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These included Commercial /
Law and Social Work where he quickly discovered
he was neither lawyer nor social worker material.
Finally, like everyone else who didn't have a
clue what they were, he enrolled in Arts.
After completing his Arts degree
with a triple major in English Literature, Michael
enrolled in a Diploma of Education, abandoned
his fantasy of becoming the next Bob Dylan and
became a teacher instead. |
Since then Michael has taught
English and economics at a number of secondary
schools in the Brisbane-Ipswich area. Recently
he has balanced part-time teaching with his love
of writing (although he still does a pretty mean
impression of Bob Dylan on guitar).
In 2003 he
won the inaugural Writesmall short story competition
at the Brisbane Writers Festival. In 2004 his
first novel for young adults THE
RUNNING MAN was published by Omnibus /
Scholastic. |
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His second novel,
DON'T CALL ME ISHMAEL! was published by
Omnibus / Scholastic in April 2006. It is a comedy
set in an all boys' school. The sequel, ISHMAEL AND THE RETURN OF THE DUGONGS was published in October 2007.
Today Michael lives with his
family in the beautiful Brisbane suburb of Ashgrove
- the setting for THE RUNNING
MAN. It is the suburb in which he grew
up, where he went to school, where he spent several
years teaching, where he met his wife and where,
only a few streets away from his present house,
in what used to be a private hospital, he was
born.
Sometimes Michael thinks he
should get out more. |
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Awards for Michael Gerard Bauer:
- Winner 2005 CBCA Book of
the Year for Older Readers – THE RUNNING MAN
- Shortlisted for the 2005 Victorian Premier's
Literary Awards – THE RUNNING MAN
- Shortlisted for the 2005 NSW Premier's Literary
Awards – THE RUNNING MAN
- Shortlisted for the 2005 Courier Mail Book of
the Year for Younger Readers – THE RUNNING MAN
- Winner 2005 Courier Mail People's Choice Award
for Younger Readers – THE RUNNING MAN
- Children's Peace Literature Award, 2007 – DON'T CALL ME ISHMAEL
- Katholischer Kinder und Jugend Buch Preis 2008 (Germany) – THE RUNNING MAN
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"Michael was wonderful – outstanding! From the moment we met him at the airport he was the most amenable gentleman. Faculty loved having him here at JIS and we hope he enjoyed his time we much as we all did!
"I had been reading DON'T CALL ME ISHMAEL to my SSR classes and Michael came and read to them as well. They LOVED it. I finished the book today and the kids’ cheered big time at the ending. They loved it and said it was an awesome ending and can’t wait for the sequel to be released. This led me to a discussion with the kids about Michael and they really liked him. They found him to be down to earth and funny – someone they could relate to and with. They said having the second session with Michael was so valuable as it gave them time to connect with him and also to really learn some concrete stuff. Michael taught them about editing and improving their writing and the students found this so useful – of immediate benefit in the classroom.
"Michael worked with us over the months prior to the visit to ensure the visit and classes would go smoothly. This prior planning was fabulous and he was always so wonderful about ideas and offered great suggestions as well.
"We would love to have Michael come again to Jakarta International School. He was AWESOME!"
- Jakarta International School, Indonesia
"Michael's visit
was nothing short of brilliant! He was great from word
go - easy to contact and willing to discuss our specific
needs and wishes. His talks with the students were great.
He knows how to get them interested and was very funny.
His workshops were great - we should have booked him
for a week!
"It has been quite a job to keep the copies of
'The Running Man' circulating! Students were inspired
and enthused and many have been encouraged to enter
competitions and read more widely. Staff were re-energised
(particularly myself!).
"Next time we will allow a few days for more workshops/lectures/professional
development. Now that we know how easy and rewarding
it is, we will be regulars!"
-Rockhampton Grammar School |
