Renae Hayward is a West Australian children’s author and poet, based in Fremantle. Her latest work is a series of fun, read-aloud books for babies, including Say Hello, Say Goodnight and Say Hooray, the latter of which was shortlisted in the Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Awards. Renae has also written a chapter book for ages 8+, Barking Mad, and contributed as a poet to The School Magazine and the children’s anthology Right Way Down and other poems.

One of Renae’s favourite things to do is share her love of books and language with children. Her Baby Rhyme Time and Story Time sessions for children aged 0-5 years are full of colour, joy and song, while her presentations to school-aged audiences engage children with generating ideas and playing with words, rhyme and poetry.

As someone who spent over a decade working in perinatal and infant mental health before becoming a parent herself, Renae has long been an advocate for reading to children, not only for their language development, but also for the powerful bonds and memories formed while a book is shared between children and their caregivers. Renae is currently the ambassador for Books for Little Bookaburras, a program providing a mini-library to young children who would not otherwise have access to books.

Renae has volunteered with her local chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and is also a member of the Australian Society of Authors and the Children’s Book Council of Australia. For the last two years, she has also been a judge for the Craig Silvey Award for Young Writers.

Renae lives with her husband, two children and a Labrador in a house overflowing with books.