Conor Kostick | |
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 Kostick in 2007 | |
| Born | Conor Kostick 26 June 1964 Chester, Cheshire, England |
| Occupation | Writer, historian |
| Citizenship | Irish |
| Genre | Fantasy, science fiction, LitRPG, children's literature |
| Notable works | Epic |
Conor Kostick (born 26 June 1964) is an Irish historian and writer living in Dublin. He is the author of many works of history and fiction. A former chairperson of the Irish Writers Union and member of the board of the National Library of Ireland, he has won a number of awards.
Conor Kostick is the eldest of two boys born to teachers Gerrie and Marjorie Kostick in Chester, England. His father was Jewish-Irish, brought up in Dublin but having moved to the UK in the 1950s, where he became a physical education teacher, while his mother was a teacher of maths. [1] One set of grandparents were Polish Jews, who moved to Ireland to escape pogroms. [2]
Conor Kostick was the editor of Socialist Worker in Ireland and a reviewer for the Journal of Music in Ireland . [3]
A historian, he holds a doctorate, and has lectured and researched at Trinity College Dublin. [3] He has been awarded research fellowships by the Irish Research Council and the University of Nottingham. [4]
In August 2018, he was recruited by the UK's Ockham Publishing to lead a new imprint, Level Up publishing, with a remit to publish LitRPG. [5]
Epic , a LitRPG volume, was his first novel and was awarded a place on the International Board on Books for Young People Honours list for 2006 [6] and on the Booklist Best Fantasy Books for Youth list for 2007. [7] It sold more than 100,000 copies. [4] The sequel to Epic is Saga, first published in Ireland late in 2006; Edda, published 5 years later, in 2011, completed the 'Avatar Chronicles' trilogy. [8]
Conor Kostick was a designer for the world's first live action role-playing game, Treasure Trap . [9]
Kostick was twice chairperson of the Irish Writers Union. He was awarded the Farmleigh writer's residency for the summer of 2010. [10] [4] In 2015, Kostick was made chairperson of the Irish Copyright Licensing Agency.
He was President of the Irish Jury for the EU Prize for Literature in 2015, [11] and in that year too he was appointed to the Board of the National Library of Ireland. [12]
In 2018, the Kerala Literature Festival, India, chose to showcase Irish literature and Conor Kostick was one of seven Irish writers invited to participate. [13] In 2019, Conor Kostick again was president of the Irish Jury of the EU Prize for Literature. [14]
At their 2009 awards, the Reading Association of Ireland gave Kostick the Special Merit Award 'in recognition of his significant contribution to writing for children in Ireland.' [8]
Kostick was a nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2012 [15] and 2013. [16]
As a historian, Kostick's awards include a gold medal from Trinity College Dublin , [3] first prize in the 2001 Dublinia Medieval Essay Competition; fellowships from the Irish Research Council and the University of Nottingham ; a Marie Curie Career Integration Grant ; [17] and, in 2015, the British Academy's Rising Star Engagement Award. [18]
A former winner of Manorcon (2000), now one of Europe's grand prix Diplomacy events, [19] Conor Kostick was a member of the Irish team that won the Diplomacy National World Cup in 2012. [20]
He is the brother of the playwright Gavin Kostick [21] and a member of Independent Left. [22]
Astrid Anna Emilia Lindgren was a Swedish writer of fiction and screenplays. She is best known for several children's book series, featuring Pippi Longstocking, Emil of Lönneberga, Karlsson-on-the-Roof, and the Six Bullerby Children, and for the children's fantasy novels Mio, My Son; Ronia the Robber's Daughter; and The Brothers Lionheart. Lindgren worked on the Children's Literature Editorial Board at the Rabén & Sjögren publishing house in Stockholm and wrote more than 30 books for children. In 2017, she was calculated to be the world's 18th most translated author. Lindgren had by 2010 sold roughly 167 million books worldwide. In 1994, she was awarded the Right Livelihood Award for "her unique authorship dedicated to the rights of children and respect for their individuality." Her opposition to corporal punishment of children resulted in the world's first law on the matter in 1979, while her campaigning for animal welfare led to a new law, Lex Lindgren, in time for her 80th birthday.
Katherine Womeldorf Paterson is an American writer best known for children's novels, including Bridge to Terabithia. For four different books published 1975–1980, she won two Newbery Medals and two National Book Awards. She is one of four people to win the two major international awards; for "lasting contribution to children's literature" she won the biennial Hans Christian Andersen Award for Writing in 1998 and for her career contribution to "children's and young adult literature in the broadest sense" she won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award from the Swedish Arts Council in 2006, the biggest monetary prize in children's literature. Also for her body of work she was awarded the NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature in 2007 and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal from the American Library Association in 2013. She was the second US National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, serving 2010 and 2011.
Josephine Edna O'Brien is an Irish novelist, memoirist, playwright, poet and short-story writer. Elected to Aosdána by her fellow artists, she was honoured with the title Saoi in 2015 and the biennial "UK and Ireland Nobel" David Cohen Prize in 2019, whilst France made her Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2021.
The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award is an international children's literary award established by the Swedish government in 2002 to honour the Swedish children's author Astrid Lindgren (1907–2002). The prize is five million SEK, making it the richest award in children's literature and one of the richest literary prizes in the world. The annual cost of 10 million SEK is financed with tax money.
Christine Nöstlinger was an Austrian writer best known for children's books. She received one of two inaugural Astrid Lindgren Memorial Awards from the Swedish Arts Council in 2003, the biggest prize in children's literature, for her career contribution to "children's and young adult literature in the broadest sense." She received the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for "lasting contribution to children's literature" in 1984 and was one of three people through 2012 to win both of these major international awards.
Colm Tóibín is an Irish novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist, critic, playwright and poet.
Kate O'Brien was an Irish novelist and playwright.
Sonya Louise Hartnett is an Australian author of fiction for adults, young adults, and children. She has been called "the finest Australian writer of her generation". For her career contribution to "children's and young adult literature in the broadest sense" Hartnett won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award from the Swedish Arts Council in 2008, the biggest prize in children's literature.
The Rooney Prize for Irish Literature was created in 1976 by the Irish American businessman Dan Rooney, owner and chairman of the NFL Pittsburgh Steelers franchise and former US Ambassador to Ireland. The prize is awarded to Irish writers aged under 40 who are published in Irish or English. Although often associated with individual books, it is intended to reward a body of work. Originally worth £750, the current value of the prize is €10,000.
Stella Tillyard FRSL is an English author and historian, educated at Oxford and Harvard Universities and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In 1999 her bestselling book Aristocrats was made into a six-part series for BBC1/Masterpiece Theatre sold to over 20 countries. Winner of the Meilleur Livre Étranger, the Longman/History Today Prize and the Fawcett Prize, she has taught at Harvard; the University of California, Los Angeles; Birkbeck, London and the Centre for Editing Lives and Letters at Queen Mary, London. She is a visiting professor in the Department of History, Classics and Archaeology, Birkbeck, University of London, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
Barbro Lindgren is a Swedish writer of children's books and books for adult readers. For her lasting contribution as a children's writer, Lindgren was a finalist for the biennial, international Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2004. Ten years later she won the annual Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. The biggest cash prize in children's and young-adult literature, it rewards a writer, illustrator, oral storyteller, or reading promoter for its entire body of work.
Katherine Alexandra Cruise O'Brien was an Irish writer.
The O'Brien Press is an Irish publisher of mainly children's fiction and adult non-fiction.
Mini Grey is a British illustrator and writer of children's books, especially picture books for young children. She won the annual Kate Greenaway Medal from the professional librarians, recognising the year's best-illustrated children's book published in the UK, for The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon, published by Jonathan Cape in 2006.
Julia Spiridonova (Yulka) (Bulgarian: Юлия Спиридонова (Юлка); born October 30, 1972) is a Bulgarian novelist and a screenwriter. She was born in Sofia into a family of artists. She is the first Bulgarian nominated for the world's highest price for children’s literature, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. Research by the I Read Foundation in 27 public libraries in Bulgaria showed that Spiridonova’s books are the most often asked-for and borrowed books. Spiridonova also works as a screenwriter. She is the creator and author of several TV shows and series for children and teenagers. Since 2021 she has lived in the United Kingdom.
The Irish Writers Union (Irish: Aontas Scríbhneoirí Éireann), also known by its acronym, IWU, is a representative association devoted to furthering the professional interests and needs of writers in various media in Ireland. The Union is based in the building of the Irish Writers Centre, in the centre of Dublin. The IWU is a member of the European Writers' Council (EWC), which itself is the largest federation worldwide that solely represents writers. The Irish Writers Union became an affiliate of the trade union SIPTU in 1993, but retained complete autonomy in the running of its own affairs. It is the only nominating body in Ireland for the Nobel Prize for Literature. The IWU is also a nominating body for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. The Irish Copyright Licensing Agency (ILCA) also works with the IWU.
Liz Weir is a Northern Irish children's writer and storyteller. She is currently Storyteller in Residence in Belfast and has written 27 stories. She is involved in a number of storytelling organisations including The Early Years Organisation, where she talks to children about racism, anti-bullying and respect for the elderly.
Rosemary Jenkinson is an Irish poet, playwright, and short story writer.
Frida Nilsson is a Swedish children’s writer whose first book was published in 2004. She has won numerous international shortlistings and prizes, including the August Prize, the German Youth Literature Prize, Expressens Heffaklump (2015) and the Astrid Lindgren Prize. She was recently chosen as one of the best emerging writers in Europe under 39. Nilsson’s writing is characterised by playfulness and sincerity. She has been compared to Roald Dahl and Barbro Lindgren.
Christina Björk is a Swedish writer and children's book author.
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