Eugen Bălan (October 21, 1904 – April 4, 1968) was a

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

n prose writer. Born in

Focșani Focșani (; yi, פֿאָקשאַן, Fokshan) is the capital city of Vrancea County in Romania on the banks the river Milcov, in the historical region of Moldavia. It has a population () of 79,315. Geography Focșani lies at the foot of the Curv ...

, his father was a career army officer who died in the

Battle of Turtucaia The Battle of Turtucaia ( ro, Bătălia de la Turtucaia; bg, Битка при Тутракан, ''Bitka pri Tutrakan''), also known as Tutrakan Epopee ( bg, Тутраканска епопея, ''Tutrakanska epopeya'') in Bulgaria, was the openi ...

. He attended the Military High School in

Craiova Craiova (, also , ), is Romania's 6th Cities in Romania, largest city and capital of Dolj County, and situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximatel ...

and the

Polytechnic School Polytechnic School, often referred to simply as Poly, is a college preparatory private day school located in Pasadena, California with approximately 850 students enrolled in grades Kindergarten through 12. The school is a former member of th ...

, working as an engineer until the end of his life. His disjointed literary activity comprised two distinct phases. The first involved his 1941

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

, ''Într-o duminecă de august'', which won the

Romanian Writers' Society The Romanian Writers' Society ( ro, Societatea Scriitorilor Români) was a professional association based in Bucharest, Romania, that aided the country's writers and promoted their interests. Founded in 1909, it operated for forty years before the e ...

prize and was issued in a second edition a quarter-century later. This book surprised critics with its maturity, sure phrasing and simple structure, as well as through it is the sudden nature of its publication, without prior indication of the author's talent. Bălan resumed writing after his retirement in 1965, composing sketches and short stories. He had decided late in life to write a new book, not wishing to remain as the author of a single one, and his return to literature marked a second debut. He died in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

, and the writings he left were published posthumously as ''Exerciții'' in 1970.Aurel Sasu (ed.), ''Dicționarul biografic al literaturii române'', vol. I, p. 129. Pitești: Editura Paralela 45, 2004.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balan, Eugen 1904 births 1968 deaths People from Focșani Politehnica University of Bucharest alumni Romanian male short story writers Romanian short story writers Romanian novelists 20th-century Romanian engineers