Meryl Tobin, writing name Meryl Brown Tobin, is a writer of short and long fiction for adults and children, non-fiction, especially travel, poetry and educational puzzles. She has had 20 books published. These include puzzle/activity books, black-line masters books of educational puzzles, work books for primary students, a travel book, a children’s picture storybook, a poetry collection and a haiku collection with four other poets of The Society of Women Writers Victoria and has edited one book and co-edited two others. In total, nearly 300,000 copies of her first four puzzle books, which were published by Ashton Scholastic, were sold in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Hundreds of her poems, puzzles, short stories and travel and other articles, and some cartoons and comic strips have appeared in more than 150 magazines, newspapers and anthologies in Australia and overseas, including India, Japan, Singapore and Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, the United Kingdom and the USA. Some of her stories and poems have also been broadcast by the Australian Broadcasting Commission and other radio stations while others have been published on the Internet. In 2001, as a guest on the set of Ch7’s children’s program The Book Place, she read her story LEFTY with regular presenter, Lynn Weston.
Her awards include being placed or shortlisted in literary competitions run by the Australian Society of Authors Inc, Fellowship of Australian Writers (Vic), Free XpresSion, Poetry Matters, Positive Words, Redoubt, The Society of Women Writers Victoria Inc, Waterline Writing Competition, Woman’s Day and Writer’s Friend and other competitions.
A member of The Society of Women Writers (Australia) Victorian Branch, now The Society of Women Writers Victoria, since 1971 soon after its inception, Meryl served on the Committee and was President, August, 2004-August, 2005.
A former teacher, she taught Humanities subjects in secondary schools. Apart from her family and home, her interests include travel, bush-walking, conservation, including researching rare fauna in Australia, current affairs and humanitarian and social justice issues.
BOOKS
- Puzzles Galore! Ashton Scholastic, 1978, New Edition: Eldorado, 1993
- More Puzzles Galore! Ashton Scholastic, 1980, New Edition: Eldorado, 1994
- Car Loads of Fun, Ashton Scholastic, 1983
- Exploring Outback Australia, Kangaroo Press, 1988
- Puzzleways: Grammar and Spelling, Longman Cheshire, 1990, New Edition: Ningan Publishing, 2000
- Animal Puzzle Parade, Ashton Scholastic, 1991
- Puzzle Round Australia, Macmillan Education, 1992
- Puzzling Cats, Macmillan Education, 1992
- Pets to Puzzle, R.I.C. Education, 1995
- Puzzles Ahoy! R.I.C. Education, 1995
- Play with Words, Macmillan Education, 1996
- LEFTY, Ningan Publishing, 2000
- Thoughts in Miniature with Rhona Fahey, Dorothea Trafford Lavery, Janet Howie and Rebecca Maxwell, Ningan Publishing, 2003
- Walk in the Forest: Collection of Poems by Meryl Brown Tobin, Ningan Publishing, 2004
- Puzzle Fun Years 1-2, Five Senses Education Pty Ltd, Seven Hills, NSW, 2012
- Puzzle Fun Years 3-4, Five Senses Education Pty Ltd, Seven Hills, NSW, 2012
- Puzzle Fun Years 5-6, Five Senses Education Pty Ltd, Seven Hills, NSW, 2013
- Puzzle Australia, Five Senses Education Pty Ltd, Seven Hills, NSW, 2013
- Perennial Blooms, ed Nenia Tavrou OAM, with Bee Williamson, Janice Williams, Margaret Pearce, Mary Louise Di Stasio, Michele Revill, Nenia Tavrou and Shirley McGirr, 2023
- Broome Enigma, The Wild Rose Press, NY, 2023
To buy books, please go to https://sites.google.com/site/
BOOKS EDITED
Contrasts: Poetry from Chisholm Institute Berwick, 1999.
BOOKS CO-EDITED
Thoughts in Miniature, Ningan Publishing, 2003.
Climb the Mountain: Poetry & Prose from the Society of Women Writers Victoria Inc, Free Xpression, 2004.
MAGAZINES & NEWSPAPERS
More than 150 publications, including: Eastern Post Gazette, Knox-Sherbrooke Gazette, Aussie RV’s Trader, RV’s Downunder, Caravan World, The Age, The Sun News-Pictorial, Toorak Times, Challenge, Pursuit, Disney Adventures, K-Zone, The Mozzie.
OVERSEAS
Her World; Her World Annual (Singapore); Journal of Australian Literature (India); Mainichi Daily News (Japan); Metverse Muse (India); Red Lamp (UK); New Zealand Woman’s Weekly; Short Story International (USA); Student Series: Seedling: Short Story International (USA); Valley Micropress (NZ).
RADIO
5UV Short Stories; ABC; ABC Regional Radio; John Reid’s Poet’s Corner, ABC; Radio Nag–91.3 FM, Yeppoon; Write Now–Southern FM 88.3; Writers @ Work (with Del Nightingale).
TELEVISION
Children’s picture story book featured on Ch7’s children’s program The Book Place with Meryl Brown Tobin and one of the regular presenters reading it.