Rebecca F. John is a Welsh novelist. She won the PEN International New Voices Award in 2015, and has been shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards[1] and the Wales Book of the Year.[2]
Rebecca F. John | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1986 (age 37–38) |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Nationality | Welsh |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Notable works |
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| Notable awards |
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| Website | |
| rebeccafjohn | |
Early life
editRebecca F. John was born in 1986, and grew up in Pwll, a small coastal village in Carmarthenshire, Wales.[3]
Career
editJohn's first solo publication was Clown's Shoes, a collection of short fiction published by Parthian Books in 2015. A month before publication, one of the stories that would be included in the collection – 'Moon Dog' – won the PEN International New Voices Award at a ceremony in Quebec.[4] John's début novel, The Haunting of Henry Twist, followed in 2017. Published by Serpent's Tail, it was shortlisted for the Costa Book Award for First Novel.
After a five-year publishing hiatus, in 2022 John published three novels. The first was The Empty Greatcoat, a fictional reimagining of John's great-great uncle's experiences of the First World War.[5] The second was a novella – Fannie – a feminist reimagining of the story of Fantine, the young grisette from Victor Hugo's 1862 novel Les Misérables.[6] In May 2023, Fannie was shortlisted for the Wales Book of the Year award, with the shortlisting announced on BBC Radio Wales.[7] John's third publication of 2022 was The Shadow Order, her first novel for young people. The publication of The Shadow Order by Firefly Press was closely followed by her taking up a role as Senior Editor at the publisher, having previously worked as an editor at Gomer and Honno.[8]
In 2023, John published her fifth novel: Vulcana. Like The Empty Greatcoat of the previous year, Vulcana is a fictionalised account of real events, centred upon the story of Welsh strongwoman Kate Williams, who achieved fame using the stagename Vulcana in the late 19th century and early 20th century.[9]
Bibliography
editNovels
edit- The Haunting of Henry Twist (2017)
- The Empty Greatcoat (2022)
- Fannie (2022)
- The Shadow Order (2022)
- Vulcana (2023)
Short fiction
edit- Clown's Shoes (2015)
References
edit- ^ Flood, Alison (21 November 2017). "Helen Dunmore's final poems lead shortlists for 2017 Costa prizes". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "Literature Wales announces shortlist for Wales Book of the Year". Nation.Cymru. 21 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ "Home". rebeccafjohn. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ Turner, Robin (16 October 2015). "Swansea's Rebecca F John wins international literary prize for new writers". WalesOnline. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "Review: The Empty Greatcoat is a story brilliantly and compellingly told". Nation.Cymru. 9 January 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "Review: Fannie by Rebecca F. John". Nation.Cymru. 4 August 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "Buchaillard, Rowland-Hill and Newbury among Wales Book of the Year shortlistees". The Bookseller. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
- ^ "Novelist joins firefly as senior editor". The Bookseller. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
- ^ "Strongwoman's amazing tale". Abergavenny Chronicle. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 23 May 2023.