Written by Satima Flavell | 13 August 2011

Speculative Fiction Author Joanna Fay, who writes poetry as Jo Mills, won the open poetry section in this year's Banjo Paterson Writing Awards. Her entry, titled "Orpheus in the Desert", topped a field of 76 poets. This is her second win in this prestigious event - she won the same award in 2008 with her poem "Walyunga".

The Banjo Patterson is one of Australia's richest writing contests, with a prize pool totalling over $4,000.