In Rome, Joe Abiuso frequented the circle of writers formed around Pier Paolo Pasolini. In Australia he worked at various jobs from carpentry to cane-cutting and travelled widely before gaining a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Queensland and a Bachelor of Education degree from La Trobe University. Subsequently, Abiuso worked as a teacher and Principal with the Victorian Ministry of Education and was one of the first teachers in Victoria to introduce the teaching of Italian into high schools. A grant from the Schools Commission in 1974 led to his developing a bi-cultural educational program. Abiuso's writing has appeared in La Fiamma, Secondary Teacher, Outrider, Babel and Rainbow Rising. He has been a member of the Victorian Association of Multicultural Writers and the Italo-Australian Writers Association.