Mary Helena Fortune was an Australian writer, under the pseudonyms Waif Wander and W.W. She was one of the earliest female detective writers in the world.
Background
Mary Fortune was born around 1833 in Belfast, Ireland. She traveled with her father to Canada. When her father left Canada for the Australian goldfields, she followed him, leaving her husband behind and travelling to Australia with her son.
Career
One of the earliest women to write detective fiction, and probably the first to write from the viewpoint of the detective. She is best known for, the longest-running early detective serial anywhere in the world. Narrated by detective Mark Sinclair, was serialized for forty years in the Australian Journal from 1868 to 1908.
In 1871, seven of the stories were published as a book, as: Tales of the Australian Police.
Wongaworra, Alexandra Times, 23 December 1876. Christmas Eve, Long Ago, At Braidwood, Portland Guardian, 25 December 1879.
Monk"s Mark, Burra Record, 28 April 1882. Ike"s Sin: A Story of the Sea, Queanbeyan Age, 26 December 1884.
The Detective"s Dream, Portland Guardian, 24 December 1886.
Three Jacks, Camperdown Chronicle, 3 November 1903. Noel or Love and War: Participant 1 and Participant 2, Camperdown Chronicle, 2 February 1904 and 9 February 1904. The Lilies of Forgiveness, Camperdown Chronicle, 26 April 1904.
Coo-ee!, The Mail, 8 April 1916 (poem quoted in its entirety in a letter to the editor).
Reprint of The Detectives Album edited by Lucy Sussex "The White Maniac: A Doctor"s Tale".