Susan Shreve (also known as Susan Richards Shreve) 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 ...

memoir 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 autobio ...

ist, and children's book author. She has published fifteen novels, most recently ''More News Tomorrow'' (2019), and a memoir ''Warm Springs: Traces of a Childhood'' (2007). She has also published thirty books for children, most recently ''The Lovely Shoes'' (2011), and edited or co-edited five

anthologies In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically catego ...

. Shreve co-founded the

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts a ...

(MFA) in

Creative Writing Creative writing is any writing that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on narrative craft, character development, and the use of literar ...

program at

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was orig ...

in 1980, where she teaches

fiction writing Fiction writing is the composition of non-factual prose texts. Fictional writing often is produced as a story meant to entertain or convey an author's point of view. The result of this may be a short story, novel, novella, screenplay, or drama, ...

. She is the co-founder and the former chairman of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation. She lives in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Early life

Susan Richards Shreve was born May 2, 1939, in

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and accordin ...

, but moved with her family to

, at the age of three. She attended and graduated from

Sidwell Friends School Sidwell Friends School is a Quaker school located in Bethesda, Maryland and Washington, D.C., offering pre-kindergarten through high school classes. Founded in 1883 by Thomas W. Sidwell, its motto is ' ( en, Let the light shine out from all), al ...

in 1957.

Education

Shreve received a BA in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universit ...

in 1961, and an MA in English from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with College admission ...

in 1969.

Career

She founded the

program at

in 1980 and has taught there ever since. She has been a visiting professor at Columbia School of the Arts,

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the n ...

, and

Goucher College Goucher College ( ') is a private liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland. It was chartered in 1885 by a conference in Baltimore led by namesake John F. Goucher and local leaders of the Methodist Episcopal Church.https://archive.org/details/ ...

. She has received a

Guggenheim Award Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...

for Fiction, a National Endowment grant for Fiction, the Jenny Moore Chair in Creative Writing at

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presi ...

, the Grub Street Prize for non-fiction, the Poets and Writers’ Service award, and the Sidwell Friends School Outstanding Alumni Award. In 1980, Shreve co-founded the PEN/Faulkner Foundation, which presents the

PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction is awarded annually by the PEN/Faulkner Foundation to the authors of the year's best works of fiction by living American citizens. The winner receives US$15,000 and each of four runners-up receives US$5000. F ...

annually. Shreve published her first novel, ''A Fortunate Madness'', in 1974. Thirteen novels have followed. She published a novel ''Glimmer'' under the pseudonym Annie Waters in 1997. Shreve wrote about her experience as a patient at FDR's polio clinic in her memoir ''Warm Springs: Traces of a Childhood'' (2007). Her most recent novel, ''More News Tomorrow'', was published in 2019. Shreve's children's books include the Joshua T. Bates series (1984-2000), ''Blister'' (2001), an ALA Notable Book and a Publishers Weekly Best Children's Book, and most recently ''The Lovely Shoes'' (2011). When writing for young readers, she publishes as Susan Shreve.

Works

Novels

* ''More News Tomorrow,'' New York: W W Norton, 2019. *''You Are the Love of My Life'' New York : W W Norton, 2012. , * ''A Student of Living Things'', New York, N.Y.: Plume, 2007. , * '' Plum and Jaggers'' Seattle, WA : AmazonEncore, 2001. , * '' Glimmer,'' New York : Berkley Books, 1997. , , published under the pseudonym Annie Waters * ''The Visiting Physician'' New York: N.A. Talese, 1996. , * '' The Train Home'' New York : Ivy Books, 1993. , * ''Daughters of the New World'' New York : Ballantine Books, 1994. , * '' A Country of Strangers'' Sceptre, 1990. , * '' Queen of Hearts'' New York : Pocket Books, 1988. , * ''Dreaming of Heroes'' New York : Berkley Books, 1984. , * '' Miracle Play'' New York : Playboy, 1982. , * '' Children of Power'' New York : Berkley Books, 1979. , * ''A Woman Like That]'' New York : Atheneum, 1977; London : H. Hamilton, 1978. , * '' A fortunate madness'' Boston, Houghton Mifflin, 1974. ,

Memoir

*''Warm Springs : Traces of a Childhood at Fdr's Polio Haven'', Boston : Mariner Books, 2008.

Edited Anthologies

* '' Dream Me Home Safely: Writers on Growing up in America'' Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 2003. , * With son Porter Shreve: **
Tales out of School: Contemporary Writers on Their Student Years
' (2000) **
How We Want to Live: Narratives on Progress
' (1998) **
Outside the Law: Narratives on Justice
' (1997) * With Marita Golden: **
Skin Deep: Black Women and White Women Write About Race
' (1995)

Novels for Children (as Susan Shreve)

* ''The search for Baby Ruby'', New York, NY : Arthur A. Levine Books, 2015. , * ''The Lovely Shoes'' New York : Arthur A. Levine Books, 2011. , *
Under the Watson's Porch
' (2004) * '' Trout and Me'' New York : Dell Yearling, 2002. , * '' Blister,'' New York : Scholastic Signature, 2001. , companion novel to ''Jonah, the Whale'' * '' Ghost Cats]'' New York : Scholastic, 2000. , * '' Jonah, the Whale'' New York : Scholastic, 1999. , *''Joshua T. Bates takes charge'' Dan Andreasen illustrator, New York : Dell Yearling, 1997. , *
Warts
'' illustrated by Gregg Thorkelson (1996) * '' The Goalie'' New York : Morrow Junior ; London : Hi Marketing, 1999. , * ''Zoe and Columbo]'', illustrated by Gregg Thorkelson, New York : Tambourine Books, 1995. , * ''The Formerly Great Alexander Family,'' illustrated by Chris Cart, New York : Tambourine Books, 1995. , * ''Lucy Forever, Miss Rosetree, and the Stolen Baby,'' illustrated by Eric Jon Nones, New York: Tambourine Books, 1994. , *
Amy Dunn Quits School
'' illustrated by Diane de Groat (1993) * ''Wait for Me'', illustrated by Diane de Groat, New York : Tambourine Books, 1992. , *
The Gift of the Girl Who Couldn't Hear
' (1991) * ''Lily and the Runaway Baby,'' illustrated by Sue Truesdell, New York : Random House, 1987. , * '' Lucy Forever and Miss Rosetree, Shrinks'' Beech Tree Bks, 1997. , * '' How I Saved the World on Purpose]'', illustrated by Suzanne Richardson, New York : Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1985. , * ''The Bad Dreams of a Good Girl'', illustrated by Diane de Groat, New York, N.Y. : Beech Tree Books, 1993. , *
The Revolution of Mary Leary
' (1982) * ''The Masquerade'' New York, N.Y. : Dell, 1980. , *
Family Secrets: Five Very Important Stories
', illustrated by Richard Cuffari (1979) *
Loveletters
' (1978) *
The Nightmares of Geranium Street
' (1977)

Personal life

She married Porter Shreve, with whom she had four children. Shreve later married noted literary agent Timothy Seldes. Her oldest son is the author Porter Shreve.

References

External links

*http://english.gmu.edu/people/sshreve {{DEFAULTSORT:Shreve, Susan 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American women novelists American children's writers Edgar Award winners University of Pennsylvania alumni University of Virginia alumni George Mason University faculty Living people American women children's writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Novelists from Virginia American women academics 1939 births