I am an Associate Professor of Creative Writing, in the School of Creative Arts and the Humanities (CAH), at the University of Wollongong, where I teach creative writing in the BCA—Creative Writing program. I was previously the Deputy Head of School—Research and a Co-director of the Centre for Critical Creative Practice (C3P)—ecologies of media, arts and writing. My research is in the fields of traditional critical research and creative research, specifically prose and playwriting. The scholarly research investigates narrative voices, particularly first person narration, both fictional and non-fictional. What do the stories we tell reveal about ourselves and our culture? How do these stories influence others? It assumes that what we pay attention to, shapes the future, shapes culture. Stories and narratives are how writers pay attention. More recently I have been examining what it is to write and live in a time of climate crisis. How might we live 'better' and recognise our connection with other humans, other species, and the land and waterways around us? What can collaboration do to effect change? My recent research explores narratives around the first atomic test—Trinity—that took place in New Mexico, USA, and the dropping of the first atomic bombs in the Second World War. My novel for Fourth Estate, HarperCollins, To Sing of War (2024) addresses these questions and themes. 

To Sing of War reviews have said:

‘In an exquisite, braided narrative, Catherine McKinnon’s To Sing of War reanimates World War 11 in a paean to the environment. Set between December 1944 and August 1945, the narrators experience the ways “Violence is malleable, it is everywhere”, but find healing and resilience in “the heart of the earth”’.

Cassandra Atherton, Australian Book Review

'Although the horror of Nagasaki is the still point around which To Sing of War orbits, the book’s concerns are not focused on the planetary rupture of that moment alone. Instead it seeks to tease out a series of deeper connections between the most intimate forms of violence and the larger, social brutality of war, and to explore the many ways in which both affect those caught up in them … The real power of this deeply intelligent and very affecting novel flows from its awareness of what war does to those caught up in it.’

James Bradley, The Saturday Paper

'War writing can sometimes be formulaic and clichéd, but McKinnon seeks a grittierview of war’s complexities. To Sing of War recognises the prevalence of sexual violence in wartime – something which is often overlooked in commemorations.’

Brigid Magner, The Conversation

‘I read it as a book that was addressing a different set of mythologies, which is the stories that Australia tells itself about World War Two … moments of terrible cruelty and bad behaviour from Australia soldiers … all of that was a way of remaking the mythologised story of Australia during the Second World War.’

Kate Evans The Bookshelf, Friday 28 June 2024

‘Transcends the boundaries of historical fiction‘ Books+Publishing

‘Epic in scope, intimate in effect’ Steven Conte, author of The Tolstoy Estate

Various scholarly articles and my novel, Storyland (2017), focus on environmental and social changes in the Illawarra since first contact.

Storyland reviews have said:

'A beautifully woven story ... a devastating retelling of man's effect on the land and the native people, and offers a chilling insight into what may come to pass with climate change. Storyland is reminiscent of Patrick White's A Fringe of Leaves, Kate Grenville's The Secret River and The Lieutenant ... and even, dare I say, a bit of Tim Winton's Cloudstreet.' Books+Publishing

 'Impressive ... a haunted and haunting power' The Australian

 'Breathtaking ... simply stunning.' Herald Sun

 'This is a book I will return to multiple times, both for its beauty and subtlety and for the sheer pleasure of experiencing the world it reflects.' Otago Daily Times

'Storyland is a worthy contender for the Great Australian Novel - encompassing, ambitious' Readings 'It just might be the real story of Australia' Qantas Magazine

I supervise Higher Degree candidates