Arthur Wright (1870 – 19 December 1932) was an Australian writer best known for his novels set against a background of the sporting world, particularly horseracing, which meant he was often compared during his lifetime to Nat Gould.
Wright was educated at Paddington Public School, worked for a sewing machine firm, then went bush for a few years, doing various odd jobs in places like the mines, shearing sheds and railways.
[3] While at the Water Board, Wright began to write in his spare time, and his short stories started appearing in magazines such as The Bulletin.
[6] In 1931 he wrote a piece on the Australian film industry: To those who seek a market overseas for their product, I would say this: Apart from the Great War, it is sport which has placed Australia on the map.
Our native country is world-famous from a sporting viewpoint; then give the world pictures of the things in which we excel: show them our racecourses, our playing fields, our surfing beaches, and our racing craft on Sydney Harbour.
This contemporary review of Gambler's Gold appeared in the West Australian: Judging from this latest publication by the author of 'Keane of Kalgoorlie', imaginative literature in Australia has got down to the deadest low water of spring-tide ebbs.
This fact, however, does not invalidate the right to claim for the compilation Australian authenticity – all these things can be substantiated by police court reports in evening newspapers.
"[2] According to one obituary "Wright never claimed for his novels that they were for highbrows but he believed that they were capable of pleasing the multitude that loves sporting and detective fiction.