J. O. Morgan (born 1978) is an author from Edinburgh, Scotland. The his seventh of his volumes of verse, ''The Martian's Regress,'' is set in the far future, when humans "lose their humanity." He has also published two novels: ''Pupa'' (2021) and ''Appliance'' (2022).

Works

Each of Morgan's seven poetry volumes is a single book-length work. His fifth, ''Interference Pattern'', was shortlisted for the

T. S. Eliot Prize The T. S. Eliot Prize for Poetry is a prize that was, for many years, awarded by the Poetry Book Society (UK) to "the best collection of new verse in English first published in the UK or the Republic of Ireland" in any particular year. The Priz ...

and his first, ''Natural Mechanical'', won the Aldeburgh Poetry Prize in 2009. The third work, ''At Maldon'' (2014), revisits the Old English epic

Battle of Maldon The Battle of Maldon took place on 11 August 991 AD near Maldon beside the River Blackwater in Essex, England, during the reign of Æthelred the Unready. Earl Byrhtnoth and his thegns led the English against a Viking invasion. The battle ...

, detailing events that took place on the Essex coast in 991 CE. A recording of Morgan reading it was made for the

Poetry Archive The Poetry Archive is a free, web-based library formed to hold recordings of English language poets reading their own work. The Archive holds over 20000 poems and keeps the recordings safe and accessible so that current and future visitors can ...

in 2014. He has recited the whole work from memory on several occasions. Royal Air Force involvement in maintaining the Airborne Nuclear Deterrent in the early Cold War period forms the basis for Morgan's sixth publication, ''Assurances'' (2018). Morgan's father was in the RAF and he worked with Britain's nuclear deterrent. It was shortlisted for the

Forward Prize The Forward Prizes for Poetry are major British awards for poetry, presented annually at a public ceremony in London. They were founded in 1992 by William Sieghart with the aim of celebrating excellence in poetry and increasing its audience. The ...

and won the

Costa Poetry Award The Costa Book Awards were a set of annual literary awards recognising English-language books by writers based in UK and Ireland. Originally named the Whitbread Book Awards from 1971 to 2005 after its first sponsor, the Whitbread company, then ...

, when the judges praised it as "original, compelling, ambitious, highly accomplished and marvellously sustained". Morgan's seventh volume of poetry, ''The Martian's Regress'' (2020), is set in the far future. It considers "what humans become when they lose their humanity," and explores "what a fragile environment eventually makes of those who persist in tampering with it."

Publications

*''Appliance'' (Jonathan Cape, 2022) ISBN 978 1 7873338 8 8 *''Pupa'' (Henningham Family Press, 2021) *''The Martian's Regress'' (Jonathan Cape, 2020) *''Assurances'' (Jonathan Cape, 2018) *''Interference Pattern'' (Jonathan Cape, 2016) *''In Casting Off'' (HappenStance Press, 2015) *''At Maldon'' (CB editions, 2013) *''Long Cuts'' (CB editions, 2011) *''Natural Mechanical'' (CB editions 2009)

Awards and recognition

*2022 –

Orwell Prize The Orwell Prize, based at University College London, is a British prize for political writing. The Prize is awarded by The Orwell Foundation, an independent charity (Registered Charity No 1161563, formerly "The Orwell Prize") governed by a boa ...

finalist for Political Fiction – ''Appliance'' *2020 –

for Poetry (shortlist) – ''The Martian's Regress'' *2018 –

(won) – ''Assurances'' *2018 –

Forward Poetry Prize The Forward Prizes for Poetry are major British awards for poetry, presented annually at a public ceremony in London. They were founded in 1992 by William Sieghart with the aim of celebrating excellence in poetry and increasing its audience. The ...

for Best Collection (shortlist) – ''Assurances'' *2016 –

for Poetry (shortlist) – ''Interference Pattern'' *2016 – Saltire Society Poetry Award (shortlist) – ''Interference Pattern'' *2016 – Poetry Book Society Recommendation – ''Interference Pattern'' *2014 – Saltire Society Poetry Award (shortlist) – ''At Maldon'' *2012 – Scottish Poetry Book Award (shortlist) – ''Long Cuts'' *2010 – Scottish Poetry Book Award (shortlist) – ''Natural Mechanical'' *2009 – Aldeburgh Poetry Prize (won) – ''Natural Mechanical'' *2009 –

for First Collection (shortlist) – ''Natural Mechanical'' *2009 – Poetry Book Society Recommendation – ''Natural Mechanical''

References

External links

*
Helena Nelson of HappenStance Press on ''At Maldon''J. O. Morgan reads from ''Interference Pattern''
Royal Festival Hall (15 Jan 2017)
Beth McDonough on ''Interference Pattern''
in ''Dundee University Review of the Arts''
Forward Arts Foundation interview with J. O. Morgan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, J. O. 1978 births Living people 21st-century Scottish poets 21st-century British male writers Scottish male poets Writers from Edinburgh Costa Book Award winners