Graham Mort is a British writer, editor and tutor, who "is acknowledged as one of contemporary verse's most accomplished practitioners".
/ref> He is the author of ten volumes of poetry and two volumes of short fiction and has written radio drama for

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

, and won both the

Bridport Prize Bridport Arts Centre is an arts centre in Bridport, Dorset, England. Founded in 1973, it is housed in and around a 19th-century, Grade II listed building, formerly known as the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel. The complex includes the Marlow Theatre, th ...

and the

Edge Hill Prize The Edge Hill Short Story Prize is a short-story contest held annually by Edge Hill University. Background The concept for the prize was developed by Professor Ailsa Cox following a 2006 short-story conference at Edge Hill. Candidates must be b ...

for short fiction. His poetry collection ''Visibility: New and Selected Poems'', was published by Seren in 2007. Th
''Guardian Review of Books''
comments that it "perfectly exhibits the blend of formal scrupulousness, sensory evocation and intellectual rigour that has shaped his reputation". He received a major

Eric Gregory award The Eric Gregory Award is a literary award given annually by the Society of Authors for a collection by British poets under the age of 30. The award was founded in 1960 by Dr. Eric Gregory to support and encourage young poets. In 2021, the seven ...

from the

Society of Authors The Society of Authors (SoA) is a United Kingdom trade union for professional writers, illustrators and literary translators, founded in 1884 to protect the rights and further the interests of authors. , it represents over 12,000 members and as ...

for his first collection of poems, ''A Country on Fire'', and ''Circular Breathing'' was a

Poetry Book Society The Poetry Book Society (PBS) was founded in 1953 by T. S. Eliot and friends, including Sir Basil Blackwell, "to propagate the art of poetry". Eric Walter White was secretary from December 1953 until 1971, and was subsequently the society's chair ...

recommendation. Graham won the 2007 Bridport International Short Story Prize, for his story "The Prince". His first collection of short fiction, ''Touch'', was published by Seren in 2010 and won the Edge Hill Prize in 2011.

Biography

Graham was born in Lancashire and studied English at

Liverpool University , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

. He worked as a mill labourer, dairy operative and psychiatric nurse before training as a teacher. He taught in schools, colleges, prisons, special education and psychiatric units before becoming a freelance writer. He gained a doctorate from the

University of Glamorgan , image_name = University of Glamorgan arms.png , image_size = 220px , caption = University of Glamorgan coat of arms , motto = Success Through Endeavour , established = , closed = , administrative_staff = , chancellor = John Morris ...

and is a

Distance Learning Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance. Traditionally, this usually in ...

and

eLearning Educational technology (commonly abbreviated as edutech, or edtech) is the combined use of computer hardware, software, and educational theory and practice to facilitate learning. When referred to with its abbreviation, edtech, it often refers ...

specialist. He has been the Director of Studies for the

Open College of the Arts The Open College of the Arts (OCA) is an open learning arts college, with a Head Office in Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1987 by Michael Young, it is a registered charity and the distance learning partner of the University ...

and is now Emeritus Professor of Creative Writing and Transcultural Literature at

Lancaster University Lancaster University (legally The University of Lancaster) is a public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several pla ...

, where his academic research ranges from contemporary fiction and poetry and emergent African writing and narratives of

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

to eLearning and literature development project design. In 2014, he was appointed as a National teaching Fellow. From October 2016, he was appointed an Extraordinary Professor at the University of the Western Cape, South Africa. He has also worked in Kurdistan and visited poetry festivals and translation projects in China and Vietnam.

Crossing Borders

In 2001, Graham designed and led th
Crossing Borders
scheme. The project was piloted in

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

in 2001. By 2003, the project had developed into a major British Council/Lancaster University partnership involving Uganda,

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

and

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...

. Crossing Borders employed a team of 25 writing mentors throughout the UK and reached more than 300 African writers, bringing a budget of £375,000 to the University for this Third Mission activity. Th
Beyond Borders
pan-African literature festival in Uganda in October 2005 involved writers from the UK and 17 African countries. The mentoring project was laid down in April 2006, but the website remains active and publishes a quarterly online magazine of new African writing. Recent achievements for Crossing Borders participants include

Monica Arac de Nyeko Monica Arac de Nyeko (born 1979) is a Ugandan writer of short fiction, poetry, and essays, living in Nairobi.

winning the

Caine Prize The Caine Prize for African Writing is an annual literary award for the best original short story by an African writer, whether in Africa or elsewhere, published in the English language. The £10,000 prize was founded in the United Kingdom in 20 ...

for African Writing 2007Michelle Pauli
"Love story wins 'African Booker'"
''The Guardian'', 10 July 2007. and

Ellen Banda-Aaku Ellen Banda-Aaku (born 6 May 1965) is a Zambian author, radio drama and film producer who was born in the UK and grew up in Africa.

, winning the

Commonwealth Short Story Competition Commonwealth Foundation presented a number of prizes between 1987 and 2011. The main award was called the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and was composed of two prizes: the Best Book Prize (overall and regional) was awarded from 1987 to 2011; the Best ...

Radiophonics

Graham devise
Radiophonics
as legacy activity to Crossing Borders. It was piloted in Uganda in autumn 2006, when 8 Crossing Borders writers took part in workshop and online mentoring to produce short stories for radio. The stories focused on topical themes and were broadcast on Sanyu FM (Kampala) as the Under the Sun series with live audience reaction to the stories. Graham Mort devised and produced the series with Faith Kinani of Sanyu FM. Kate Horsley was the project researcher and also designed online support systems. Each whole programme was mounted on the Crossing Borders site a
podcasts
intended to reach a global audience. Radiophonics has now been commissioned as a major project in Nigeria and Uganda, commencing in September 2007.

Centre for Transcultural Writing and Research

Graham is the director o
Centre for Transcultural Writing and Research
(CTWR) which was launched at Lancaster University in 2007 in order to create a transnational and interdisciplinary environment that will promote the study of creative writing across cultures. The Centre brings together a number of intercultural research projects
Crossing Borders

Moving Manchester
an

Bibliography

Poetry * ''Samara'', 4Word Press, 2021 * ''Black Shiver Moss'', Seren, 2017 * ''Cusp'', Seren 2011 * ''Visibility'', Seren, 2007 * ''A Night On The Lash'', Seren, 2004 * ''Circular Breathing'', Dangaroo Press, 1997 * ''Snow From The North'', Dangaroo Press, 1992 * ''Sky Burial'', Dangaroo Press, 1989 * ''Into The Ashes'', Littlewood Press, 1988 * ''A Halifax Cider Jar'', Yorkshire Art Circus, 1987 * ''A Country On Fire'', Littlewood Press, 1986 Fiction * ''Terroir'', Seren, 2015 * ''Touch'', Seren, 2010 * ''Like Fado & Other Stories'' Salt, 2021 Radio Drama * ''Cuba Libre at the Café España'' (afternoon play) BBC Radio 4, 2002 * ''The Life Of The Bee'' (dramatic adaptation) BBC Radio 4, 1999 * ''The Red Field'' (long poem) BBC Radio 4,1997 * ''Flymowing'' (dramatised poem) BBC Radio 3, 1997 Educational Coursebooks *''Storylines'', Open College of the Arts, 1992 * ''The Experience Of Poetry'', Open College of the Arts, 1991 * ''Starting To Write'', Open College of The Arts, 1990 Short Fiction published in ''Northern Short Stories'' (Littlewood Press), ''Northern Short Stories'' (Arc Publications), '' Riptide Journal'', ''London Magazine'', ''Bright Streets Dark Comers'' (Unwin Hyman), BBC Radio 3, ''The Guardian'', ''Critical Quarterly'', ''Krax'', ''Global Tapestry'', ''Fisheye'', ''The North'', ''Panurge'', Metropolitan, BBC Radio Lancashire, BBC Radio North-West, Fish Publishing Short Story Anthology. Articles, academic papers and reviews have been published in a wide range of literary journals.

References

External links

Bridport International Short Story Prize

Visibility: New and Selected Poems

Articles on Africa

Crossing Borders

Centre for Transcultural Writing and Research

Moving Manchester

Lancaster University

Graham's profile at Contemporary Writers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mort, Graham Year of birth missing (living people) Living people English male poets Alumni of the University of Liverpool