Mary Jean Chan
Hong Kong-Chinese poet and writer
Mary Jean Chan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1990 (age 33–34)[1] Hong Kong |
| Occupation | Poet, lecturer, editor, critic |
| Education | Royal Holloway University of Oxford Swarthmore College |
| Genre | Poetry |
| Notable works | Flèche |
| Notable awards | Costa Book Awards Eric Gregory Award |
| Website | |
| www | |
Mary Jean Chan is a Hong Kong-Chinese poet, lecturer, editor and critic whose debut poetry collection, Flèche, won the 2019 Costa Book Award for Poetry. Chan's second book, Bright Fear, was published by Faber & Faber in 2023. In 2023, Chan served as a judge for the Booker Prize.
Biography
Mary Jean Chan was born in 1990 and was raised in Hong Kong.[1] Chan graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Swarthmore College in 2012 with a BA in Political Science. Chan obtained an MPhil from Oxford in International Development and also completed an MA and a PhD in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London.[2][3]
In 2018, Chan's pamphlet, A Hurry of English, was published by ignitionpress and was chosen as a Poetry Book Society Summer Pamphlet Choice.[4] Chan's debut poetry collection Flèche was published by Faber & Faber (2019). It was chosen as a Poetry Book Society Autumn Recommendation.[5] The book won the Costa Book Award for Poetry in 2019.[6]
In 2019, Chan was named as one of Jackie Kay's 10 Best BAME Writers in Britain, with Kay describing Chan's poetry as "psychologically astute and culturally complex."[7]
Chan's second collection of poems, Bright Fear, was shortlisted for the 2023 Forward Prize for Best Collection[8] and the 2024 Writers' Prize.
Chan served as Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Oxford Brookes University from 2018 till 2023. Chan is currently a tutor on the MSt in Creative Writing at the University of Oxford and is the 2023–24 Judith E. Wilson Poetry Fellow at the University of Cambridge.
Awards
| Year | Title | Award | Category | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | — | National Poetry Competition | — | Second Place | |
| — | The Poetry Society Anne Born Prize | — | Won | ||
| — | Forward Prizes for Poetry | Single Poem | Shortlisted | [9] | |
| 2018 | — | The Poetry Society Geoffrey Dearmer Award | — | Won | [10] |
| 2019 | — | Forward Prizes for Poetry | Single Poem | Shortlisted | [3] |
| A Hurry of English | Eric Gregory Award | — | Won | [11] | |
| Flèche | Costa Book Award | Poetry | Won | [6] | |
| 2020 | Dylan Thomas Prize | — | Shortlisted | [12] | |
| Jhalak Prize | — | Shortlisted | |||
| John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize | — | Shortlisted | |||
| Seamus Heaney Centre First Collection Prize | — | Shortlisted | |||
| 2021 | Lambda Literary Awards | Lesbian Poetry | Shortlisted | ||
| 2022 | 100 Queer Poems | Books Are My Bag Readers' Awards | — | Shortlisted | |
| 2023 | Bright Fear | Forward Prizes for Poetry | Collection | Shortlisted | |
| 2024 | Dylan Thomas Prize | — | Shortlisted | ||
| The Folio Prize | — | Shortlisted | |||
| Jhalak Prize | — | Longlisted |
Bibliography
- —— (2018). A Hurry of English. ignitionpress.
- —— (2019). Flèche. Faber & Faber.
- —— (2023). Bright Fear. Faber & Faber.
- ——; Bernard, Jay; Harris, Will; Ramayya, Nisha (2024). Siblings. Monitor Books.
Edited works
- Chan, Mary Jean; McMillan, Andrew, eds. (2022). 100 Queer Poems. Vintage.
External links
- Official website
References
- ^ a b "Mary Jean Chan". Poetry Society. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- ^ Riggs, Jonathan (Fall 2017). "Waxing Poetric". Swarthmore College. CXV (1). Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- ^ a b "Forward Arts Foundation in Conversation with Mary Jean Chan". Forward Arts Foundation. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- ^ Poetry Book Society. "A Hurry of English by Mary Jean Chan". Poetry Book Society.
- ^ "Autumn Selections 2019". Poetry Book Society. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ a b "Jonathan Coe's Brexit-themed novel among Costa Book Award winners". BBC. 6 January 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ Kay, Jackie (5 October 2019). "Jackie Kay selects Britain's 10 best BAME writers". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
- ^ Creamer, Ella (10 June 2023). "Forward prizes for poetry add new award for performed poems". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
- ^ "Forward Prizes of Poetry 2017 Winners". Forward Arts Foundation. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ "Geoffrey Dearmer Prize". The Poetry Society. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ "Eric Gregory Award Winners". Eric Gregory Award. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ "Dylan Thomas Prize 2020: shortlist announced". Books+Publishing. 8 April 2020. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
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