austlit. Jena Woodhouse AustLit: Discover Australian Stories. 2021-06-02. www.austlit.edu.au. en.
2. Book: Woodhouse, Jena. Farming ghosts. 2009. Ginninderra Press. 978-1-74027-556-9. Port Adelaide, S.A.
3. Book: Woodhouse, Jena. Dreams of flight. 2014. Ginninderra Press. 978-1-74027-726-6. Port Adelaide, SA. 878935878.
4. Book: Woodhouse, Jena. Eros in landscape. 1989. Jacaranda. 978-0-7016-2640-2. Jacaranda poets series. Milton, Qld.
5. Book: Woodhouse, Jena. Passenger on a ferry. 1994. University of Queensland Press. 978-0-7022-2642-7. St. Lucia, Qld.
6. Web site: Green Dance: Tamborine Mountain Poems. 2021-06-02. StylusLit. en-AU.
7. Web site: Jena Woodhouse - Griffith Review. https://web.archive.org/web/20231002185954/https://test.griffithreview.com/contributors/jena-woodhouse/. dead. 2 October 2023. 2021-06-02. test.griffithreview.com.
8. Web site: Henry Kendall Poetry Award 2017 Winners. 2021-06-02. Central Coast Poets Inc.
9. Web site: A Bird and the River by Jena Woodhouse. 2021-06-02. Montreal International Poetry Prize. en-US.
10. Web site: Evening Stroll by the Canal by Jena Woodhouse. 2021-06-02. Montreal International Poetry Prize. en-US.
11. Web site: Lament for a Daughter. 2021-06-02. Montreal International Poetry Prize. en-US.
12. Book: Beath. Betty. River songs: a cycle for soprano voice and piano. Woodhouse. Jena. 2007. Publications by Wirripang. Wollongong, N.S.W.
13. Web site: Evie Dances: A cycle of three songs for voice and piano by Betty Beath. 2021-06-02. Australian Music Centre.
14. Book: Beath, Betty. The she-wolf: piano solo. 1996. Australian Music Centre. Sydney, N.S.W.