Layla Martínez (Madrid, 1987)[1] is a Spanish writer and columnist known for her horror novel Woodworm, as well as the essay Utopia Is Not an Island.
Layla Martínez | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1987 Madrid, Spain |
| Occupation | Writer and columnist |
| Language | Spanish |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Education | Complutense University of Madrid, University of Alcalá |
| Genre | horror, poetry |
| Notable works | Surrogate Pregnancy (2019) Utopia Is Not an Island (2020) Woodworm (2021) |
Biography
editShe was born in 1987 in Madrid to a family from Cuenca. She graduated with a degree in political science from the Complutense University of Madrid and later gained a master's degree in sexology from the University of Alcalá.[1][2]
In 2012, she published The Book of Cruelty (El libro de la cruelidad), a book of poems; in 2015 she released The Songs of the Sleepers (Las canciones de los durmientes). In 2018, she won the José Ángel Valente Faculty Poetry Prize for her work Cineraria.[2][3]
In 2020, she published the essay Utopia Is Not an Island (Utopía no es una isla),[4] which reflects on the relationship between the way a society imagines the future and the cultural products that it consumes.[5][6]
In 2021, she published Carcoma (translated into English as Woodworm by Sophie Hughes and Annie McDermott in 2024).[7] This novel examines themes of gender-based and class-based violence through horror, set in the time of the Spanish Civil War.[8] The work was a finalist for Semana Negra de Gijón's Celsius Prize for Spanish-language science fiction and fantasy and won her an award as the best new Spanish-language author of the year at Festival 42 in 2022.[9]
She has also written for periodicals such as elDiario.es, Público, and El Salto.[10][11][12] She is the co-director of Antipersona, an independent publisher.[13]
Works
edit- The Book of Cruelty (El libro de la cruelidad, 2012)
- The Songs of the Sleepers (Las canciones de los durmientes, 2015)
- Cineraria (2019)
- Utopia Is Not an Island (Utopía no es una isla, 2020)
- Woodworm (Carcoma, 2021; English translation 2024)
References
edit- ^ a b "Los fantasmas de la Alcarria conquense revividos por Layla Martínez "carcomen" Latinoamérica y llegan incluso a Corea". www.europapress.es. 2023-04-23. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ a b "Layla Martínez gana el III Premio de la Facultad José Ángel Valente". www.lavozdealmeria.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ "La obra 'Cineraria' de Layla Martínez gana el III Premio de la Facultad Valente". UAL News (in Spanish). 2018-12-20. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ "Layla Martínez: "A veces la ficción permite contar las cosas de una forma más real que el ensayo"". www.elsaltodiario.com. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ S.L, EDICIONES PLAZA. "'Utopía no es una isla': ¿Por qué es más fácil imaginar el fin del mundo que un futuro mejor?". Cultur Plaza (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ "Aixa de la Cruz: "El compromiso político de una escritora también pasa por crear utopías"". Cultur Plaza (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ "Layla Martínez presenta 'Carcoma'". RTVE.es (in Spanish). 2022-01-27. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ Gómez, Andrés (2023-03-26). "Layla Martínez, escritora: "La casa es un lugar donde ha habido mucha violencia, y el terror es útil para visibilizarla"". La Tercera. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ "Layla Martínez". Festival 42. 2023-11-10. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
- ^ Martínez, Layla (2023-08-15). "Una semana normal". elDiario.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ Layla Martínez (2023-03-22). "El retorno de la clase". Público (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ "Layla Martínez, autora de 'Carcoma': "El género de terror es una herramienta genial para hablar de traumas colectivos"". Vogue España (in European Spanish). 2022-02-09. Retrieved 2023-10-06.
- ^ "Layla Martínez | Center for the Art of Translation | Two Lines Press". Retrieved 2024-04-23.