Helen Simpson (author)
Encyclopedia
Helen Simpson is an English novelist and short story writer. She was born in 1959 in Bristol
, in the West of England, and went to a girls' school. She worked at Vogue
for five years before her success in writing short stories meant she could afford to leave and concentrate full-time on her writing. Her first collection, Four Bare Legs in a Bed and Other Stories, won the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
while her book Hey Yeah Right Get A Life, a series of interlinked stories, won the Hawthornden Prize
.
In 1993, she was selected as one of Granta
's top 20 novelists under the age of 40.
In 2009, she donated the short story The Tipping Point to Oxfam's 'Ox-Tales
' project, four collections of UK stories written by 38 authors. Her story was published in the 'Air' collection.
She is currently a writer-in-residence for the charity First Story
.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/arts/features/womenwriters/simpson_life.shtml
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, in the West of England, and went to a girls' school. She worked at Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
for five years before her success in writing short stories meant she could afford to leave and concentrate full-time on her writing. Her first collection, Four Bare Legs in a Bed and Other Stories, won the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
The Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year award is a literary prize awarded to a British author under the age of 35 for a published work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry...
while her book Hey Yeah Right Get A Life, a series of interlinked stories, won the Hawthornden Prize
Hawthornden Prize
The Hawthornden Prize is a British literary award that was established in 1919 by Alice Warrender. Authors are awarded on the quality of their "imaginative literature" which can be written in either poetry or prose...
.
In 1993, she was selected as one of Granta
Granta
Granta is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centers on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story’s supreme ability to describe, illuminate and make real." In 2007, The Observer stated, "In its blend of...
's top 20 novelists under the age of 40.
In 2009, she donated the short story The Tipping Point to Oxfam's 'Ox-Tales
Ox-Tales
Ox-Tales refers to four anthologies of short stories written by 38 of the UK's best known authors. All the authors donated their stories to Oxfam...
' project, four collections of UK stories written by 38 authors. Her story was published in the 'Air' collection.
She is currently a writer-in-residence for the charity First Story
First Story
First Story is a literary charity. It was founded in 2007 by Katie Waldegrave and the writer William Fiennes to improve literacy and foster creativity in young people through creative writing...
.
Source
- Bio at Contemporary Writers: http://www.contemporarywriters.com/authors/?p=auth90
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/arts/features/womenwriters/simpson_life.shtml