William Fiennes (author)
Encyclopedia
William Fiennes is a British
author.
Fiennes was educated at the Dragon School
in Oxford
, Eton College
, and Oxford University, where he received both undergraduate and graduate degrees. Aged 19, after a year teaching in Brazil
, he was diagnosed with Crohn's disease
.
to their summer breeding grounds on Baffin Island
, and a meditation on the idea of home. It was shortlisted for the 2002 Samuel Johnson Prize
and won the 2003 Hawthornden Prize
, the 2003 Somerset Maugham Award
and the 2003 Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
. His second book, The Music Room (2009), is the story of growing up in an English
castle alongside a brother who suffers from severe epilepsy and brain damage. The Music Room has been called "a small masterpiece, a tribute to the power of place, family and memory", "sublimely evocative" and "a beautiful and fortifying book, even a great one." "The Music Room" was shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards
, the Duff Cooper Prize
, the Ondaatje Prize
, the PEN/Ackerley Prize and the Independent Booksellers' Book of the Year Award. William Fiennes has also written for Granta
, the London Review of Books
, The Observer
, the Daily Telegraph and the Times Literary Supplement.
at Wolfson College, Oxford
. Since 2007, he has been Writer-in-Residence at the American School in London, and at Cranford Community College
, Hounslow
. He is the Director and co-founder of the charity First Story
, which promotes writing in challenging schools in Great Britain
.
family of Broughton Castle
near Banbury
, Oxfordshire
. He is the youngest son of Nathaniel Fiennes, 21st Baron Saye and Sele
(born 1920) and Mariette née Salisbury-Jones. He is a second cousin of the explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, and a third cousin of the actors Ralph Fiennes
and Joseph Fiennes
. He is a distant relative of the writer Celia Fiennes
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author.
Fiennes was educated at the Dragon School
Dragon School
The Dragon School is a British coeducational, preparatory school in the city of Oxford, founded in 1877 as the Oxford Preparatory School, or OPS. It is primarily known as a boarding school, although it also takes day pupils...
in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
, and Oxford University, where he received both undergraduate and graduate degrees. Aged 19, after a year teaching in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, he was diagnosed with Crohn's disease
Crohn's disease
Crohn's disease, also known as regional enteritis, is a type of inflammatory bowel disease that may affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract from mouth to anus, causing a wide variety of symptoms...
.
Writing
His first book, The Snow Geese (2002), is an account of following snow geese from TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
to their summer breeding grounds on Baffin Island
Baffin Island
Baffin Island in the Canadian territory of Nunavut is the largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. Its area is and its population is about 11,000...
, and a meditation on the idea of home. It was shortlisted for the 2002 Samuel Johnson Prize
Samuel Johnson Prize
The Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction is one of the most prestigious prizes for non-fiction writing. It was founded in 1999 following the demise of the NCR Book Award and based on an anonymous donation. The prize is named after Samuel Johnson...
and won the 2003 Hawthornden Prize
Hawthornden Prize
The Hawthornden Prize is a British literary award that was established in 1919 by Alice Warrender. Authors are awarded on the quality of their "imaginative literature" which can be written in either poetry or prose...
, the 2003 Somerset Maugham Award
Somerset Maugham Award
The Somerset Maugham Award is a British literary prize given each May by the Society of Authors. It is awarded to whom they judge to be the best writer or writers under the age of thirty-five of a book published in the past year. The prize was instituted in 1947 by William Somerset Maugham and thus...
and the 2003 Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award
The Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year award is a literary prize awarded to a British author under the age of 35 for a published work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry...
. His second book, The Music Room (2009), is the story of growing up in an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
castle alongside a brother who suffers from severe epilepsy and brain damage. The Music Room has been called "a small masterpiece, a tribute to the power of place, family and memory", "sublimely evocative" and "a beautiful and fortifying book, even a great one." "The Music Room" was shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards
Costa Book Awards
The Costa Book Awards are a series of literary awards given to books by authors based in Great Britain and Ireland. They were known as the Whitbread Book Awards until 2005, after which Costa Coffee, a subsidiary of Whitbread, took over sponsorship....
, the Duff Cooper Prize
Duff Cooper Prize
The Duff Cooper Prize is a literary prize awarded annually for the best work of history, biography, political science or poetry, published in English or French. The prize was established in honour of Duff Cooper, a British diplomat, Cabinet member and acclaimed author. The prize was first awarded...
, the Ondaatje Prize
Ondaatje Prize
The Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize is an annual literary award given by the Royal Society of Literature. The £10,000 award is given for a work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry which evokes the "spirit of a place", and which is written by someone who is a citizen of or who has been...
, the PEN/Ackerley Prize and the Independent Booksellers' Book of the Year Award. William Fiennes has also written for Granta
Granta
Granta is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centers on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story’s supreme ability to describe, illuminate and make real." In 2007, The Observer stated, "In its blend of...
, the London Review of Books
London Review of Books
The London Review of Books is a fortnightly British magazine of literary and intellectual essays.-History:The LRB was founded in 1979, during the year-long lock-out at The Times, by publisher A...
, The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
, the Daily Telegraph and the Times Literary Supplement.
Other work
Fiennes spent two years as Fellow in the Creative ArtsCreative Arts
Creative arts is the term used to describe different types of art. Specifically, to introduce fine art ideas, techniques, skills and media. It is generally used as an umbrella for Dramaturgy, Music , Graphic Arts/Cartooning, Performing Arts, Film and Publishing, Galleries and Museums and the Visual...
at Wolfson College, Oxford
Wolfson College, Oxford
Wolfson College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Located in north Oxford along the River Cherwell, Wolfson is an all-graduate college with over sixty governing body fellows, in addition to both research and junior research fellows. It caters to a wide range of...
. Since 2007, he has been Writer-in-Residence at the American School in London, and at Cranford Community College
Cranford Community College
Cranford Community College began life as Woodfield Secondary School. After the 1944 Act, Spring Grove Central School and the council senior schools became secondary modern schools...
, Hounslow
Hounslow
Hounslow is the principal town in the London Borough of Hounslow. It is a suburban development situated 10.6 miles west south-west of Charing Cross. It forms a post town in the TW postcode area.-Etymology:...
. He is the Director and co-founder of the charity First Story
First Story
First Story is a literary charity. It was founded in 2007 by Katie Waldegrave and the writer William Fiennes to improve literacy and foster creativity in young people through creative writing...
, which promotes writing in challenging schools in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
.
Family
William Fiennes is a descendent of the FiennesFiennes
Fiennes may refer to:*Bessie Fiennes, Baroness Clinton, better known as Bessie Blount, mistress of Henry VIII of England and mother of his son, Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset*James Fiennes, 1st Baron Saye and Sele...
family of Broughton Castle
Broughton Castle
Broughton Castle is a medieval manor house located in the village of Broughton which is about two miles south-west of Banbury, Oxfordshire, England on the B4035 road ....
near Banbury
Banbury
Banbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. He is the youngest son of Nathaniel Fiennes, 21st Baron Saye and Sele
Nathaniel Fiennes, 21st Baron Saye and Sele
Nathaniel Thomas Allen Fiennes, 21st Baron Saye and Sele is a British nobleman and businessman.Nathaniel Thomas Allen Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes was born on 22 September 1920, the son of Ivo Murray Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, later 20th Baron Saye and Sele, whom he succeeded in 1968.Despite a family...
(born 1920) and Mariette née Salisbury-Jones. He is a second cousin of the explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, and a third cousin of the actors Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes is an English actor and film director. He has appeared in such films as The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Strange Days, The Duchess and Schindler's List....
and Joseph Fiennes
Joseph Fiennes
Joseph Fiennes is an English film and stage actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayals of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love, Sir Robert Dudley in Elizabeth, Commisar Danilov in Enemy at the Gates, Martin Luther in Luther, Merlin in Camelot, and his portrayal of Mark Benford in the...
. He is a distant relative of the writer Celia Fiennes
Celia Fiennes
Celia Fiennes was an English traveller. Born in Wiltshire, she was the daughter of an English Civil War Parliamentarian Colonel, who was in turn the second son of the William Fiennes, 1st Viscount Saye and Sele. Celia Fiennes died in Hackney in 1741.-Pioneering Female Traveller:Fiennes never married...
.