Joseph Furphy (26 September 1843 - 13 September 1912) is widely regarded as the "Father of the Australian novel". He mostly wrote under the pseudonym Tom Collins and is best known for his novel Such Is Life (1903), regarded as an Australian classic. In his youth Furphy had written many verses and in December 1867 he had been awarded the first prize of £3 at the Kyneton Literary Society for a vigorous set of verses on 'The Death of President Lincoln'. While living at Shepparton, he was encouraged in his writing by Kate Baker, a schoolteacher who boarded with his mother.