Liz Hyder (born 1976 or 1977) is an English author.

Life and career

Hyder was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. She attended 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 ...

where she studied drama. She has previously worked as a publicist for the BBC and was a freelance PR consultant. Her debut novel, ''Bearmouth'', was published by Pushkin Children’s Books in 2019 and aimed towards young adults. It is about a child called Newt who lives and works in a Victorian coalmine. It won the 2020

Branford Boase Award The Branford Boase Award is a British literary award presented annually to an outstanding children's or young-adult novel by a first-time writer; "the most promising book for seven year-olds and upwards by a first time novelist." The award is s ...

and the

Waterstones Children's Book Prize The Waterstones Children's Book Prize is an annual award given to a work of children's literature published during the previous year. First awarded in 2005, the purpose of the prize is "to uncover hidden talent in children's writing" and is the ...

for older readers. She published her second novel, ''The Gifts'', in 2022 which is aimed towards adults. It is centered around four women and set in the Victorian era. In her 2024 young adult novel ''The Twelve'', the search for a missing sister takes two young people into a dangerous world of Welsh folklore and magic. It won the 2025 English-language Tir na n-Og Award.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people English children's writers Alumni of the University of Bristol Writers from London 21st-century English women writers {{England-novelist-stub