Helen Sedgwick Explained

Helen Sedgwick is an author of literary fiction, science fiction and crime, a literary editor, and a research physicist.^[1]

Helen Sedgwick
Birth Place:	London
Nationality:	British
Education:	PhD in Physics MLitt in Creative Writing
Alma Mater:	University of Bristol, University of Edinburgh, University of Glasgow
Occupation:	Author
Notableworks:	The Comet Seekers (2016) The Growing Season (2017) When The Dead Come Calling (2020)
Genre:	Literary fiction, science fiction, speculative fiction, crime fiction, short stories
Website:	helensedgwick.com

Life

Sedgwick was born in London and studied physics at the University of Bristol.^[2] She gained a PhD in physics from the University of Edinburgh^[3] and an MLitt in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow.^[4]

After leaving physics research to become a freelance writer,^[5] Sedgwick worked as the joint managing director of Cargo Publishing from 2014 to 2015,^[6] Sedgwick was also the managing editor of Gutter magazine and worked as a creative writing tutor.^[7]

She released her first novel in 2016, The Comet Seekers.^{[8] [9] [10]} This was followed by her second novel, The Growing Season,^[11] which was shortlisted for Fiction Book of the Year in Scotland's National Book Awards 2018.^[12] Sedgwick's first crime novel was When The Dead Come Calling,^[13] the opening book in the Burrowhead Mysteries crime trilogy.^[14] She cites her scientific background as a big influence on her writing.^[15]

Sedgwick is a member of The Society of Authors^[16] and the Crime Writers' Association.^[17] She lives in Tain, in Ross-shire in the Scottish Highlands^[18] with her partner and their daughter.^[19]

Awards

• 2012 Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award.^[20]
• 2016 Glamour Book of the Year: The Comet Seekers.^[21]
• 2016 Waterstones Scottish Book of the Month: The Comet Seekers.
• 2018 Scotland's National Book Awards Fiction Book of the Year shortlist: The Growing Season.^[22]
• 2021 Dr Gavin Wallace Fellowship.^[23]

Bibliography

Novels

• The Comet Seekers (2016)
• The Growing Season (2017)
• When the Dead Come Calling (2020)
• Where the Missing Gather (2021)
• What Doesn't Break Us (2022)

Short stories

Source:^[24]

• The Archaeologist of Akrotiri, New Writing Scotland 35 (2017)
• The Largest Circle, 404 INK Issue 1 (2016)
• Quantum Gravity Or: The Pigmy Marmoset and the Prefabricated Concrete Bungalow, I Am Because You Are (2015)
• Duality, Out there (2014)
• Precognitive Abilities, Songs of Other Places, New Writing Scotland 32 (2014)

Notes and References

1. Author Interviews, Helen Sedgwick, authorinterviews.co.uk (2019)
2. Scotsman, Helen Sedgwick discusses her first novel, www.scotsman.com, Aug 16 (2016)
3. Edinburgh International Book Festival Author biography, www.edbookfest.co.uk (2016)
4. https://www.gla.ac.uk/subjects/creativewriting/alumni/ Glasgow University Alumni
5. BBC, Helen Sedgwick biography, www.bbc.co.uk, Feb 24 (2013)
6. The Bookseller, Tasker and Sedgwick become Cargo joint MDs, www.thebookseller.com, March 12 (2014)
7. Scottish Book trust Helen Sedgwick on the Live Literature Database, www.scottishbooktrust.com
8. The New York Times Book Review, The Comet Seekers: A ghost story leaps through time and space, www.nytimes.com, Dec 2 (2016)
9. The Herald, Face to Face: Author Helen Sedgwick on her first novel The Comet Seekers and the consoling scale of the universe, www.heraldscotland.com, Sept 12 (2016)
10. The Irish Times, The Comet Seekers Review: The Patterns In The Stars, www.irishtimes.com, Aug 29 (2016)
11. The Guardian, The Growing Season Review, www.theguardian.com, Sept 29 (2017)
12. Scottish Review of Books, Saltire Literary Awards Shortlist Announced, www.scottishreviewofbooks.org Oct 23 (2018)
13. The Scotsman, Book Review: When The Dead Come Calling, www.scotsman.com, Feb 4 (2020)
14. The Bookseller, Sedgwick's Atmospheric Crime Trilogy to Point Blank, www.thebookseller.com March 1 (2018)
15. BBC Radio 4, Helen Sedgwick on Woman's Hour, www.bbc.co.uk (2016)
16. The Society of Authors Helen Sedgwick, www.societyofauthors.org
17. The Crime Writers Association Helen Sedgwick, thecwa.co.uk
18. Ross-shire Journal, Seven Days Guide, www.whatson-north.co.uk, Jan 3 (2020)
19. Crime Review Countdown with Helen Sedgwick, www.crimereview.co.uk (2020)
20. Scottish Book Trust New Writers Awardees, www.scottishbooktrust.com (2012)
21. Glamour, The 10 Best Novels of 2016, www.glamourmagazine.co.uk Dec 2 (2016)
22. Saltire Society 2018 shortlist, www.saltiresociety.org.uk (2018)
23. Creative Scotland Helen Sedgwick appointed 2021 Dr Gavin Wallace Fellow, www.creativescotland.com (2021)
24. Helen Sedgwick, Publications, www.helensedgwick.com