

Scholastic and LucasFilm in the US asked him to create the overall story and characters for a children’s fantasy series with possible franchise to other writers, which became six-book series The Seventh Tower (2000-01), comprised of The Fall, Castle, Aenir, Above the Veil, Into Battle, and The Violet Keystone. His third and fourth books were SF: Shade’s Children (1997) and YA novelization The X-Files: The Calusa ri (1997). He returned to the Old Kingdom in Clariel: The Lost Abhorsen (2014). Sequel Abhorsen appeared in 2003, and a companion novella featured in the collection Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories in 2005. Lirael (2001), set in the world of Sabriel though not a direct sequel, won Australia’s 2002 Adelaide Festival Award for Children’s Literature along with a Ditmar Award. Second novel Sabriel (1995 Australia, 1996 US) won Aurealis Awards in both the Best Fantasy Novel and Best YA Novel categories, and began the Old Kingdom series. His first novel, children’s dark fantasy The Ragwitch, appeared in Australia in 1990 and the US in 1995.

He attended the Canberra College of Advanced Education (now the University of Canberra) and received a BA in professional writing in 1986. At 19 he began writing, and sold first story ‘‘Sam, Cars and the Cuckoo’’ (1983) within the year. He joined the Army reserve at 17 and served as a part-time soldier for five years. Garth Nix was born Jin Melbourne Australia and grew up in Canberra.
