Leon Maxwell Gellert was born in 1892 in Walkerville, a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. After an education at Adelaide High School, he embarked on a teaching career; first as a student teacher at Unley High School then at the University of Adelaide's Teacher Training College.

He enlisted with the AIF's 10th Battalion within weeks of the outbreak of the Great War and sailed for Cairo on 22 October 1914. He landed at Ari Burnu Beach, Gallipoli, on 25 April 1915, was wounded and repatriated as medically unfit in June 1916. He attempted to re-enlist but was soon found out. He returned to teaching at Norwood Public School.

During the War he had begun to write poetry and Songs of a Campaign – published in 1917 – was favourably reviewed by The Bulletin. Angus & Robertson soon released a new edition, illustrated by Norman Lindsay. Gellert took to journalism, moving to Sydney where he taught English at Cleveland Street Intermediate High School until 1922 when he joined the staff at Smith's Weekly. There he was introduced to the circle that included Sydney Ure Smith and Bertram Stevens. Gellert was appointed editor of Ure Smith's Home magazine and co-editor of the quarterly Art in Australia which he took over on Stevens' death in 1922.

Gellert continued editing Home until 1942 when it ceased publication. He then became literary editor of the Sydney Morning Herald, writing the 'Something Personal' column in the Saturday issue as well as humorous columns for the Sunday Herald and the Sunday Telegraph. He returned to Adelaide after the death of his wife Kathleen in 1969, living in the suburb of Hazelwood Park. Leon Gellert died in 1977.

Gavin Souter's biography, A Torrent of Words, Leon Gellert, A Writer's Life, was first published in 1996 and is released here digitally for the very first time.