Thomas Morris is a Welsh writer and editor. He was born and raised in Caerphilly and was educated in the Welsh language all through primary and secondary school. He worked for Welsh TV channel S4C for a period[1] and was a trialist for Cardiff City F.C.[2] He then moved to Ireland where he studied English and Philosophy at Trinity College Dublin, where he became chairperson of the Literary Society.[3] During this time he became friends with, and an early editor of, Sally Rooney[4] who described him as "the source of all her good writing advice".[5] He is also a graduate of the University of East Anglia's MA in creative writing programme.[1]

Writing

Morris lives in Dublin and is closely associated with the city's literary scene. He is a contributor to and editor-at-large for The Stinging Fly magazine, and edited Tramp Press's short story anthology Dubliners 100 in 2014, which won an Irish Book Award.[6] He has described himself as "I’m Welsh first; I live in Ireland second; and I grudgingly accept that I’m British".[7] He has said that his curiosity in Ireland was started by watching Ballykissangel and he was not fully aware of Ireland's literary heritage until after he started studying in Trinity.[1][8]

Regarding's Ireland's support for writers, Morris has said "There’s a tendency in Britain to go, ah, aren’t the Irish great with their oral storytelling tradition, as if that’s where [the success] comes from. It’s hard work. One thread of the (Stinging Fly)'s history in the 25 years since it was set up is the growth of the Arts Council in that time. In Britain, the arts are still up for question – like, should we support them? Whereas in Ireland it feels like they’re important a priori – we’re going to support them. If I’m a writer in Wales wanting to send out work, where do I go? In Ireland, I could send it to the Dublin Review, Banshee, Gorse, the Tangerine, The Stinging Fly. More and more writers from Britain look to get their start here because there aren’t necessarily those outlets in the UK."[9]

Morris is best known as a short story writer whose work is concerned with small town life. His first book, the short story collection We Don’t Know What We’re Doing (2015) was published by Faber and Faber and received positive reviews [10][11] and several awards, including the Wales Book of the Year in 2016.[12] He was appointed Writer in Residence at University College Cork in 2017.[1]

In 2023, Thomas was named by as one of the 20 Best Young British Novelists by Granta magazine.[13] His second Open Up, also published by Faber, was released that year.

Morris is a supporter of Welsh independence.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "UCC writer-in-residence Thomas Morris came in search of an Irish wife". Irish Examiner. 2017-10-09. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  2. 1 2 "Thomas Morris: 'I was hiding. I hid my stammer. I hid that we were poor. My characters can't hide any more'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  3. ↑ https://universitytimes.ie/2017/02/thomas-morris-discusses-technology-as-an-anaesthetic-and-literature-as-an-aesthetic/
  4. ↑ Clark, Alex (2018-08-25). "Conversations with Sally Rooney: the 27-year-old novelist defining a generation". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  5. ↑ "Why writer Sally Rooney stopped tying up loose ends in 'Conversations With Friends'". PBS NewsHour. 2019-09-11. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  6. ↑ https://www.thejournal.ie/bord-gais-energy-irish-book-awards-winners-1800382-Nov2014/
  7. ↑ "We Don't Know What We're Doing". The London Magazine. 2015-11-10. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  8. ↑ "'The short story is my first love, but you don't necessarily marry your first love'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  9. ↑ Cummins, Anthony (2023-08-05). "Thomas Morris: 'A lot of people in my life seem anxious and confused. I was writing for them as much as me'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
  10. ↑ Crown, Sarah (2015-11-14). "We Don't Know What We're Doing by Thomas Morris review – small-town stories". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  11. ↑ "Review: We Don't Know What We're Doing, by Thomas Morris". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  12. ↑ Morgan, Sion (2016-07-21). "Wales Book of the Year 2016 announced". WalesOnline. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  13. ↑ https://www.faber.co.uk/author/thomas-morris/
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