Tributes are flowing for best-selling fantasy novelist Sara Douglass, who died on Tuesday from ovarian cancer, aged 54.Sara Douglass, who was widely known by her real name Sara Warneke, lived and taught in Bendigo in the 1990s and developed a loyal group of friends and fans.She wrote her first best-selling novel Battleaxe in her house in Carpenter street Bendigo. The book led to the award-winning Axis Trilogy series.In the early days Ms Warneke was known to use computers at the Bendigo Library to write and her story The Hanging Wall was inspired by a trip down the Central Deborah Gold Mine.Publisher Russell Farr said the novelist’s contribution to the fantasy genre should not be underestimated.“She was probably the first million seller in Australia. She broke ground and proved that Australia could be commercially viable,” he said.Ms Warneke taught medieval history at La Trobe University but gave this up to write full time. She published her first novel in 1995. Eaglehawk teacher Sue Knight met Ms Warneke after using the novelist’s historical books to teach her year 8 class and was surprised to find the author so generous towards her readers.“She always let her fans in,” Ms Knight said.“One of the students made her a medieval doll as a gift. Sara was overwhelmed by it.”Ms Warneke moved to Tasmania, where she kept popular blogs and maintained a correspondence with fans throughout her illness. She was cared for by fellow writer Karen Brooks, whom she met in Bendigo.“She wasn’t only a writer, she was a social commentator,” Ms Knight said. “Her intellect, her creativity – she just owned it.”Ms Warneke published more than 20 books and was on the Bendigo Dymocks bestseller list for weeks at a time.Her last book, a collection of short stories called The Hall of Lost Footsteps, will be published in November by Ticonderoga Publications.