Carolyn Shine studied Fine Arts and Linguistics at the University of New South Wales and went on to become a musician, songwriter and music educator. As a freelance writer she has been published in various publications, including the Sydney Morning Herald. She moved to Hanoi on a whim in 2002, expecting available culture and romance. Her disappointment propelled her to seek satisfying answers to questions on culture that until then she’d never dared ask. Tragically Carolyn Shine lost her battle with ovarian cancer on March 10, 2012. She had just celebrated her 47th birthday.