Daniel Alarcón
Encyclopedia
Daniel Alarcón is an author who lives in Oakland, California
; he has been a the Distinguished Visiting Writer at Mills College
and a Visiting Writer at California College of the Arts
. He is currently a Visiting Scholar at UC Berkeley Center for Latin American Studies.
Daniel Alarcón’s work has been published in The New Yorker
, Harper's, Granta
, Virginia Quarterly Review and elsewhere, and anthologized in Best American Non-Required Reading 2004 and 2005. He is Associate Editor of the Peruvian magazine Etiqueta Negra, and he edited a portfolio for the magazine A Public Space
on the writing of Peru
in 2007. He is a former Fulbright Scholar to Peru
, and a 2011 Artist in Residence at the Headlands Center for the Arts.
Alarcón, a native of Peru, was raised, from the age of 3, in Birmingham, Alabama
, U.S., and is an alumnus of Indian Springs School
. He earned a bachelor's degree in anthropology from Columbia University
and a master's from the Iowa Writers' Workshop
. He has studied in Ghana
and taught in New York City
.
His first book, War by Candlelight, was a finalist for the 2006 PEN/Hemingway Foundation Award
. In 2008, he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship
, a Lannan Fellowship, named a "Best Young American Novelist" by Granta
magazine, and one of 39 under 39 Latin American Novelists.. In 2010, he was also recognized by the New Yorker as one of 20 promising writers under 40.
Alarcón's debut novel, Lost City Radio
, was published 2007, and has been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Dutch, Greek, and is forthcoming in Italian, Serbian, Turkish, and Japanese. The German translation of Lost City Radio by Friedericke Meltendorf received the International Literature Award
from the Haus der Kulturen der Welt
. In 2009, he published a collection of short stories, El rey está siempre por encima del pueblo (The king is always above the people), and the following year, "Ciudad de payasos", a graphic novel adapted from his 2003 story City of Clowns, with illustrations by Peruvian artist Sheila Alvarado.
In 2011, with partners Carolina Guerrero and Annie Correal, he founded Radio Ambulante, a Spanish language podcast telling Latin American stories.
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
; he has been a the Distinguished Visiting Writer at Mills College
Mills College
Mills College is an independent liberal arts women's college founded in 1852 that offers bachelor's degrees to women and graduate degrees and certificates to women and men. Located in Oakland, California, Mills was the first women's college west of the Rockies. The institution was initially founded...
and a Visiting Writer at California College of the Arts
California College of the Arts
California College of the Arts , founded in 1907, is known for its broad, interdisciplinary programs in art, design, architecture, and writing. It has two campuses, one in Oakland and one in San Francisco, California, USA...
. He is currently a Visiting Scholar at UC Berkeley Center for Latin American Studies.
Daniel Alarcón’s work has been published in The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, Harper's, 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...
, Virginia Quarterly Review and elsewhere, and anthologized in Best American Non-Required Reading 2004 and 2005. He is Associate Editor of the Peruvian magazine Etiqueta Negra, and he edited a portfolio for the magazine A Public Space
A Public Space
A Public Space is a quarterly English-language literary magazine based in Brooklyn, New York. First published in April 2006. A Public Space publishes fiction, poetry, essays and art...
on the writing of Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
in 2007. He is a former Fulbright Scholar to Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, and a 2011 Artist in Residence at the Headlands Center for the Arts.
Alarcón, a native of Peru, was raised, from the age of 3, in Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, U.S., and is an alumnus of Indian Springs School
Indian Springs School
Indian Springs School is a private school that includes grades eight through twelve with both boarding and day students. It is at the base of Oak Mountain, in Indian Springs Village, Shelby County, Alabama, United States, near Pelham and just outside Birmingham.-History:Indian Springs School was...
. He earned a bachelor's degree in anthropology from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
and a master's from the Iowa Writers' Workshop
Iowa Writers' Workshop
The Program in Creative Writing, more commonly known as the Iowa Writers' Workshop, at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, is a highly regarded graduate-level creative writing program in the United States...
. He has studied in Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
and taught in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
His first book, War by Candlelight, was a finalist for the 2006 PEN/Hemingway Foundation Award
Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award
The Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award is awarded annually to a novel or book of short stories by an American author who has not previously published a book of fiction. The award is named after Ernest Hemingway and funded by the Ernest Hemingway Foundation, which has been administered by the Hemingway...
. In 2008, he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
, a Lannan Fellowship, named a "Best Young American Novelist" by 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...
magazine, and one of 39 under 39 Latin American Novelists.. In 2010, he was also recognized by the New Yorker as one of 20 promising writers under 40.
Alarcón's debut novel, Lost City Radio
Lost City Radio
-Plot summary:After a ten-year insurrection set in a nameless South American country in which the totalitarian government defeated a rebel group, the government has eliminated all indigenous languages and renamed all places as numbers; radio is the only remaining convenience...
, was published 2007, and has been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Dutch, Greek, and is forthcoming in Italian, Serbian, Turkish, and Japanese. The German translation of Lost City Radio by Friedericke Meltendorf received the International Literature Award
International Literature Award
International Literature Award is a German literary award for international prose translated into German for the first time. The prize has been awarded annually by the Haus der Kulturen der Welt and the foundation “Elementarteilchen” since 2009.-Winners:...
from the Haus der Kulturen der Welt
Haus der Kulturen der Welt
The Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin is Germany's national centre for contemporary non-European art. It presents art exhibitions, theater and dance performances, concerts, author readings, films and academic conferences on non-European Visual Art and culture...
. In 2009, he published a collection of short stories, El rey está siempre por encima del pueblo (The king is always above the people), and the following year, "Ciudad de payasos", a graphic novel adapted from his 2003 story City of Clowns, with illustrations by Peruvian artist Sheila Alvarado.
In 2011, with partners Carolina Guerrero and Annie Correal, he founded Radio Ambulante, a Spanish language podcast telling Latin American stories.
Awards
- Recipient of the Whiting Writers' AwardWhiting Writers' AwardThe Whiting Writers' Award is an American award presented annually to ten emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and plays. The award is sponsored by the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation and has been presented since 1985. As of 2007, winners receive US $50,000.-External links:**...
in 2004 for fiction - Recipient of a Guggenheim FellowshipGuggenheim FellowshipGuggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
2007 - One of 21 Young American Novelists GrantaGrantaGranta 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...
, UK, 2007) - One of 39 under 39 Latino American Novelists (Hay Festival, Bogota, Colombia, 2007)
- One of 7 finalists for the Sargent Sr. First Novel Prize, Mercantile Library For Fiction, 2007
- Recipient of a Lannan Literary Fellowship in 2007
- One of 37 under 36 selected by the Smithsonian Magazine (Fall Special Issue, 2007) as Young American Innovators in the Arts and Sciences
- Lost City Radio has made the lists of best fiction for 2007 of the Washington Post, BooklistBooklistBooklist is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. It is geared toward libraries and booksellers and is available in print or online...
, The Christian Science MonitorThe Christian Science MonitorThe Christian Science Monitor is an international newspaper published daily online, Monday to Friday, and weekly in print. It was started in 1908 by Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist. As of 2009, the print circulation was 67,703.The CSM is a newspaper that covers...
, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times and The Financial Times (London). - Alabama Library Association Award for Fiction, Birmingham, Alabama, 2008
- 2008 Pen USA award for Lost City Radio, Los Angeles, CA
- 2009 International Literature Award – House of World Cultures (Berlin, Germany)
- The "Idiot President" has been selected for the best short stories and a narrative about describing his traveling in Palestine for the best travel stories. Both in 2009.
External links
- 'Life Among the Pirates', Daniel Alarcón's essay on the book piracy trade in Peru, printed in GrantaGrantaGranta 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...
: 'Work', in January 2010. - Daniel Alarcón website
- Hernandez, Daniel (2007). "Between the Lost and the Found: Daniel Alarcón and his novel of the disappeared", LA Weekly interview with Mr. Alarcon, March 22, 2007.
- Fay, Sarah (2007). "Missing," review of Lost City Radio from the New York Times, March 25, 2007.