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Gerard Woodward

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Gerard Woodward
Born (1961-12-04) 4 December 1961 (age 63)
Enfield, London, England
EducationLondon School of Economics (BSc), University of Greenwich (CertEd), University of Manchester (PgD)
Notable works
Notable awards

Gerard Woodward (born 4 December 1961 in Enfield, London) is a British novelist, poet and short story writer, best known for his trilogy of novels concerning the troubled Jones family, the second of which, I'll Go to Bed at Noon, was shortlisted for the 2004 Man Booker Prize. As of April 2024, he is a professor of creative writing at Bath Spa University.

Early life and education

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Woodward was born in Enfield, London on 4 December 1961 to Reginald L. and Sylvia Woodward (née Walsh).[1] He had four younger siblings. In 1981, his brother Francis died after being struck by a train while drunk. His mother died shortly after.[2]

Woodward attended St Ignatius College, a Jesuit comprehensive school, leaving at 16 to work for two years in a variety of jobs. He later studied painting at Falmouth School of Art in Cornwall, though dropped out in his second year. Woodward ultimately received a Bachelor of Science Honours in social anthropology from London School of Economics,[2] a Certificate in Education from the University of Greenwich, and a postgraduate diploma in social anthropology from the University of Manchester.[3] In 2019, Woodward received an Honorary Doctorate from Middlesex University.[citation needed]

Career

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In 1989, Woodward won a Eric Gregory Award for poets under 30.[4] He published his first poetry collection, Householder, in 1991; it won the year's Somerset Maugham Award.[2] His later poetry collections include After the Deafening (1994); Island to Island (1999); We Were Pedestrians (2005); and The Seacunny (2012). In 2001, he published his first novel, August, which was the first in a trilogy, followed by I'll Go to Bed at Noon (2004) and A Curious Earth (2007). August was shortlisted for the 2001 Whitbread Award, and I'll Go to Bed at Noon was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.[2][5][6] Woodward has since published the short story collection Caravan Thieves (2008) and the novels Nourishment (2010) and Vanishing (2014).[5]

Woodward has been a writer-in-residence at Columbia College Chicago (2011) and the University of Stockholm (2013).[3] He has taught or been a writer in residence in many countries including China, Greece, Sweden, Slovenia and Ireland.[citation needed] Since 2004, Woodward has worked in the creative writing department at Bath Spa University;[1] as of April 2024, he runs the Ph.D. programme with Tracy Brain.[3] He has been a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature since 2005.[7]

Awards and honors

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In 1989, Woodward won the Eric Gregory Award for poets under age 30.[1][4] He received an Arts Council England bursary for poetry in 1994 and for fiction in 1999.[1] He has been a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature since 2005.[7]

Householder (1991) and After The Deafening (1994) have been Poetry Book Society Choice books.[citation needed]

Awards for Woodward's writing
Year Title Award Result Ref.
1992 Householder Somerset Maugham Award Winner [1][2][5]
1992 Householder John Llewellyn-Rhys Memorial Prize [5]
1994 After the Deafening T. S. Eliot Prize Shortlist
2001 August Whitbread Award for First Novel Shortlist [2][5]
2004 I'll Go to Bed at Noon Man Booker Prize for Fiction Shortlist [2][5][6][8]
2004 Encore Award Shortlist [5]
2005 We Were Pedestrians T. S. Eliot Prize Shortlist [5]
2011 Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award Shortlist [5]
2014 Vanishing Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize Winner [9][10]
2017 O. Henry Award
2018 The Paper Lovers Bad Sex in Fiction Shortlist [11]

Personal life

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Woodward met his wife Suzanne Jane Anderson while studying at Falmouth School of Art.[2] He has two children: Corin and Phoebe.[1]

Bibliography

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Poetry

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  • The Unwriter & Other Poems (1989)
  • Householder (1991), ISBN 0-7011-3758-4
  • After the Deafening (1994), ISBN 0-7011-6271-6
  • Island to Island (1999), ISBN 0-7011-6869-2
  • We Were Pedestrians (2005), ISBN 0-7011-7887-6
  • The Seacunny (2012)
  • The Vulture (2022)

Fiction

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Woodward, Gerard (Vaughan) 1961-". Encyclopedia.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Crown, Sarah (23 November 2012). "A life in writing: Gerard Woodward". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 23 November 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "Gerard Woodward". Bath Spa University. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Eric Gregory Awards". The Society of Authors. 8 May 2020. Archived from the original on 14 April 2024. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Gerard Woodward - Literature". British Council. Archived from the original on 26 September 2022. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  6. ^ a b Lyall, Sarah (20 October 2004). "Tale of Gay Life in Britain Wins a Top Literary Prize". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 28 May 2015. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  7. ^ a b "Woodward, Gerard". Royal Society of Literature. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  8. ^ Doran, Amanda-Jane (27 September 2004). "Some Surprises on Booker Shortlist". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  9. ^ Haig, Matt (20 June 2014). "What the Jerwood Fiction Uncovered prize reveals". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  10. ^ "Awards: Jerwood Fiction Uncovered". Shelf Awareness. 23 June 2014. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  11. ^ "Awards: Bad Sex in Fiction Shortlist". Shelf Awareness . 3 December 2018. Archived from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
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