William Fiennes (writer)
William John Fiennes FRSL (born August 7, 1970 ) is a British literary critic and writer , who was awarded the Hawthornden Prize and the Somerset Maugham Award .
Life
He is of the Fiennes family of Broughton Castle near Banbury and is the son of Nathaniel Fiennes, 21st Baron Saye and Sele . His more distant relatives include researcher Ranulph Fiennes and actors Ralph Fiennes and Joseph Fiennes . One of the more extensive ancestors of the family was the travel writer Celia Fiennes , who was the first woman to travel to all English counties between 1684 and 1712 .
After attending Eton College , Fiennes studied at the University of Oxford and then worked as a teacher . He was diagnosed with Crohn's disease while still a student .
In 2002 his first book The Snow Geese was published , in which he reported on the migration of the great snow goose through North America . For this book he was awarded the Hawthornden Prize, the Somerset Maugham Award and the Young Writer of the Year Award from the Sunday Times in 2003 and was also nominated for the Samuel Johnson Prize. He then worked for two years as a Fellow for Creative Writing at Wolfson College, University of Oxford, and has been Writer-in-Residence at the American School in London since 2007 .
In 2009 he published his second book, The Music Room , which tells the story of a young man who grew up in a castle with his brother , who had epilepsy and brain damage. This book was nominated for the Costa Book Award and the Duff Cooper Prize , among others . He also became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2009 .
Publications
- in German language
- The train of the snow geese: a journey between heaven and earth , original title The Snow Geese , 2004, ISBN 3-446-20488-1
Web links
- Literature by and about William Fiennes in the catalog of the German National Library
- Private homepage
- SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY: Here be gargoyles: An interview with William Fiennes (interview, April 5, 2009)
- THE GUARDIAN: An Englishman's castle (interview, April 11, 2009)
- Hon. William John Fiennes, on thepeerage.com , accessed August 19, 2015.
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Fiennes, William |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Fiennes, William John |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British literary critic and writer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 7th August 1970 |