AustLit

Edith Westmorland was born in Charters Towers and started her writing career by writing letters to the Children's Corner in the old North Queensland Register. Later she graduated to short stories, and on 10 January 1976 she wrote her first poetry.

Westmorland's early education was at boarding school in Ingham and then by correspondence at Mt Fox where she helped her parents run a cattle station, taking on the roles of jillaroo, horse-breaker, and drover. As a young woman Westmorland won many first prizes as a show rider at Ingham shows.

After moving to Townsville and working at the General Hospital there, she got married and moved to Victoria and South Australia before returning to Townsville some years later. She was employed by an international sewing machine company, working as a senior salesperson throughout Queensland for eight years . It was during this period that she was introduced to, and became an expert in, broadcasting radio commentaries and radio advertising.

Westmorland wrote a short life history of her mother, Daisy Kelly. The story won first prize in a state-wide competition conducted by the Country Women's Association.