Nelly Arcan
Encyclopedia
Nelly Arcan was a Canadian novelist. Arcan was born Isabelle Fortier at Lac-Mégantic
in the Eastern Townships
of Quebec
.
and the Prix Fémina
, two of France's most prestigious literary awards. It contains similarities between the prostitute Cynthia in the novel and Arcan’s own experience as a professional escort
sex worker.
This was followed with three more novels that established her as a literary star in Quebec and France. Her second novel Folle (2004), like her first, is semi-autobiographical and scandalous, and was also nominated for the Prix Femina. A third novel A ciel ouvert appeared in 2007. L’enfant dans le miroir (2007) is a coffee-table illustrated book on beauty. Arcan had recently completed her fourth novel Paradis clef en main (2009; English: Exit (2011)) when she committed suicide. She also wrote several short stories, opinion pieces and columns for various Quebec newspapers and literary magazines.
Arcan was thin, busty and beautiful, as Linda Leith said, "Nelly Arcan’s physical presence was too eye-catching to ignore. She would have turned heads on a movie set. The literary set had never seen the like. Picture Marilyn Monroe at the age of 28 getting short-listed for the Booker Prize and the Dublin IMPAC prize for her first novel. And then writing a second novel that gets nominated for the Dublin IMPAC prize again."
apartment on September 24, 2009. She had hanged herself. She had just finished writing her last book, . She had attempted suicide previously.
On September 3, 2009, three weeks before her death, Arcan published a story in her weekly column in the Quebec French-language weekly Ici magazine
entitled "" ("Take Me, or You're Dead"), detailing an experience with a stalker
.
Lac-Mégantic, Quebec
Lac-Mégantic is a town in Estrie on Lac Mégantic, a freshwater lake for which the town was named. Situated in the former Frontenac County in the historic Eastern Townships, Lac-Mégantic is the seat of Le Granit Regional County Municipality and of the judicial district of...
in the Eastern Townships
Eastern Townships
The Eastern Townships is a tourist region and a former administrative region in south-eastern Quebec, lying between the former seigneuries south of the Saint Lawrence River and the United States border. Its northern boundary roughly followed Logan's Line, the geologic boundary between the flat,...
of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
.
Biography
Arcan's first novel Putain (2001; English: Whore (2004)), caused a sensation and enjoyed immediate critical and media success. It was a finalist for both the Prix MédicisPrix Médicis
The Prix Médicis is a French literary award given each year in November. It was founded in 1958 by Gala Barbisan and Jean-Pierre Giraudoux. It is awarded to an author whose "fame does not yet match his talent."...
and the Prix Fémina
Prix Femina
The Prix Femina is a French literary prize created in 1904 by 22 writers for the magazine La Vie heureuse . The prize is decided each year by an exclusively female jury, although the authors of the winning works do not have to be women...
, two of France's most prestigious literary awards. It contains similarities between the prostitute Cynthia in the novel and Arcan’s own experience as a professional escort
Call girl
A call girl or female escort is a sex worker who is not visible to the general public; nor does she usually work in an institution like a brothel, although she may be employed by an escort agency...
sex worker.
This was followed with three more novels that established her as a literary star in Quebec and France. Her second novel Folle (2004), like her first, is semi-autobiographical and scandalous, and was also nominated for the Prix Femina. A third novel A ciel ouvert appeared in 2007. L’enfant dans le miroir (2007) is a coffee-table illustrated book on beauty. Arcan had recently completed her fourth novel Paradis clef en main (2009; English: Exit (2011)) when she committed suicide. She also wrote several short stories, opinion pieces and columns for various Quebec newspapers and literary magazines.
Arcan was thin, busty and beautiful, as Linda Leith said, "Nelly Arcan’s physical presence was too eye-catching to ignore. She would have turned heads on a movie set. The literary set had never seen the like. Picture Marilyn Monroe at the age of 28 getting short-listed for the Booker Prize and the Dublin IMPAC prize for her first novel. And then writing a second novel that gets nominated for the Dublin IMPAC prize again."
Death
Arcan was found dead in her MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
apartment on September 24, 2009. She had hanged herself. She had just finished writing her last book, . She had attempted suicide previously.
On September 3, 2009, three weeks before her death, Arcan published a story in her weekly column in the Quebec French-language weekly Ici magazine
Ici (magazine)
ici was an alternative weekly French language magazine distributed in print in Montreal, Quebec, and online through the Canoe.ca network from 1997 to 2009.It had an audience of 89,000 readers a week...
entitled "" ("Take Me, or You're Dead"), detailing an experience with a stalker
Stalking
Stalking is a term commonly used to refer to unwanted and obsessive attention by an individual or group to another person. Stalking behaviors are related to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person and/or monitoring them via the internet...
.