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

Life

Sedgwick was born in London and studied

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

at the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

. She gained a PhD in physics from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

and an MLitt in Creative Writing from the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

. After leaving physics research to become a freelance writer, Sedgwick worked as the joint managing director of Cargo Publishing from 2014 to 2015, Sedgwick was also the managing editor of

Gutter magazine ''Gutter'' is a biannual periodical published in Scotland. The magazine was founded in 2009 and is independently published in Glasgow. The magazine is cooperatively owned and run by its workers. Overview Publishing prose, poetry and reviews, the ...

and worked as a creative writing tutor. She released her first novel in 2016, ''The Comet Seekers''. This was followed by her second novel, ''The Growing Season'', which was shortlisted for Fiction Book of the Year in Scotland's National Book Awards 2018. Sedgwick's first crime novel was ''When The Dead Come Calling'', the opening book in the Burrowhead Mysteries crime trilogy. She cites her scientific background as a big influence on her writing. Sedgwick is a member of The Society of Authors and the

Crime Writers' Association The Crime Writers' Association (CWA) is a specialist authors' organisation in the United Kingdom, most notable for its "Dagger" awards for the best crime writing of the year, and the Diamond Dagger awarded to an author for lifetime achievement. ...

. She lives in Tain, in

Ross-shire Ross-shire (; ), or the County of Ross, was a county in the Scottish Highlands. It bordered Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south, as well as having a complex border with Cromartyshire, a county consisting of numerous enc ...

in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...

with her partner and their daughter.

Awards

*2012 Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award. *2016 Glamour Book of the Year: ''The Comet Seekers''. *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''. *2021 Dr Gavin Wallace Fellowship.

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:Helen Sedgwick
Publications
''www.helensedgwick.com'' * ''The Archaeologist of Akrotiri'',

New Writing Scotland The Association for Scottish Literary Studies (ASLS) is a Scottish educational charitable organization, charity, founded in 1970 to promote and support the teaching, study and writing of Scottish literature. Its founding members included the Sco ...

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,

32 (2014)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sedgwick, Helen 21st-century British novelists Alumni of the University of Bristol Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Glasgow People from Tain