Tony Ardizzone
Encyclopedia
Anthony V. Ardizzone (born 1949, Chicago
) is an American novelist, short story
writer, and editor.
, in 1971 and from Bowling Green State University
with an MFA in 1975. In 1973 he also did a year of study at the University of Illinois at Chicago
He taught at Saint Mary's Center for Learning (Chicago), Bowling Green State University
, Old Dominion University
, and Vermont College of Norwich University
. In 1985, he taught at Mohammed V University
in Rabat, Morocco. His work appeared in Ploughshares.
He served on the Board of Directors of the Association of Writers & Writing Programs
.
Currently, Ardizzone is a Chancellor's Professor in the MFA program at Indiana University
, and lives in Bloomington, Indiana
.
once put it.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
) is an American novelist, short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
writer, and editor.
Biography
Ardizzone was raised on the North Side of Chicago. He graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
, in 1971 and from Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University, often referred to as Bowling Green or BGSU, is a public, coeducational research university located in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The institution was granted a charter in 1910 by the State of Ohio as part of the Lowry Bill, which also established Kent State...
with an MFA in 1975. In 1973 he also did a year of study at the University of Illinois at Chicago
University of Illinois at Chicago
The University of Illinois at Chicago, or UIC, is a state-funded public research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, near the Chicago Loop...
He taught at Saint Mary's Center for Learning (Chicago), Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University, often referred to as Bowling Green or BGSU, is a public, coeducational research university located in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The institution was granted a charter in 1910 by the State of Ohio as part of the Lowry Bill, which also established Kent State...
, Old Dominion University
Old Dominion University
Old Dominion University is a state university located in Norfolk, Virginia, United States, and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools...
, and Vermont College of Norwich University
Norwich University
Norwich University is a private university located in Northfield, Vermont . The university was founded in 1819 at Norwich, Vermont, as the American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy. It is the oldest of six Senior Military Colleges, and is recognized by the United States Department of...
. In 1985, he taught at Mohammed V University
Mohammed V University
Mohammed V University was founded in 1957 under a royal decree . It is the first modern university in Morocco.The university is named after Mohammed V d. 1961, the former King of Morocco. In 1993, it was divided into two independent universities:* Mohammed V University at Agdal* Mohammed V...
in Rabat, Morocco. His work appeared in Ploughshares.
He served on the Board of Directors of the Association of Writers & Writing Programs
Association of Writers & Writing Programs
The Association of Writers & Writing Programs is a literary organization whose mission is "to foster literary talent and achievement, to advance the art of writing as essential to a good education, and to serve the makers, teachers, students, and readers of contemporary writing."-Members:AWP...
.
Currently, Ardizzone is a Chancellor's Professor in the MFA program at Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
, and lives in Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County in the southern region of the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 80,405 at the 2010 census....
.
Awards
- 1986 Flannery O'Connor Award for Short FictionFlannery O'Connor Award for Short FictionThe Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction is an annual prize awarded by the University of Georgia Press named in honor of the American short story writer and novelist Flannery O'Connor....
for The Evening News - 1992 Milkweed National Fiction Prize for Larabi's Ox: Stories of Morocco.
- 1992 Chicago Foundation for Literature Award for Fiction for Larabi's Ox: Stories of Morocco.
- 1986 Virginia Prize for Fiction, for Heart of the Order
- Lawrence Foundation Award
- Bruno Arcudi Literature Prize
- Prairie Schooner Readers' Choice Award
- Black Warrior Review Literary Award in Fiction
- Cream City Review Editors' Award in Nonfiction
- National Endowment for the ArtsNational Endowment for the ArtsThe 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...
Fellowship
Novels
- The Whale Chaser (Academy Chicago Publishers, 2010) ISBN 978-0897336109
- In the Garden of Papa SantuzzuIn the Garden of Papa SantuzzuIn the Garden of Papa Santuzzu is a novel written by award winning writer Tony Ardizzone. It was first published in hardback in 1999 by Picador/St...
(Picador USA/St. Martin's Press, 1999) ISBN 9780312263416 (trade paperback edition 2000 MacMillan) - Heart of the OrderHeart of the OrderHeart of the Order is a 1986 novel written by Tony Ardizzone. It was published by Henry Holt and Company and won the Virginia Prize for Fiction and named one of the 10 Best Sports Books 1986 by The National Sports Review.- Plot :...
(Henry Holt and Company, 1986) ISBN 9780030085031 - In the Name of the Father (novel)In the Name of the Father (novel)In the Name of the Father is the short first novel by award winning Italian American writer Tony Ardizzone. First published in 1978, the novel is a minimalist work and is the coming-of-age story of Tonto Schwartz...
(Doubleday & Company, 1978) ISBN 9780385140805
Short story collections
- Taking it Home: Stories from the NeighborhoodTaking it Home: Stories from the NeighborhoodTaking it Home: Stories from the Neighborhood is the third collection by Tony Ardizzone. Published in 1996 by the University of Illinois Press/Sunsinger Books, it was a finalist for the Paterson Fiction Prize...
(The University of Illinois Press, 1996) ISBN 9780252064838 - Larabi's Ox: Stories of MoroccoLarabi's Ox: Stories of MoroccoLarabi's Ox: Stories of Morocco by Tony Ardizzone is a collection of linked short stories. Published in 1992 by the small press Milkweed Editions, the collection is the Winner of the Milkweed National Fiction Prize, the Friends of Literature's Chicago Foundation Award for Fiction, the Pushcart...
(Milkweed Editions, 1992) ISBN 9780915943722 - The Evening News (stories)The Evening News (stories)The Evening News is Tony Ardizzone's first collection of stories, and winner of the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. The collection is a small press book published in 1986 by the University of Georgia Press.-Themes:...
(University of Georgia Press, 1986) ISBN 9780820308609 - "Cavaduzzo’s of Cicero", AGNI, 1999
Editor
- Intro 11 (anthology of fiction and poetry). Norfolk: Associated Writing Programs, 1980.
The "Waxing the Floor Metaphor"
In addition to his extensive work as a creative writing instructor, Tony Ardizzone is widely acknowledged to be the originator of the "Wax The Floor Metaphor" for fiction writing, a well-known model for the drafting process of a literary work. Ardizzone's model differs from others' in key ways (certain imagery and performative embellishments used) but is considered by many to be the purest, most authentic version. The metaphor essentially advises students of creative writing to work in stages of complete drafts from beginning to end. Just as it would be ill-advised for a janitor to sweep, mop, wax and buff a single square of a tile floor before moving on to the next and repeating the process, students are warned with this model not to spend time editing and polishing individual paragraphs and chapters before the first draft has been completed and "the entire picture laid out," as novelist John UpdikeJohn Updike
John Hoyer Updike was an American novelist, poet, short story writer, art critic, and literary critic....
once put it.