Rob Magnuson Smith is a novelist, short story writer, journalist, and university lecturer. A

dual citizen Multiple citizenship (or multiple nationality) is a person's legal status in which a person is at the same time recognized by more than one sovereign state, country under its nationality law, nationality and citizenship law as a national or cit ...

of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, Smith currently resides in

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. He has a BA in philosophy and a BA in psychology from

Pitzer College Pitzer College is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was founded in 1963 as a women's college in the Claremont Colleges consortium and became coeducational in 1970. Pitzer enrolls approximately 1000 students. Pitzer off ...

, an MA in creative writing from the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a Public university, public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus university, campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and twenty-six schools of ...

, where he won the David Higham Award, and a PhD in creative writing from

Bath Spa University Bath Spa University is a public university in Bath, Somerset, Bath, England, with its main campus at Newton Park, about west of the centre of the city. The university has other campuses in the city of Bath, and one at Corsham Court in Wiltshi ...

. Since September 2013, he has taught English and Creative Writing for the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...

Works

Novels

His first novel, ''The Gravedigger,'' is the story of painfully shy

gravedigger A gravedigger is a cemetery worker who is responsible for digging a grave prior to a funeral service. Gravediggers have historically often been members of the church, though in modern secular cemeteries, they may be temporary or full-time staf ...

Henry Bale, who falls in love with the bright, energetic, new schoolteacher, whose sudden arrival awakens and upsets his quiet life and his quiet town. ''The Gravedigger'' won the gold medal in the William Faulkner – William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition. Contest judge Andre Bernard said of the book, "To my mind there was one clear standout. In terms of characterization, plot, unusual fictional universe-making and sheer ability to create The Gravedigger wins hands-down." His second novel, ''Scorper'', is a critically acclaimed, darkly comic tale of an emotionally unstable American who travels to

Ditchling Ditchling is a village and civil parish in the Lewes (district), Lewes District of East Sussex, England. The village is contained within the boundaries of the South Downs National Park; the order confirming the establishment of the park was sign ...

, Sussex, in an attempt to connect with his ancestral heritage, one that intertwines with the life and legacy of famed English artisan

Eric Gill Arthur Eric Rowton Gill (22 February 1882 – 17 November 1940) was an English sculptor, letter cutter, typeface designer, and printmaker. Although the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' describes Gill as "the greatest artist-craftsma ...

, a version of whom appears in the novel. ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' called ''Scorper'' 'An odd, original, darkly comic novel... a funny, unsettling read; Kafka crossed with Flann O'Brien,' and gave it four stars. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' called ''Scorper'' a "funny, disturbing portrayal of a mind at odds with itself." His third novel ''Seaweed Rising'' is published b
Sandstone Press
and appears in August 2023.

Short fiction

Smith has published numerous short stories in publications ranging from ''

'' to '' The Literarian''. Most notably, in 2015, he became the first international author to win the

Australian Book Review ''Australian Book Review'' is an Australian arts and literary review. Created in 1961, ''ABR'' is an independent non-profit organisation that publishes articles, reviews, commentaries, essays, and new writing. The aims of the magazine are " ...

’s

Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize The ''ABR'' Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize is an annual short fiction competition run by the ''Australian Book Review''. The Prize, with total prize money of AU$12,500 and "generating over a thousand new stories each year", is "hotly contested" ...

, for "The Elector of Nossnearly." The story was also longlisted for the

Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Short Story Award The Sunday Times Short Story Award, also known as the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award and later the Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award, was a British literary award for a single short story open to any novelist or short story writer from ...

, possibly the most lucrative short story prize in the world.

Creative non-fiction

Smith's non-fiction has appeared in ''

Granta ''Granta'' is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centres on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story's supreme ability to describe, illuminate and make ...

'' and ''

'' among others, and he is a regular contributing editor for ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

'', with whom he has published investigative articles on Soviet-era primate hybridization experiments, the scientific search for alien life, and the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

book repository associated with the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

Bibliography

Novels

* ''The Gravedigger''. New Orleans: UNO Press, 2010. * ''Scorper''. London: Granta, 2015.

Short fiction

Smith's short fiction is not limited to but includes the following:
"The Elector of Nossnearly"
(''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'', 2015) "Kettleman Point" (''The Clearing'', 2015) "The Headhunter's Trumpet" ('' Poor Yorick'', 2014) "Inkberrow" ('' The Literarian'', 2013) "Second Skull" (''

'')

Creative non-fiction

Smith's creative non-fiction is not limited to but includes the following: "The Best Book of 1901: The Octopus" (''

'', 2015) "An English Village Needs its Pub" (''

'', 2015) "Brewster's Ark" (''

Playboy Magazine ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefn ...

'', 2013) "Beyond the Sky" (''

'', 2012) "Beckett Catches Buster" ('' Projector Magazine'')

Awards and nominations

Smith's awards and nominations are not limited to but include the following: 2015 First Prize, ''Australian Book Review'' Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Award 2015 Longlist, ''The Sunday Times'' EFG Short Story Prize 2010-13 International Doctoral Research Fellow, Bath Spa University 2009-10 David Higham Award in Creative Writing, University of East Anglia 2004 Pirate's Alley William Faulkner Gold Medal, Best Novel, ''The Gravedigger''

External links

Official website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Rob Magnuson Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Academics of the University of Exeter Alumni of the University of East Anglia British writers Pitzer College alumni American writers Alumni of Bath Spa University