Irma Chilton (born Mair Elizabeth Irma Evans, 12 November 1930 – 1990), also known as I. M. Chilton, was a
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
children's writer in the English and Welsh languages. She was a recipient of the
Tir na n-Og Award
The Tir na n-Og Awards (abbreviated TnaO) are a set of annual children's literary awards in Wales from 1976. They are presented by the Books Council of Wales to the best books published during the preceding calendar year in each of three awards cat ...
presented by the
Welsh Books Council
The Books Council of Wales (previously known as the Welsh Books Council) or Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru was established in 1961. Today it is funded by the Welsh Government. The council's aims are to promote the interests of Welsh language books and Engl ...
, and of
eisteddfod prizes.
Early life and education
Irma Evans was born in
Loughor, in
Glamorgan
, HQ = Cardiff
, Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974)
, Origin=
, Code = GLA
, CodeName = Chapman code
, Replace =
* West Glamorgan
* Mid Glamorgan
* South Glamorgan
, Motto ...
, close to the border with
Carmarthen. Her parents were Iorworth Evans, a furnaceman, and his wife Esther Jane Muxworthy Evans. She attended the
University of Wales, where she earned a bachelor's degree in 1951.
Writing
Chilton was a teacher. Chilton's first book, ''Take Away The Flowers & Fuller's World'', combined two science fiction stories about a pilot character named Tom Davies;
Heinemann Heinemann may refer to:
* Heinemann (surname)
* Heinemann (publisher), a publishing company
* Heinemann Park, a.k.a. Pelican Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
See also
* Heineman
* Jamie Hyneman
James Franklin Hyneman (born Se ...
published the volume in 1967. She wrote children's books in both English and Welsh and won eisteddfod prizes for them. They include the novels ''String of Time'' (1968, a time-travel story later retitled ''Nightmare'' (1972), ''Goldie'' (1969, about a "calf-like" space creature who lands on an English farm), ''The Time Button'' (1970), ''Strangers Up the Lane'' (1971), ''Rhwng cwsg ac effro'' (1975), ''The Magic Cauldron and Other Folktales'' (1976), ''A Spray of Leaves'' (1977), ''The Witch'' (1979), ''The Prize'' (1983), ''Y Wobr'' (1984), and ''Y Peiriant Amser'' (1986, about time-travelling children). In 1989, she took the Crown for prose at the National Eisteddfod in
Llanrwst, for .
Personal life and legacy
Irma Evans married a chemist, Harry Chilton; they had two children, Dafydd and Rhiannon.
She died in 1990, aged 59. Chilton is commemorated in the name of the Irma Chilton Bursary, an annual memorial prize given to aspiring children's novelists by the Welsh Arts Council. Winners of it have included
Jennifer Sullivan.
[Magical Novel Wins Major Award](_blank)
, Welsh Books Council, May 2012, accessed November 2012.
Irma Chilton's son Dafydd Chilton also wrote fiction for young readers.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chilton, Irma
1930 births
1990 deaths
Welsh children's writers
People from Swansea
Date of death missing
Place of death missing
Welsh science fiction writers