Omar Musa just won the Miles Franklin Award for his gripping novel Fierceland — and he’s not just a writer, he’s a poet, rapper, and performer who got the news while stuck in the middle of the road in the Philippines. His first move? Calling his mom, Helen, a powerhouse in Canberra’s arts scene who met his dad directing Hamlet in Malaysia. Raised between Queanbeyan’s riverbank mischief and Canberra’s highbrow galleries, Omar’s creativity was nurtured with paper and pens, not sports. Writing Fierceland took five years, 21 drafts, and endless self-doubt — but the result? A dark, powerful tale of corruption in Malaysian Borneo, following siblings unraveling their father’s hidden past. Even with national acclaim, Omar still sees himself as part of the local Canberra-Queanbeyan arts community, celebrated by figures like Jordan Best and Carlie Lloyd — whose bookstore sold out of Fierceland and is now buzzing over his latest hit, The Vape Lord of Queanbeyan.
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