Sara Tilley is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

writer from

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

, most noted for winning the

Winterset Award The Winterset Award is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council to a work judged to be the best book, regardless of genre, published by a writer from Newfoundland and Labrador.

in 2016 for her novel ''Duke''. The novel was also named to the initial longlist for the 2017

International Dublin Literary Award The International Dublin Literary Award ( ga, Duais Liteartha Idirnáisiúnta Bhaile Átha Chliath), established as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. ...

, but was not a finalist.

Personal life

Sara was born November 23, 1978 in

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North Ameri ...

and is one of two children to Robert Tilley and Brenda (Fleming) Tilley. She graduated Bishop's College before attending York University for acting. Tilley identifies as

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, wh ...

and queer.

Career

A graduate of the theatre program at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,000 faculty and staf ...

, she is primarily a playwright and theatre director based in St. John's. She was the artistic director of the feminist theatre company She Said Yes! from 2002 to 2016,"Insanity ensues". '' The Telegram'', November 25, 2005. and has written or cowritten plays including ''Signifying Nothing'', ''The Soul Walking'', ''One Big Mess'', ''The Jailer’s Daughter and Other Mad Fools Cracking Their Livers to Pieces for Love'', ''Nosebleed'', ''Grand Central Station'', ''Mr. Invisible'', ''No Mummers Allowed In'', ''Lulu'', ''The (In)complete Herstory of Women in Newfoundland (and Labrador!)'' and ''Fruithead''. Under the working title ''Snowflake'', her debut novel won the Percy Janes First Novel Award for unpublished manuscripts in 2004. The book was published by

Pedlar Press Pedlar Press is an independent Canadian book publisher based in St. John's NL, specializing in contemporary works of poetry, prose and graphic novels, works that extend the tradition of literary experimentation. Pedlar Press was founded in 1996 b ...

in 2008 under the title '' Skin Room''. A French translation by Annie Pronovost was published in 2016 under the title ''Écorchée'', and was defended by

Antonine Maillet Antonine Maillet, (; born May 10, 1929) is an Acadian novelist, playwright, and scholar. She was born in Bouctouche, New Brunswick, Canada."Antonine Maillet." ''Paroles d'Acadie : Anthologie de la littérature acadienne (1958-2009)'', edited by ...

in the 2018 edition of ''

Le Combat des livres ''Le Combat des livres'' is an annual "battle of the books" competition organized and broadcast by Ici Radio-Canada Première in Canada. A French edition of the '' Canada Reads'' competition, the program was launched in 2004. It aired annually fr ...

''. As an actress, she has worked primarily on stage, as well as appearing in the film ''

The Grand Seduction ''The Grand Seduction'' is a 2013 Canadian comedy film directed by Don McKellar and written by Ken Scott and Michael Dowse. The film stars Taylor Kitsch, Brendan Gleeson, Liane Balaban and Gordon Pinsent. It is based on a 2003 French-Canadian fi ...

'' and episodes of ''

Hatching, Matching and Dispatching ''Hatching, Matching and Dispatching'' is a Television in Canada, Canadian television situation comedy, sitcom, which aired on CBC Television on 2006. The show starred Mary Walsh (actress), Mary Walsh as Mamie Lou Furey, the matriarch of a family ...

'' and ''

Republic of Doyle ''Republic of Doyle'' is a Canadian comedy-drama television series set in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, which aired on CBC Television from January 6, 2010, to December 10, 2014. The show stars Allan Hawco as private investigator and ...

''. She has trained in Pochinko clown technique, and won Newfoundland and Labrador's Rhonda Payne Theatre Award in 2007."Sara Tilley wins Rhonda Payne theatre award". '' The Telegram'', February 17, 2007.

Novels

*''Skin Room'' (2008) *''Duke'' (2015)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tilley, Sara 21st-century Canadian actresses 21st-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Actresses from Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian stage actresses Canadian television actresses Canadian film actresses Canadian women dramatists and playwrights Canadian women novelists Canadian clowns Canadian theatre directors Canadian LGBT actors Canadian LGBT novelists Bisexual women Bisexual writers Writers from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador York University alumni Living people 21st-century Canadian women writers 1978 births