Louise Penny
Encyclopedia
Louise Penny is a Canadian
author
of mystery novels set in the Canadian province of Quebec
centred on the work of Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec
. Penny's first career was as a radio broadcaster for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
. After she turned to writing, she won numerous awards for her work, including the Agatha Award
for best mystery novel of the year for four consecutive years (2007–2010) and the prestigious Anthony Award for both The Brutal Telling and Bury Your Dead. Her latest book, A Trick of the Light debuted at #4 on the New York Times bestseller list. Her novels are published in 23 languages.
and Louise grew up reading mystery writers such as Agatha Christie
, Georges Simenon
, Dorothy L. Sayers
, and Michael Innes.
Penny earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts (Radio and Television) from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute (now Ryerson University
) in 1979. After graduation, at age 21, she embarked on an 18-year career as a radio host and journalist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
. At the start of her broadcasting career, Penny took postings at locations far from friends and family, and to help deal with feelings of loneliness and isolation, she increasingly turned to alcohol. At the age of 35, she admitted to an alcohol problem, and has been sober since. Shortly afterward, she met her future husband Michael Whitehead, a Montreal hematologist, on a blind date
.
award in the United Kingdom
, the Arthur Ellis Award in Canada for best first crime novel, the Dilys Award
, the Anthony Award
and the Barry Award
for Best First Novel in the United States.
Penny has published a further six novels and has enjoyed remarkable success, garnering major crime novel award nominations for almost every one of her novels and subsequently winning several of those awards.
Her oeuvre features Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, head of the homicide department of the Sûreté du Québec
. The novels, although set in the province of Quebec
, feature many hallmarks of the British whodunit
genre, including murders by unconventional means, bucolic villages, large casts of suspects, red herrings, and a dramatic disclosure of the murderer in the last few pages of the book.
In 2009, Penny helped to launch a new award for aspiring Canadian mystery writers, the Unhanged Arthur for Best Unpublished First Novel.
Penny and her husband currently live in Knowlton, a village south of Montreal
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of mystery novels set in the Canadian province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
centred on the work of Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec
Sûreté du Québec
Sûreté du Québec or SQ is the provincial police force for the Canadian province of Québec...
. Penny's first career was as a radio broadcaster for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
. After she turned to writing, she won numerous awards for her work, including the Agatha Award
Agatha Award
The Agatha Awards are literary awards for mystery and crime writers who write via the same method as Agatha Christie...
for best mystery novel of the year for four consecutive years (2007–2010) and the prestigious Anthony Award for both The Brutal Telling and Bury Your Dead. Her latest book, A Trick of the Light debuted at #4 on the New York Times bestseller list. Her novels are published in 23 languages.
Early life and career with CBC
Penny was born in Toronto in 1958. Her mother was an avid reader of both fiction and non-fiction, with a particular liking for crime fiction,and Louise grew up reading mystery writers such as Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
, Georges Simenon
Georges Simenon
Georges Joseph Christian Simenon was a Belgian writer. A prolific author who published nearly 200 novels and numerous short works, Simenon is best known for the creation of the fictional detective Maigret.-Early life and education:...
, Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy Leigh Sayers was a renowned English crime writer, poet, playwright, essayist, translator and Christian humanist. She was also a student of classical and modern languages...
, and Michael Innes.
Penny earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts (Radio and Television) from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute (now Ryerson University
Ryerson University
Ryerson University is a public research university located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its urban campus is adjacent to Yonge-Dundas Square located at the busiest intersection in Downtown Toronto. The majority of its buildings are in the blocks northeast of the square in Toronto's Garden...
) in 1979. After graduation, at age 21, she embarked on an 18-year career as a radio host and journalist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
. At the start of her broadcasting career, Penny took postings at locations far from friends and family, and to help deal with feelings of loneliness and isolation, she increasingly turned to alcohol. At the age of 35, she admitted to an alcohol problem, and has been sober since. Shortly afterward, she met her future husband Michael Whitehead, a Montreal hematologist, on a blind date
Blind date
A "blind date" is a date between two people who have not previously met. The phrase may also mean:Television*Blind Date , a dating game show in the United Kingdom*Blind Date , a reality show in the United States...
.
Literary career
After their wedding, Penny left the CBC to take up writing. Although she started on a historical novel, she had difficulty finishing it, and eventually switched to mystery writing. She entered her first novel, Still Life, in the prestigious "Debut Dagger" competition in the United Kingdom, and placed second out of 800 entries. The novel did win a number of other awards, including the "New Blood" DaggerCrime Writers' Association
The Crime Writers Association is a writers' association in the United Kingdom. Founded by John Creasey in 1953, it is currently chaired by Peter James and claims 450+ members....
award in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, the Arthur Ellis Award in Canada for best first crime novel, the Dilys Award
Dilys Award
The Dilys Award have been presented every year since 1992 by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association. It is given to the mystery title of the year which the member booksellers have most enjoyed selling. The Independent Mystery Booksellers Association is an association of retail businesses...
, the Anthony Award
Anthony Award
The Anthony Awards are literary awards for mystery writers presented at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention since 1986. The awards are named for Anthony Boucher , one of the founders of the Mystery Writers of America....
and the Barry Award
Barry Award (for crime novels)
The Barry Award is a crime literary prize awarded annually since 1997 by the editors of Deadly Pleasures, an American quarterly publication for crime fiction readers. From 2007-2009 the award was jointly presented with the publication Mystery News...
for Best First Novel in the United States.
Penny has published a further six novels and has enjoyed remarkable success, garnering major crime novel award nominations for almost every one of her novels and subsequently winning several of those awards.
Her oeuvre features Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, head of the homicide department of the Sûreté du Québec
Sûreté du Québec
Sûreté du Québec or SQ is the provincial police force for the Canadian province of Québec...
. The novels, although set in the province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, feature many hallmarks of the British whodunit
Whodunit
A whodunit or whodunnit is a complex, plot-driven variety of the detective story in which the puzzle is the main feature of interest. The reader or viewer is provided with clues from which the identity of the perpetrator of the crime may be deduced before the solution is revealed in the final...
genre, including murders by unconventional means, bucolic villages, large casts of suspects, red herrings, and a dramatic disclosure of the murderer in the last few pages of the book.
In 2009, Penny helped to launch a new award for aspiring Canadian mystery writers, the Unhanged Arthur for Best Unpublished First Novel.
Penny and her husband currently live in Knowlton, a village south of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
.
External links
- Official Website
- St. Martin's Author Profile
- Feature in SHOTS Crime & Thriller Ezine Louise Penny Tells All