Eleanor Lerman
Encyclopedia
Eleanor Lerman is an American
poet
, novelist, and short story writer.
.
In 1973 her first book of poetry, Armed Love, was nominated for a National Book Award. Much attention came to this new and lauded poet. In one of the more controversial reviews of her work, the New York Times described her first book as "XX rated" for its frank discussion of sexuality and gender. Although Lerman published a second book in 1975, she stopped publishing poetry in response to the backlash against her work.
She published her third book of poetry twenty-five years later in 2001 when Sarabande Books
commissioned The Mystery of Meteors. Sarabande also published her fourth book of poetry, Our Post-Soviet History Unfolds which won the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize in 2006, given by the American Academy of Poets and The Nation magazine. In awarding the prize, Tony Hoagland
cited Lerman's "vernacular resilience."
For one of her recent books, The Blonde on the Train, the author has experimented with creating a web site devoted specifically to the book and its contents, including excerpts: http://www.blondeonthetrain.com
, and in 2006 her fiction collection "Observers and Other Stories" was published by the Lesbian press Artemis Press.
Lerman is also the recipient of the inaugural Juniper Prize, the 2002 Joy Bale Boone Award for Poetry, the 2006 Milton Dorfman Poetry Prize, and a fiction grant from the New York Foundation for the Arts
. In 2007, she received a Literature Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts
. In 2011, she was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship
.
She lives on Long Island
, in Nassau County
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, novelist, and short story writer.
Life
She grew up in the Bronx and Far Rockaway; she is a lifelong New YorkerNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
In 1973 her first book of poetry, Armed Love, was nominated for a National Book Award. Much attention came to this new and lauded poet. In one of the more controversial reviews of her work, the New York Times described her first book as "XX rated" for its frank discussion of sexuality and gender. Although Lerman published a second book in 1975, she stopped publishing poetry in response to the backlash against her work.
She published her third book of poetry twenty-five years later in 2001 when Sarabande Books
Sarabande Books
Sarabande Books is an American not-for-profit literary press founded in 1994, and located in Louisville, Kentucky, publishing poetry, fiction and nonfiction.The press was co-founded by Sarah Gorham and Jeffrey Skinner...
commissioned The Mystery of Meteors. Sarabande also published her fourth book of poetry, Our Post-Soviet History Unfolds which won the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize in 2006, given by the American Academy of Poets and The Nation magazine. In awarding the prize, Tony Hoagland
Tony Hoagland
Anthony Dey Hoagland is an American poet and writer. His poetry collection 2003, What Narcissism Means to Me, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Other honors include two grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, a 2000 Guggenheim Fellowship in Poetry, and a...
cited Lerman's "vernacular resilience."
For one of her recent books, The Blonde on the Train, the author has experimented with creating a web site devoted specifically to the book and its contents, including excerpts: http://www.blondeonthetrain.com
Awards
She has been nominated for a Lambda Literary AwardLambda Literary Award
Lambda Literary Awards are awarded yearly by the US-based Lambda Literary Foundation to published works which celebrate or explore LGBT themes. Categories include Humor, Romance and Biography. To qualify, a book must have been published in the United States in the year current to the award...
, and in 2006 her fiction collection "Observers and Other Stories" was published by the Lesbian press Artemis Press.
Lerman is also the recipient of the inaugural Juniper Prize, the 2002 Joy Bale Boone Award for Poetry, the 2006 Milton Dorfman Poetry Prize, and a fiction grant from the New York Foundation for the Arts
New York Foundation for the Arts
The New York Foundation for the Arts was created in conjunction the in 1971. The organization gives grants to individual artists and writers and developing arts organizations with a mission to '.'-NYFA's Programs:...
. In 2007, she received a Literature Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
. In 2011, she was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
.
She lives on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, in Nassau County
Nassau County, New York
Nassau County is a suburban county on Long Island, east of New York City in the U.S. state of New York, within the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,339,532...
.
Poetry
- Our Post-Soviet History Unfolds Sarabande Books, 2005, ISBN 9781932511246
- The Sensual World Re-Emerges, Sarabande Books, 2010, ISBN 9781932511819
Short Stories
- Observers and Other Stories, Artemis Press, 2002, ISBN 0971726124
- The Blonde on the Train Mayapple Press, 2009, ISBN 9780932412737
Novels
- Still Alive Createspace, 2008, ISBN 9781434838155
- Janet Planet, Mayapple Press, 2011
External links
- Author Website
- "Eleanor Lerman Interview by Gavin J. Grant", Indiebound
- "Interview with Nickole Brown of Sarabande Books", Drunken Boat