Imogen Hermes Gowar is a British author. She published her debut novel The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock, winning a Betty Trask Award in 2019; it became shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction.
Imogen Hermes Gowar | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Writer |
| Language | English |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Alma mater | University of East Anglia |
| Genre | Historical fiction |
| Notable works | The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock (2018) |
| Notable awards | Betty Trask Award (2018) |
| Website | |
| www | |
Personal life and early career
editGowar's great-grandmother was the engraver and sculptor Gertrude Hermes.[1]
Gowar studied archaeology, anthropology and art history at the University of East Anglia.[2] She then worked in museums, including in Visitor Services at the British Museum, while writing short fiction inspired by the exhibits.[2][1] She also worked as a barista in London prior to publishing her first book.[1]
Writing career
editIn 2013, Gowar won the Malcolm Bradbury Memorial Scholarship to study for a master's degree in creative writing at the University of East Anglia.[1] Her dissertation developed into her debut novel The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock.[1] The novel won a Betty Trask Award in 2019 and was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction and the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award in 2018.[3][4][5] It was also longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize in 2018.[6]
Gowar is currently writing her next book.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e Brown, Helen (2018-01-24). "Imogen Hermes Gowar on mermaids, mummies and writing this year's must-read historical novel". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
- ^ a b "The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock review: Historical fiction at its finest". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
- ^ "Betty Trask Prize - The Society of Authors". 2020-05-08. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
- ^ Flood, Alison (2018-04-23). "Women's prize for fiction shortlist favours new voices over big hitters". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
- ^ team, Code8; Pickard, Maddy (2018-11-23). "Imogen Hermes Gowar, shortlisted 2018". Young Writer of the Year Award. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b locusmag (2018-03-23). "2018 Desmond Elliott Prize Longlist". Locus Online. Retrieved 2024-04-11.