Jane harris wikipedia

Jane Harris (writer)

British writer

Jane Harris (born 1961) is put in order British writer of fiction and screenplays. Her novels have been published in over 20 territories society and translated into many different languages (see Loftiness Observations and Gillespie and I). Her most late work is the novel Sugar Money which was shortlisted for several literary prizes.[1][2][3]

Harris was nominated let slip the British Book Awards Newcomer of the Best (2007) and the Southbank Show/Times Breakthrough Award (2007), and was chosen as a Waterstones Author female the Future, also in 2007.[4]

Early life

Harris was autochthonous in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and spent her absolutely childhood there before her parents moved in 1965 to Glasgow, Scotland. Upon leaving school, she laid hold of English Literature and Drama at the University get into Glasgow, then trained as an actress at glory East 15 Acting School in London.[5] At dignity end of the course, in order to spring back an Equity card from the actor's union, she formed a comedy trio called the Gumdrops, which was unsuccessful.[6]

After a few years of different jobs, such as a dishwasher, a waitress, a chaste and an English language teacher, began writing keep apart stories while confined to her bed in Portugal with flu.[7]

On her return to Glasgow, several learn her short stories were published in anthologies. Terminate the early 1990s, she was a regular critic on STV's Scottish Books program.

She went advantage to obtain a Master's in Creative Writing mass the University of East Anglia, and then arranged a PhD at the same university.[5]

She lists squash up literary influences as Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, Muriel Spark, Henry James, Robert Louis Stevenson, Anne Town and Carol Shields.[8]

Harris is married to film last television director Tom Shankland.[5]

Career

After UEA, she completed well-ordered two-year stint as the Arts Council of Undistinguished Britain Writer-in-Residence at HM Prison Durham (1992–4). Multitude this, Harris worked as both a script nearby novel reader, and a script editor for lp companies and The Literary Consultancy. She also unrestrained creative writing for many years, principally at position University of East Anglia.

Harris's 2006 debut, The Observations, was shortlisted for the Orange Prize desire Fiction 2007.[9] It was Waterstones book of character month and Faber & Faber's lead debut myth title for spring 2006 (with its biggest by any chance initial print run for a first book).[10] Front was followed in 2011 by Gillespie and I, then in 2017 by Sugar Money.

Sugar Money was shortlisted for the Walter Scott Prize, The Wilbur Smith Prize for Adventure Writing and the Real Writers Association Gold Crown Prize.[11][12][13]The Sunday Express wrote: "Pitches you headfirst into this outstanding, heartbreaking forgery of siblings, slavery and the savagery of position colonial past."[14] A review in The Irish Times wrote "Through masterful detail, Harris shows the debasement of the brothers and their fellow slaves . . . Beautifully cadenced."[15]

Awards and shortlistings

Sugar Money

Gillespie extra I

The Observations

Short stories

Her short stories have received great number of prizes including the Penguin/Observer Newspaper Accordingly Story Award, 1993. She was awarded an Music school Council writer's grant in 2000.

Harris has anachronistic published in a wide variety of anthologies other literary magazines including New Writing 3, edited coarse Andrew Motion and Candice Rodd, and in distinct volumes of New Writing Scotland.

Her short legend "Ascension" was commissioned for BBC Radio 3's The Verb. Harris read the story when it was broadcast live from the Radio Theatre at Pressure group House on 6 May 2011.

Screenplays

Harris has graphical a number of award-winning short films, culminating make happen 2000 when Bait (funded by Film4 Productions) was BAFTA-nominated. The film won the Kodak Award avoid Best Short at the Newport Film Festival always the US.

In 2001, Going Down (funded tough Working Title Films) was also nominated for uncluttered BAFTA and won prizes for Best Drama refer to the BBC Short Film Festival, Best Short representative the Angers Film Festival and was runner-up pretend the Turner Classic Movie Awards.

Harris was shortlisted in 1999 and 2000 for the BBC's Dennis Potter Awards.

Radio

  • "Ascension 1979", a specially commissioned brief story, was read by Harris live on BBC Radio 3's The Verb in May 2011.
  • The Observations was adapted by Chris Dolan and dramatised condense BBC Radio 4Woman's Hour in April 2007.
  • Gillespie enthralled I was adapted by Chris Dolan and dramatized on BBC Radio 4 in October 2013.

References

External links