David Blissett

David Blissett is a writer of award-winning fiction and non-fiction. He has won multiple national awards for short-fiction and has been published in numerous anthologies, including Award Winning Australian Stories on three occasions. 

With a passion for nature and conservation, David has also co written numerous books on the subject: Snake Catcher (with Tony Harrison) in 2013, Our Primate Family (2015) and Amanka Stories (2021) with Lou Grossfeldt, Reflections of Elephants (with photographer Bobby-Jo Vial) in 2016 and The Chimpanzee Whisperer (with Stany Nyandwi) in 2022.

For most of his life, David has surrounded himself with companion animals - from goldfish to giant cockroaches, aviaries filled with birds, numerous dogs, and a slightly psychotic bunny called Dante.

"Our last dog, Ashby, was the first pedigree I've ever owned. We'd had rescues before, but we really wanted a Golden Retriever. Now, our search began in the days before Perfect Pets, and finding a reputable breeder was something of a challenge. We were very fortunate to eventually find a wonderful breeder, not too far from home. From a long line of national champions, Ashby really was quite the looker, and he was the most wonderful companion. He became more like a son than a pet. And then, after almost 15 years, in July 2023, we lost Ashby. He was tired and old, and his enormous heart simply ran out of beats. The void he has left in our lives will be extremely hard to fill. I'm not sure we will ever be the same."  

David lives in Sydney's bushland with his wife, and a myriad of wild creatures, from wallabies to wattlebirds, possums to pythons.