James Francis Dwyer

James Francis Dwyer (22 April 1874 – 11 November 1952) was an Australian writer. Born in Camden Park, New South Wales, Dwyer worked as a postal assistant until he was convicted in a scheme to make fraudulent postal orders and sentenced to seven years imprisonment in 1899. In prison, Dwyer began writing, and with the help of another inmate and a prison guard, had his work published in The Bulletin. After completing his sentence, he relocated to London and then New York, where he established a successful career as a writer of short stories and novels. Dwyer later moved to France, where he wrote his autobiography, Leg-Irons on Wings, in 1949. Dwyer wrote over 1,000 short stories during his career, and was the first Australian-born person to become a millionaire from writing.

Early life

Born in Camden Park, New South Wales, Dwyer was the fifth son of farm labourer Michael Dwyer and Margaret Dwyer (née Mahoney), who were both from Mitchelstown, Ireland. They would eventually have eleven children, eight boys and three girls. Dwyer regarded his childhood as a happy one. In 1883, his family moved to Menangle, and in 1884 they moved again to Campbelltown. Dwyer attended public schools until he was 14, when he was sent to Sydney to live with relatives. He initially gained employment as a publisher's clerk for The Evening News, before becoming a mail carrier in Rockdale in 1892 and a postal assistant on Oxford Street in 1895. Dwyer had a brief meeting with Robert Louis Stevenson, which gave him ideas about becoming a writer himself; Dwyer noticed Stevenson while making a delivery for his clerk job, and followed him in fascination. Stevenson, noticing he was being followed, confronted Dwyer in a friendly manner and asked him his name. After being told his name was Jim, Stevenson encouraged him to be a good person like his namesake Jim Hawkins. Dwyer married Selina Cassandra Stewart on 7 November 1893. They had a son and a daughter.