Rhian Edwards is a Welsh poet. Her debut collection of poetry, ''Clueless Dogs'', was named the Wales Book of the Year in 2013.

Biography

Edwards was born in

Bridgend Bridgend (; or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in the Bridgend County Borough of Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge over the River Og ...

, Wales, and moved to

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

, England while she was in primary school. She studied a bachelor's degree in law at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

and, after completing a master's degree, began working as a tax consultant. After failing one of her tax exams, she left her job as a tax consultant to work for the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

''; she sold advertising space in the newspaper but hoped to join its editorial staff. She began writing poetry after meeting a group of poets in London and attending a performance night at the

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

Poetry Café. She was also a singer and songwriter before becoming a full-time writer. ''Parade the Fib'', a pamphlet of Edwards' poems, was published by Tall Lighthouse and was listed as a Poetry Book Society Choice in 2008. Her first book of poetry, titled ''Clueless Dogs'', was published in 2012 by

Seren Books Seren Books is the trading name of Poetry Wales Press, an independent publisher based in Bridgend, Wales, specialising in English-language writing from WalesFelicity Wood (23 August 2013). Rhyme and reason: The poetry market is a notoriously diffic ...

. At the 2013 Wales Book of the Year Awards, ''Clueless Dogs'' won the overall prize for Wales Book of the Year, as well as the People's Choice Award and the Roland Mathias Prize for Poetry. It was also shortlisted for the 2012

Forward Prize The Forward Prizes for Poetry are major British awards for poetry, presented annually at a public ceremony in London. They were founded in 1992 by William Sieghart with the aim of celebrating excellence in poetry and increasing its audience. The ...

for Best First Collection. A prolific performer, Edwards has given over 400

poetry reading A poetry reading is a public oral recitation or performance of poetry. Reading poetry aloud allows the reader to express their own experience through poetry, changing the poem according to their sensibilities. The reader uses pitch and stress, a ...

s at festivals, on radio, and on stage, and won the John Tripp Award for Spoken Poetry in 2011–2012. In 2013, she became the first

writer-in-residence Artist-in-residence (also Writer-in-residence), or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs that involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs that pr ...

Aberystwyth Arts Centre Aberystwyth Arts Centre ( Welsh: ''Canolfan y Celfyddydau Aberystwyth'') is an arts centre in Wales, located on Aberystwyth University's Penglais campus. One of the largest in Wales, it comprises a theatre (312 seats), concert hall (1,250 seats ...

. Edwards currently lives in Bridgend with her daughter.

Publications

Poetry

* 2008: ''Parade the Fib'', Tall Lighthouse * 2012: ''Clueless Dogs'', Seren * 2017: ''Brood'', Seren * 2020: ''The Estate Agent's Daughter'', Seren

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Rhian Living people 21st-century Welsh poets 21st-century Welsh women writers Welsh women poets Alumni of the London School of Economics People from Bridgend Year of birth missing (living people) Financial Times people