AustLit
Tessa Wooldridge worked on AustLit's predecessor, AUSTLIT, from 1994 to 2000 and for AustLit from 2001 to 2014. With her colleague Jane Rankine, she was appointed one of AustLit's first Emeritus Indexers in 2014.
Tessa is also a widely published author of tanka, and blogs—often about Australian writing—at Thoughts from an Idle Hour.
'An Interest in Australian Literature'
In April 1994, an advertisement appeared in the employment pages of The Canberra Times announcing two vacancies for part-time database indexers. (Actually, the ad said the positions were for 'indexes', but I overlooked that inaccuracy.) Applicants needed 'an interest in Australian literature' and 'a general education to Year 12'. Applications had to be handwritten.
My background was in teaching and librarianship, but I was an avid reader and I certainly met the educational requirements. I decided to give it a shot. I still have a copy of my handwritten application. For a job that required a modest level of academic achievement, the selection criteria were rigorous; they were matched only by the intimidating interview panel which included, among others, a professor of English and a head librarian.
Advertisement, The Canberra Times, 16 April 1994
After an exhausting deep-dive through subjects like 'pre- and post-coordination in thesaurus construction', the final question at my job interview came from Professor Bruce Bennett: 'What are you reading at the moment?'
'The Penguin Book of the Beach', came my reply. I could scarcely have chosen better. The book was edited by West Australian Robert Drewe. Bruce Bennett, a sandgroper in exile, must have approved — the job was mine.
The other person appointed that day was Jennifer Huntley. We became comrades-in-arms over the course of the ensuing decade and we remain good friends (along with two other AustLit indexers from those years at the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA), later UNSW Canberra — Jane Rankine and Lesley Banson).Jane Rankine, Jenny Huntley, Tessa Wooldridge and Lesley Banson. AustLit workroom, 2006.
A Locked Box in the National Library’s Basement
In the early days, Jenny and I undertook our work in the basement of the National Library of Australia. At that time, the newspapers section was located on the Library’s lower ground floor. It was a gloomy, somewhat airless environment with a constant whirr of microfilm reels spooling back and forth. Jenny and I filled in call slips and requested our designated publications. I began with The Lone Hand and The Australian Town and Country Journal.
My work tools comprised a pen and pencil, a hard copy of the AUSTLIT thesaurus, and stack of AUSTLIT worksheets. The latter provided allotted spaces to fill in relevant information — author, title, subjects, publication details, etc. The completed sheets were stored in a wooden box, secured with a combination lock. Once a week, an AUSTLIT team member from ADFA would travel from 'home base', across Lake Burley Griffin, and collect the results of our endeavours. Paper copies of our time sheets and a tally of our output (number of short stories, poems, etc. indexed) were also collected from the sealed box.
AUSTLIT storage box, used by indexers at the National Library of Australia while indexing 19th and early 20th century periodicals.
Image from the 2013 AustLit Exhibition, marking 25 years of AUSTLIT/AustLit at UNSW Canberra, curated by Jane Rankine.
From Card File to OPAC to CD-ROM
My arrival at AUSTLIT came nearly six years after its inauguration. On 10 August 1988, The Canberra Times had hailed 'a giant technological leap forward' for Australian literary research when former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam launched the database. The Canberra newspaper reported that AUSTLIT had 'had its beginnings about 20 years ago as a card file of references to Australian literary and critical material prepared and maintained by the English department of the Faculty of Military Studies at the Royal Military College (now University College) Duntroon' ('Literary Study Plugs Into Computer Age', The Canberra Times, 10 August 1988).
The English Department’s 'card file of references', begun at the instigation of University College’s Professor of English, Grahame Johnston, formed the basis of Johnston’s Annals of Australian Literature and was also valuable in the preparation of later reference works including Australian Literature to 1900: A Guide to Information Sources and the Oxford Companion to Australian Literature.
The conversion of information from card entries to machine-readable form, guided by the English Department’s Professor Harry Heseltine and ADFA’s Librarian, Lynn Hard, had taken several years and was not without its challenges. The conversion was undertaken off-shore by typists who did not have English as their first language and this, along with the difficulty of squeezing non-standardised information into MARC (MAchine-Readable Cataloging) fields, resulted in anomalies and duplications that took well over a decade to correct. (Jan Blank, AUSTLIT’s first project manager, wrote about this experience in her excellent article, 'AUSTLIT: It’s No Furphy'.) The card files, in their original wooden cabinets, are now permanently housed within Special Collections at the UNSW Canberra Library.
AUSTLIT’s move from card file to online access utilised a version of the Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) that had become common in large libraries. An OPAC-based system required users to be physically present in a building in order to access to the data but, unlike a card catalogue, multiple users could conduct the same search simultaneously. In 1992, AUSTLIT embarked on a further technological upgrade — access via CD-ROM. This arrangement saw AUSTLIT’s data included with a suite of other databases on INFORMIT, the CD-ROM publishing arm of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT). AUSTLIT’s inclusion on Informit was launched by the then Minister for Employment, Education and Training, Kim Beazley, on 25 March 1992.
While Informit allowed AUSTLIT to be distributed more widely, it was still — like the OPAC — a static resource. The production of AUSTLIT continued to rely on indexers filling out worksheets at either ADFA or the National Library, and data clerks then inputting the information onto the database. There was much double-handling. On the positive side, this meant rigorous checking and reviewing of all items entered into AUSTLIT. It was not uncommon for me to have worksheets returned by an irate data clerk who queried my request for a 'new' record. 'Is this the same as …?' would come the question. The red pen flourished.
On the downside, much of AUSTLIT’s output remained paper-based — and largely inaccessible. Although records for and about literary works and their authors were available via OPACs and CD-ROMs, newspaper clippings, snippets of biographical information and records of literary awards were maintained in hard copy at ADFA. The photocopying and filing of these details was a never-ending (and not particularly welcome) task.
Back row: Jenny Huntley, Tessa Wooldridge, Debbie Hebda
Front row: Mary Bryden, Stephanie Pribil, Kathy Curtis
‘Literary Database Reaches the Half Million Mark’, Uniken, 13 June 1997, p.7.
A Shrinking World Inspires Collaborative Change
But life in the IT world was changing. While I was beavering away in the basement of the National Library, the internet and the World Wide Web were evolving in dungeons inhabited by computer boffins. In 1993 — just prior to my joining AUSTLIT — the source code for the web was made freely available. New horizons beckoned.
Sometimes synergies are at play in the universe — we just need leaders astute enough to recognise them. For many years, AUSTLIT benefitted from Australian Research Council (ARC) grants to further its work. These grants were either annual or triennial, usually amounting to about $30,000 per year. The funding was enough to keep AUSTLIT 'ticking over' but not enough for it to expand and realise its potential. Competition for grant dollars was fierce and collaborative projects were attracting favour.
While AUSTLIT was working hard to achieve a complete representation of Australia’s literary culture, it was not the only such endeavour. Based at Monash University’s National Centre for Australian Studies, work was progressing on the Bibliography of Australian Literature (BAL) Project. This project was drawing together scholars from across Australia in a bid to record details of 'all separately published creative literature by Australian writers over the last two centuries' (The Bibliography of Australian Literature: A-E). Like AUSTLIT, BAL did not discriminate on the grounds of perceived merit. The aim of both projects was to represent the full gamut of the country’s creative output.
Dr Marie-Louise Ayres had assumed the management role at AUSTLIT in 1996 and, under her direction, AUSTLIT began moving towards a web-based product in 1997. The following year, from the time of the first joint planning meeting, Dr Ayres became the inaugural Executive Manager of the newly named AustLit: The Australian Literature Resource. Creative vision, financial necessity, a willingness to 'break down the silos', and a spirited cohort of academics, scholars, indexers, bibliographers and IT developers birthed AustLit, a truly national enterprise drawing together eight universities and the National Library of Australia.
'Seven Men Approach Heaven'
1999 witnessed a whirlwind of activity. At the executive level, national meetings, legal arrangements, grant applications, and the tendering and letting of contracts were the order of the day. On the ground, there was much work to be done combining the already existing databases — each with their own unique IT architecture — into one seamless 'front end' experience for users. This unification work was managed by an expanded team at ADFA. One group, hired on short-term contracts, had the unenviable task of tracking and merging duplicate records across the datasets. Led by Ben Miskin, this group expedited that thankless task with great good humour and impressive stamina.
My role, while continuing with regular indexing duties, was to assist in the development of a thesaurus that would suit the needs of all the AustLit partners. The old AUSTLIT had used a thesaurus shaped largely by former indexer Sarah Macneil (later to become the Anglican Bishop of Grafton). This thesaurus had been added to over the years and had a solid overarching structure, but the subject field in the AUSTLIT database had allowed for expansive, non-thesaural entries. Indexers, chafing at the thesaurus’s bit, took full advantage of this latitude.
In the process of wrangling the thesaurus into a useable shape, I needed to deal with these creative non-thesaurus entries. Here is a sample of the now-erased entries: 'dreams of strangling dachshunds to revenge ex-lovers', 'wives who kill and eat husband’s racing pigeons', 'bizarre relationships between caretakers and cadavers' and 'fat women expanding and engulfing partners'. While these descriptions seem largely fixated on dysfunctional sexual relationships, there is also the delightful, and slightly more literary, 'seven men approach Heaven all claiming to be "The Man from Snowy River"'. (How these entries were later squeezed into acceptable thesaurus terms, I no longer remember.)
Paul Hodgson of Informed Sources in Canberra was 'brought on board' to steer the thesaurus development. One area of expertise contributed by Paul was access to detailed listings of Australian place names — Paul had previously undertaken work for a major law enforcement agency whose dependence on location precision was of the utmost importance.
As well as increasing the accuracy of place names, the new thesaurus enabled the inclusion of the old AUSTLIT’s records of Australian literary awards. The thesaurus still allowed indexers some 'room to move'. 'Enrichment Terms' could be added when a suitable term was not found in the thesaurus. This meant the thesaurus editor could monitor for newly emerging literary trends and terms, and allowed relevant new concepts to 'stray' into creative territory — just not to the extent they had in the 1990s.
From FRBR to Friendship and Footy Tipping
The early years of the 21st century at AustLit were exciting and exacting. Today, we take relational databases for granted, but in 2000 we were just beginning to come to grips with their possibilities. Team members wrestled with the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (AustLit was the first large-scale implementation of FRBR in the world), ABC Harmony, indecs and Z39.50. Through all this, we were led, inspired and amazed by the intelligence, empathy and clear-sightedness of Kent Fitch, AustLit’s technical manager, architect and implementer.
In August 2002, then Minister for Education, Science and Training, Dr Brendan Nelson, formally launched AustLit at the National Library of Australia. At the time, it comprised around 390,000 works. It was described by Kerry Kilner (who had taken over from Marie-Louise Ayres as Executive Manager) as 'one of the world’s most comprehensive, efficient and user-friendly online research tools in what was one of the largest humanities projects ever funded in Australia' (UQ News, 26 August 2002).
During the period from 2000 to 2002, the nationally dispersed team of indexers and bibliographers met twice for training and planning days, once in Canberra and once in Brisbane. From these gatherings, and through innumerable emails and phone calls, new friendships and new bonds were forged. Some remain to this day.
From time to time, I open my email inbox to find a message from Stephanie Stegall, a former member of the University of Queensland team. 'Might you be swanning across the lake anytime soon?' she’ll ask, using our personal shorthand for crossing Lake Burley Griffin to visit the National Library. From her base in Queensland, Steph might set me a small research task that will feed into her latest literary endeavour. I am only too glad to help. Along with original Monash University team member Terry O’Neill, I’ve been privileged to attend two of Steph’s book launches: The Loved and the Lost: The Life of Ivan Southall (launched in Melbourne) and Interestingly Enough... The Life of Tom Keneally (launched in Sydney).
Not all ongoing connections are literary in nature. There is an AFL football tipping competition, inaugurated by UNSW Canberra team member Jane Rankine, for former members of the original AustLit team. (I participated in this competition for just two years. After winning the Dennis Cometti Commemorative Cup in 2016, I decided to retire and rest on my laurels.) It is testament to the AustLit bond that Carlton and Collingwood supporters can belong, cordially, to this competition.
Personal Growth and Professional Uncertainty
As well as friendships, my time with AustLit demanded I develop new skills. These included learning basic HTML (when compiling AustLit News for eight years), proofreading and editing (while reviewing thousands of AustLit records), coming to grips with social media (when launching AustLit’s Twitter account) and writing (through composition of abstracts and biographical entries, and preparation of conference papers and journal articles).
After signing on for an initial nine-month contract, I remained with AUSTLIT and its successor, AustLit, for nearly 21 years. Towards the end of each year, I would hold my breath, waiting to see whether AustLit’s ARC grant application would be successful. Such was the level of uncertainty that, for a number of years, Jenny Huntley, Lesley Banson, Jane Rankine and I would each deposit $5.00 per pay into an 'end of year' account. By late November, the result of the grant application would be known and we would book a fine-dining table for either a celebration or a wake.
Eventually, the outcome was negative, and matching funding from UNSW Canberra dried up. Having variously had a team of up 12 people, Jane Rankine and I finished our AustLit careers in late November 2014 as the sole remaining 'AustLitters' at UNSW Canberra. But what a ride we’d had.
All Good Things…
On the day of our departure, Jane and I were appointed AustLit’s first Emeritus Indexers. The only gift that could have gratified us more would have been remaining in our jobs. Kerry Kilner wrote that, between us, Jane and I had created or enhanced nearly 270,000 AustLit records. She also added: 'As you look to new horizons, we know AustLit will continue being a part of your lives' (AustLit News Blog, 26 November 2014).
Kerry was, unsurprisingly, right. I did indeed 'look to new horizons' (as a freelance editor and researcher) and AustLit remains embedded in my DNA. As Professor Anita Heiss put it to me recently: 'The AustLit in us never dies' (Twitter, 19 May 2021).
AustLit homepage, 26 November 2014
Thank You
I want to pay tribute to the dedicated people I encountered at ADFA/UNSW Canberra along the way – data clerks Kathy Curtis, Debbie Hebda and Susie Tomlinson; indexers Jan Smith (also a renowned equestrian and a dressage coach), Val Johnson, Phillipa Wicks and Kay Walsh; ADFA English Department occasional 'conscripts' Stephanie Pribil, Susan Cowan and (now Dr) Sarah Randles; Professors Bruce Bennett, Paul Eggert (who entrusted me with proofreading and research tasks for several of his scholarly works when I was still a novice in those fields) and Nicole Moore; IT developer Kent Fitch; and managers Mary Bryden, Dr Marie-Louise Ayres and Annette McGuiness.
I reflect with real fondness on my years with AUSTLIT and its successor, AustLit. I treasure the opportunity to contribute to a nationally significant project. I am thankful for the skills I learned and the friendships I made. And I am deeply grateful for the accidental education I received along the way — a deep dive through the luminous waters of Australian literature.
Tessa Wooldridge
June 2021
Read memoirs of their time at AustLit from Tessa's colleagues Lesley Banson and Jane Rankine.
The ADFA AUSTLIT team, 1997
Back row: Jenny Huntley, Tessa Wooldridge, Debbie Hebda
Front row: Mary Bryden, Stephanie Pribil, Kathy Curtis
‘Literary Database Reaches the Half Million Mark’, Uniken, 13 June 1997, p.7.