Eric Dark was a doctor who cared passionately about the natural world, an Australian pioneer of rock-climbing, bushwalking and conservation, and a writer concerned with politics, social justice,
civil liberties and reform of the medical profession.
He was also one of the first doctors to head to France at the outbreak of WWI, where he won the Military Cross for “great gallantry and disregard of danger”.
Eric retired at age 85 and died in 1987, aged 98.
He fell on a neighbourhood road early one morning. When asked what he had been doing, he said,
“The spirit of adventure came upon me”.
This prize is sponsored by Varuna, the Writers’ House and Doctors Who … , a Varuna initiative to nurture creativity, innovation and advocacy in the medical profession.
In partnership with Varuna, the Writers’ House, the Medical Journal of Australia’s creative writing competition is open to all practising and retired doctors, and medical students.
We’re looking for creative pieces of up to 1500 words, grounded in health or medicine and based loosely on the topic for 2016, “The spirit of adventure came upon me …”.
Practising and retired doctors
Medical students
Closing date
Submissions
Email: creativewritingcompetition@mja.com.au with any queries
Winning entries and other outstanding pieces of writing will be published in the MJA.
This could be your year! Entries for the 2025 AMWA Early Career Award are now open. Every year we are amazed at the quality of the entries received, making judging a very difficult task. If you have previously submitted an entry but missed out on the win, we encourage you to try
again as there have been many entries that have been deserving of a win!