Michael Grothaus (born August 1977) is an American novelist and journalist. He is best known for the novel Beautiful Shining People and for his writing about internet subcultures in the digital age.
Michael Grothaus | |
|---|---|
 Grothaus at a book signing at the Piccadilly Waterstones bookstore in London (2016) | |
| Born | Michael Grothaus August 1977 (age 47) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Occupation | Novelist, journalist |
| Citizenship | American |
| Education | Columbia College Chicago (BA) University of London (MA) |
| Period | 1999 to present |
| Genre | Literary fiction • Speculative fiction • Bildungsroman • Satire • Transgressive fiction • Dark comedy |
| Literary movement | Postmodernism • Minimalism • Magical realism |
| Years active | 1999 to present |
| Notable works | Epiphany Jones Beautiful Shining People |
| Website | |
| michaelgrothaus | |
Biography
editMichael Grothaus was born in Saint Louis, Missouri in 1977.[1] In 1998 he began attending Columbia College in Chicago where he studied film and journalism.[1][2][3] During his college years he started writing for Screen magazine, covering the local Chicago film industry. After graduating Grothaus took an internship with 20th Century Fox at the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France.[4] He would later use this experience as a basis for his first novel[2][5]
During his early 20s Grothaus worked for the Art Institute of Chicago, eventually writing and directing a children's film for them.[3] Grothaus then left the creative fields to pursue a career with Apple.[6] In 2007 he moved to London to study creative writing at the University of London, where he earned his MA in creative writing with Distinction.[2][7] Shortly after graduating he returned to journalism. His writing has appeared in Fast Company, The Irish Times, Litro Magazine, Vice, The Guardian, Engadget, Know Your Mobile,[8] among others.[4][5][9][10]
Journalism
editGrothaus began his journalism career covering the Chicago film industry for Screen magazine. He then moved into technology journalism, writing for popular websites including TUAW, Engadget, and nationals including The Guardian. However, Grothaus is best known for his regular writings about creativity and subcultures in the digital age for Vice and Fast Company.[11][12] Specifically he has written extensively on the enigmatic online organization Cicada 3301.[13][14] He also writes frequently about the convergence of sex,[15] pornography, and technology, including the subculture of fake celebrity pornography.[9]
Fiction
editGrothaus' debut novel is Epiphany Jones.[16] It was acquired by Orenda Books in 2015 and was published in June 2016.[17][18] The Bookseller described the novel as "an energetic, inventive, gritty and deeply moving thriller cum dark comedy, Epiphany Jones addresses the challenging subject of sex trafficking in a powerful narrative driven by exceptionally well-drawn, unforgettable protagonists."[19] The Sunday Express named Epiphany Jones as one of the 'Best Reads for the Summer', calling it "gloriously funny but dark as hell."[20] The Guardian named it one of the best recent novels, saying Epiphany Jones is "complex, inventive and a genuine shocker, this is the very opposite of a 'comfort' read."[21] Literary critic Maxim Jakubowski called Epiphany Jones "a truly impressive debut" and "a twisting tale at the same time realistically gripping and sardonic" and praised Grothaus' writing for having "a delicate fluency which contrasts with the depravity of his subject matter." The New York Daily News said Epiphany Jones "is a captivating story that manages to be funny, sinister and surprising" and praised Grothaus' main characters as "complex and well-rounded—equal parts sympathetic, mad and maddening."[22]
The novel is a social satire and dark comedy about America's obsession with sex, celebrity, and the internet, which explores a pornography addict's unwilling relationship with a woman who thinks she can speak to God and their entanglement with sex traffickers that cater to the Hollywood elite.[2][23] Grothaus has stated that his personal experiences at the Cannes Film Festival and his disillusionment with the Hollywood film industry were strong inspiration for the novel.[2] Before penning the novel, Grothaus spent six years researching sex trafficking.[24]
Grothaus' second novel is Beautiful Shining People. The novel was published in 2023 and is a speculative fiction coming-of-age story about a 17-year-old quantum coding prodigy from American who befriends an ex-sumo wrestler and a Japanese waitress in a Tokyo cafe and helps the pair track down the waitress's long-lost father amidst digital Cold War tensions between superpowers China and America.[25] The novel was chosen as a Book of the Month by both SFX Magazine and SciFiNow.[26] The Sun praised the novel as “poetically written, every word of this adventure leaps off the page with passion.”[27] Grothaus has said his personal experiences in Hiroshima, Japan deeply influenced the writing of the novel.[28]
Grothaus has also spoken frequently about his dissatisfaction with things being the reasons he writes about what he does.[2] He also maintains that dissatisfaction is the most important tool a writer has.[10]
Novels
editEpiphany Jones (2016) (ISBN 978-1910633335)
Beautiful Shining People (2023) (ISBN 978-1914585647)
Honors and awards
editMichael Grothaus was longlisted for the 2017 CWA New Blood Dagger Award for his debut novel Epiphany Jones.[29]
In 2018, Entertainment Weekly named Epiphany Jones one of the 25 "Most Irresistible Hollywood Novels."[30]
References
edit- ^ a b "The other side of the Glitz". The BookTrail.
- ^ a b c d e f Morgan, Robin. "Audible Interview With Michael Grothaus: Audible Sessions". Audible.
- ^ a b "Novel set in multiple locations, plus we chat to author Michael Grothaus". Trip Fiction. 7 June 2016.
- ^ a b Grothaus, Michael (15 May 2014). "The Cannes Film Festival Can Be a Pretty Miserable Place". Vice.
- ^ a b Grothaus, Michael. "How Google Is Fighting Sex Trafficking With Big Data". Fast Company.
- ^ Dormehl, Luke (26 April 2014). "How Apple's cafeteria inspired this Kickstarter smart food scale". Cult of Mac.
- ^ "Student Successes–Literary Novels". City University London.
- ^ richkym. "About Know Your Mobile: Mobile Phone Review Site". www.knowyourmobile.com. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
- ^ a b Grothaus, Michael (8 May 2014). "The Poignant Tale of Two Fake Celebrity Porn Addicts". Vice.
- ^ a b Grothaus, Michael. "The importance of dissatisfaction to writing". The Irish Times.
- ^ Grothaus, Michael. "This Google Glass Porno Flick Foreshadows Your Future Sex Life". Fast Company.
- ^ Grothaus, Michael. "The Story Behind The Web's Weirdest, Hardest Riddle". Fast Company.
- ^ Grothaus, Michael. "Inside The Cicada 3301 Cabal". Fast Company.
- ^ Grothaus, Michael. "Meet The Man Who Solved The Mysterious Cicada 3301 Puzzle". Fast Company.
- ^ Grothaus, Michael (13 August 2014). "Meet the UK's 'Most Expensive' Male Escort". Vice.
- ^ Epiphany Jones Paperback. ASIN 191063333X – via Amazon.
- ^ Carpenter, Caroline (30 June 2016). "Pictures of the week | The Bookseller". thebookseller.com. The Bookseller. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
- ^ Sullivan, Karen. "Debut author Michael Grothaus joins Orenda!". Orenda Books.
- ^ Campbell, Lisa. "Orenda Books signs dark comedy thriller". The Bookseller.
- ^ Kerridge, Jake (10 July 2016). "Your holiday's booked: Our pick of the best reads for summer". The Sunday Express.
- ^ Wilson, Laura (31 July 2016). "The best recent crime novels – review roundup". The Guardian.
- ^ Chopin, Allison (24 August 2016). "'Epiphany Jones' book review: Sex crimes and psychosis in darkly funny thriller". The New York Daily News.
- ^ "Michael Grothaus – The Hanbury Agency". The Hanbury Agency.
- ^ Whetstone, David (3 April 2016). "Newcastle Noir set to bring masters and mistresses of crime to the city". ChronicleLive. Trinity Mirror North East.
- ^ Brooks, Robin (1 April 2023). "'Beautiful Shining People' by Michael Grothaus: A Book Review". GeekDad. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ "Best SFF Books March 2023". SciFiNow. 1 March 2023. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ W, J (17 March 2023). Harding, Natasha (ed.). "Books". The Sun. p. 45.
- ^ Bloody Good Reads - Chapter 88 - Michael Grothaus - Bloody Good Reads, retrieved 2 July 2023
- ^ "CWA Dagger Longlists". thecwa.co.uk. Retrieved 20 May 2017.
- ^ "The most irresistible Hollywood novels". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 24 July 2018.