L.J.M. Owen

Dr L.J. Owen escaped dark days as a public servant for a sunnier profession – inventing murder. A multi-award winning writer, L.J.’s novels include the chilling The Great Divide, longlisted for the 2020 Ngaio Marsh Award, and three books in the Dr Pimms archaeological mystery series: Egyptian Enigma, Mayan Mendacity, and Olmec Obituary. At the 2020 Scarlet Stilettos, L.J.’s historical thriller and legal mystery short stories won three awards. L.J. also writes under the pen names Carys King, Jack Cainery (il est francais) and Doc Rowen.

In 2019, with her trademark disregard for sleep, L.J. founded the Terror Australis Readers and Writers Festival (TARWF), Australia’s southern-most literary festival. L.J. is the current Director of TARWF, the Convenor of TARWF’s annual Children’s Mystery Short Story Competition, and the Convenor of the Tasmanian chapter of Sisters in Crime Australia.

A passionate supporter of emerging, disabled and regional writers, and literacy for adults, L.J.’s guiding principles are kindness, integrity and finding joy in the unexpected. She holds degrees in archaeology, forensic science and librarianship, speaks five languages, and travelled the world before disability struck. Now sharing a home in the bush with Tasmanian devils, L.J. serves a co-op of rescue cats, entrenched chickens, and grifter possums. She is currently in trouble with at least one of them.