Glenda Kirkby, with her manuscript-in-progress, Ok Tedi Gold, is a 2024 New Voices writer. Congratulations, Glenda.

The Ok Tedi gold mine in the Star Mountains of Papua New Guinea is hailed as the hope of the nation—its richness unsurpassed. Karina Dowling, one of the few single expatriate women employees, is taken hostage when millions of dollars worth of gold bars are stolen. Forced to trek over the mountains to Iryan Jaya, she is caught in a jungle nightmare that sees her friend killed, and her ability to stay alive challenged to the limit. When finally rescued, Karina and fellow survivor, Dick, convalesce on a tropical island where love and lust sutures some of their mental wounds. Inexplicably abandoned by Dick, Karina seeks revenge alone, suspecting another former lover. Disaster seems to follow her until, fleeing home to Western Australia, she finds she can’t escape the violence engendered by Ok Tedi gold.

About Glenda: Born in Perth, Western Australia, Glenda was always drawn to remote places. Initially she worked on outback sheep stations before talking her way into a job as a programmer with an IT company, learning on the job. A career move to Ok Tedi Mining in the heart of the Star Mountains, in Papua New Guinea saw her living in one of the wettest towns on earth where she was one of eight single expatriate women among hundreds of men. She returned to Perth, regularly escaping to ‘go bush’ with her two children. Regular visits to Zimbabwe and climbing Mt Kilimanjaro, nurtured her love for Africa. She back-packed through South America and walked the Inca Trail, before taking up triathlon, competing in Australia and Europe.

Now living on Cape Naturaliste in southern Western Australia, she writes full time and is a director of Geographe Marine Research, promoting the conservation of whales and their environment through world-class research.

Fun fact: Glenda is related through marriage to the Marlene Taylor, who typed Wilbur Smith's first manuscript, When the Lion Feeds.