Gary Coles

I was born and raised in New Zealand. Since 1969, I have lived in Australia.

I began exploring my adoption experience in 1992. I made my first presentation to an adoption conference in 1998, coincidentally in the city where my adopted son lives. Since then I have written extensively about adoption, particularly bringing the viewpoint of birth fathers into the discussions. I have published three books on this subject (in 2004, 2005 and 2010) in paper and electronic formats, plus another two as ebooks (in 2014 and 2015)*. I have published more than seventy papers and articles (1998-2015), made presentations at three Australian Adoption Conferences (2000, 2004, 2008), presented seminars in Australia and New Zealand and been a keynote speaker on three occasions for Concerned United Birthparents in the USA.

In 2012, I was appointed to the Forced Adoptions Apology Reference Group, responsible for advising the Prime Minister of Australia about the contents of the National Apology, delivered on 21st March 2013. In 2013 and 2014 I served on the Forced Adoptions Implementation Working Group. I continue to educate the public and the helping professions about the impact of adoption.

* in chronological order -

Ever After: Fathers and the Impact of Adoption

Transparent: Seeing Through the Legacy of Adoption

The Invisible Men of Adoption

Made in Australia: The Adoption Apologies

Disturbing Adoption: The Collected Pieces

The reason why I write is because 1) I wish to assist not only those who have been affected directly by adoption separation, but also their partners, siblings, etc; 2) the place of the father in adoption has traditionally not been well understood by the community and 3) I believe I have something fresh to say.

Away from adoption, I have turned my talents to short stories. I have drawn upon my life experience, imagination and powers of observation to write Very Much So (2017) and The Lure of the Trail (2019). In a further development, partly driven by the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated enforced isolation, I turned to writing poetry, the first result of which is Well Disposed (2022). The Burple from Cape Horn (2024) combines light-hearted and serious verse across two sections. Children come first, adults follow. I have not left adoption totally behind; the four recent publications do include a few pieces on this subject.