• share their work with their peers and discerning readers
• talk about the places that inspire them
• exchange ideas on writing about nature and place
• explore the role literature plays in environmental understanding
• inspire writers to write about the natural landscape

The Camden Haven has been home to three eminent Australian writers, Henry Kendall in the 1870s, Kylie Tennant in the 1940s and Eric Rolls from 1994 until 2007.  Eric Rolls continues to be the inspiration for Watermark.  He is Perpetual Patron. 

Watermark Muster (held biennially)
The first Muster was held as the Watermark International Nature Writers' Muster in October 2003 in the Camden Haven area (part of the Greater Port Macquarie region) on the NSW Mid North Coast. With the incorporation of the Watermark Literary Society, which is registered as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR), the Nature Writers' Muster was renamed as the Watermark Literary Muster. Muster 2005, Muster 2007, Muster 2009 and Muster 2011 built on the successful format of Muster 2003, bringing together writers and readers with an interest in the literature of nature and place, and maintaining the intimacy and excitement that are stand-out features of all our Musters.

The Watermark Muster is a unique event that welcomes different perspectives but does not provide a forum for advocacy of environmental or other policies.

Alternate Year Program

The Eric Rolls Lecture
The inaugural Eric Rolls Lecture was given by Bill Gammage on 20 October 2010.  It was held in association with the National Library of Australia.
2012 date & lecturer TBA

The Watermark Fellowship
A biennial Watermark Literary Fellowship for an emerging Australian writer of natural history, nature and place that has been offered since 2004.

The 2010 Fellowship, under the mentorship of renowned poet and publisher, Ian Templeman AM, was awarded to Western Australian writer and adventurer, Robyn Mundy.

Applications for the 2012 Fellowship are now open.
Closing date: 2nd April 2012. Read more details.

The Eric Rolls Prize for Nature Writing
A Biennial prize for prose fiction or nonfiction in the genre of nature writing.

The inaugural Eric Rolls Prize for nature writing, introduced in 2010,  was won by Stanley and Kaisa Breeden.

Entries for the 2012 Eric Rolls prize are now open.
Closing date: 29th June 2012. Read more details

Eric Rolls
April 1923 - October 2007
PERPETUAL PATRON