Debra Monroe is an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while othe ...

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...

writer,

memoirist A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobiog ...

, and

essayist An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal an ...

. She has written seven books, including two story collections, a collection of essays, two novels, and two memoirs, and is also editor of an anthology of nonfiction. Monroe has been twice nominated for the

National Book Award The National Book Awards are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. The N ...

, is a winner of the prestigious

Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction The Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction is an annual prize awarded by the University of Georgia Press named in honor of the American short story writer and novelist Flannery O'Connor. Established in 1983 to encourage young writers by bringi ...

, and was cited on several "10 Best Books" lists for her nationally-acclaimed memoir, ''On the Outskirts of Normal: Forging a Family Against the Grain.'' As a Professor of English at

Texas State University–San Marcos Texas State University is a public research university in San Marcos, Texas. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to the second largest university in the Greater Austin metropolitan area and the fifth largest university ...

, Monroe has received numerous honors, including the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2012, and The Conference of Southern Graduate Schools Outstanding Mentor Award, 2020.

Early life and education

Monroe was born in

Aberdeen, South Dakota Aberdeen ( Lakota: ''Ablíla'') is a city in and the county seat of Brown County, South Dakota, United States, located approximately northeast of Pierre. The city population was 28,495 at the 2020 census, making it the third most populous cit ...

and grew up in

Spooner, Wisconsin Spooner is a city in Washburn County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,573 at the 2020 census. The city is located mostly within the southwest corner of the Town of Spooner, with a small portion extending into the Town of Beaver ...

. She received her

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree in English from the

University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire The University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire (UW–Eau Claire, UWEC or simply Eau Claire) is a public university in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and offers Bachelor's degree, bachelor's and Master's degree, ...

, her

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

degree from

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public insti ...

, and a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

degree in English from the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of D ...

. Monroe has previously taught at the

University of North Carolina at Greensboro The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand-a ...

and currently teaches in the MFA Program at

. She lives in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

Reception

Monroe's work has been well received and widely published, appearing in many journals including the ''New England Review,'' the ''Southern Review'', '' Doubletake'', ''Hobart'', the ''Florida Review'', the ''Cimarron Review'', ''Guernica'', ''

The American Scholar "The American Scholar" was a speech given by Ralph Waldo Emerson on August 31, 1837, to the Phi Beta Kappa Society of Harvard College at the First Parish in Cambridge in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was invited to speak in recognition of his g ...

'', ''Prairie Schooner'', and ''Callaloo,'' as well as in mainstream publications, including ''Longreads'',

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ...

, ''

Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and i ...

'', and the

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

. Reviews of her books have been generally positive.

Jonis Agee Jonis Agee (born May 31, 1943 in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American professor and writer of short stories, novels, essays, and screenplays. She is the author of thirteen books, including five novels and five collections of short fiction. Three of ...

has said that Monroe's "prose shimmers like a jazz solo, full of sass and danger."

Antonya Nelson Antonya Nelson (born January 6, 1961) is an American author and teacher of creative writing who writes primarily short stories. Life and education Antonya Nelson was born January 6, 1961, in Wichita, Kansas. She received a BA degree from the ...

writes that Monroe's "characters, like her prose, have hard edges. They also have big hearts, dark humor, and purely unique ways of opening themselves up for our inspection." Phillip Lopate writes that Monroe's storytelling has "consummate control and aphoristic wit." Her books have been included in

Elle ''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the ...

's top ten list, in Vanity Fair's hot picks, and were chosen as recommended reading by O, Oprah Winfrey's magazine. Monroe has garnered praise from several other publications including the ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...

'',

, ''

People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the l ...

'', the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...

'', the ''

Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the '' Galvest ...

'', ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'', the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'', ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...

'' and others. Her essays have been cited in Houghton Mifflin's anthology ''

The Best American Essays ''The Best American Essays'' is a yearly anthology of magazine articles published in the United States.Robert Atwan (ed.), Adam Gopnick (guest ed.). ''The Best American Essays 2008'', Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2008. It was started in 1986 and is ...

'' in 2012, 2013, and 2015.

Awards

* 1990

* Two

nominations * John Gardner Fellowship

Works

* * * * * * * *

References

External links

"Author's website"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monroe, Debra People from Eau Claire, Wisconsin 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American women short story writers American women novelists University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire alumni Kansas State University alumni University of Utah alumni University of North Carolina at Greensboro faculty Novelists from North Carolina Novelists from Texas Novelists from Wisconsin Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American women poets American women essayists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers 20th-century American poets 21st-century American poets 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American short story writers 20th-century American essayists 21st-century American essayists People from Spooner, Wisconsin American women academics