James Martin Devaney was born in Sandhurst, Victoria, on 31 May 1890. Devaney studied at St. Joseph's College and in 1915 made his final vows, taking the religious name Fabian Joseph. However he left the order in July 1921. In 1921 he moved permanently to Queensland to a career of full-time writing and journalism. From 1924 to 1943 he published a weekly column of nature notes for the Brisbane Courier-Mail under the pseudonym 'Fabian'. He also wrote a regular 'Literary Section' for the Catholic Leader. Devaney was president of the Queensland Authors' and Artists' Association (later the Fellowship of Australian Writers or FAW). He died on 14 August 1976.

Cecil Hadgraft was born 8 June 1904 at Melbourne, brought up at Rockhampton, winning an open scholarship to the University of Queensland at 16 years of age. Cecil Hadgraft was a senior lecturer and reader in the English Department at the University of Queensland. He was a prominent Australian literary critic and historian.