Joanne C. Hillhouse (born 1973) is a creative writer, journalist, producer and educator from

Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda (, ) is a sovereign country in the West Indies. It lies at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles, at 17°N latitude. The country consists of two maj ...

."Joanne C. Hillhouse"
at ecrivainsdelacaraibe.com, Association of Caribbean writers. Her writing encompasses novels, short stories, poetry and children's books, and she has contributed to many publications in the Caribbean region as well as internationally, among them the anthologies ''Pepperpot'' (2014) and ''

New Daughters of Africa ''Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent from the Ancient Egyptian to the Present'' is a compilation of orature and literature by more than 200 women from Africa and the African diaspora, ...

'' (2019). Hillhouse's books include the poetry collection ''On Becoming'' (2003), the novellas ''The Boy from Willow Bend'' (2003) and ''Dancing Nude in the Moonlight'' (2004), the children's books ''Fish Outta Water'' and ''With Grace'', the novel ''Oh Gad!'' (2012), and the young adult novel ''Musical Youth'' (2014), which was runner-up for the Burt Award for Caribbean Literature."Joanne Hillhouse – Caribbean Young Adult Literature, Shortlisted, 2014"
CODE Burt Literary Awards. She was named by

Literary Hub Literary Hub is a daily literary website that launched in 2015 by Grove Atlantic president and publisher Morgan Entrekin, American Society of Magazine Editors Hall of Fame editor Terry McDonell, and Electric Literature founder Andy Hunter. Conten ...

as one of "10 Female Caribbean Authors You Should Know". An advocate for the development of the arts in Antigua and Barbuda, she founded the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize in 2004.

Biography

Early years and education

Born to Ronald Hillhouse and Josephine John Hillhouse in Ottos, St. John's, Antigua, Joanne Hillhouse attended Holy Family School, Christ the King High School, and

Antigua State College Antigua State College is a public tertiary institution in Antigua and Barbuda, with 1,000 students enrolled in several programs. The college consists of several departments such as the Advanced Level, Department of business, engineering, depart ...

, before earning a degree in Mass Communications at the

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 17 English-speaking countries and territories in th ...

(UWI), Mona Campus.Fayola A. Jardine
"CITATION for Ms. Joanne C. Hillhouse Recipient of the Tenth Annual Leonard Tim Hector Memorial Award"
On behalf of the Leonard Tim Hector Memorial Committee, delivered at the Multipurpose Cultural Centre, Perry Bay, St. John's, Antigua, on the occasion of the 12th annual Leonard Tim Hector Memorial Lecture, 20 November 2014. She was mentored by Professor

Mervyn Morris Mervyn Eustace Morris OM (born 21 February 1937) is a poet and professor emeritus at the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica. According to educator Ralph Thompson, "In addition to his poetry, which has ranked him among the top West In ...

, who recommended her for the Caribbean Fiction Writer Summer Institute workshop held at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...

, and led by

Olive Senior Olive Marjorie Senior (born 23 December 1941) is a Jamaican poet, novelist, short story and non-fiction writer based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She was awarded the Musgrave Gold Medal in 2005 by the Institute of Jamaica for her contributions ...

. The experience Hillhouse gained interacting with other writers led her ultimately to produce her first novel.

Literary career

Elizabeth Nunez Elizabeth Nunez is a Trinidadian American novelist and Distinguished Professor of English at Hunter College– CUNY, New York City. Her novels have won a number of awards: ''Prospero's Daughter'' received the ''New York Times'' Editors' Choice ...

recommending ''Oh Gad!'' on

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

in 2014 commented on the fact that "So few Caribbean writers actually live and write in the region" – unlike Hillhouse: "There's such an authenticity to her story.... I immediately knew the people, the characters she wrote about." Hillhouse herself has said: " ile I believe and hope my stories have universal appeal, the Antigua I write about is the Antigua I live and breathe every day, and I write it as we experience it, now." In 2014, Hillhouse's young adult novel ''Musical Youth'' was published, becoming a finalist in the Burt Award for Caribbean Literature. As described by the ''

Trinidad and Tobago Guardian The ''Trinidad and Tobago Guardian'' (together with the ''Sunday Guardian'') is the oldest daily newspaper in Trinidad and Tobago. The paper is considered the newspaper of record for Trinidad and Tobago. History Its first edition was published ...

'': "Musical Youth is a compelling read because Hillhouse has managed to make readers really care about the characters and their struggles. It is a deserving, prize-winning book that now comfortably claims its place in Caribbean Young Adult literature." Hillhouse's children’s picture book ''Lost! A Caribbean Sea Adventure'', illustrated by Danielle Boodoo-Fortune, was described by ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' as "an appealing book, all the more so for being based on real life". Her writing – which as well as fiction and poetry encompasses reportage and features – has appeared widely in literary journals in the Caribbean region as well as internationally, including in ''

The Caribbean Writer The University of the Virgin Islands (or UVI) is a public historically black land-grant university in the United States Virgin Islands. History UVI was founded as the College of the Virgin Islands on March 16, 1962. In 1986, it officially beca ...

'', ''

PEN America PEN America (formerly PEN American Center), founded in 1922 and headquartered in New York City, is a nonprofit organization that works to defend and celebrate free expression in the United States and worldwide through the advancement of litera ...

'', ''

Essence Essence ( la, essentia) is a polysemic term, used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property or set of properties that make an entity or substance what it fundamentally is, and which it has by necessity, and without which it ...

'', ''

Writer's Digest ''Writer's Digest'' is an American magazine aimed at beginning and established writers. It contains interviews, market listings, calls for manuscripts, and how-to articles. History ''Writer's Digest'' was first published in December 1920 under ...

'', and ''

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

'', ''Calabash'', ''

MaComère ''MaComère'' () is a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal covering studies of and creative works by and about women in the Caribbean and its diaspora published by the Association of Caribbean Women Writers and Scholars (ACWWS). Past issues ...

'', '' Small Axe''. ''

Caribbean Beat ''Caribbean Beat'', founded in 1992, is a bimonthly magazine, published in Port of Spain, Trinidad, covering the arts, culture and society of the Caribbean, with a focus on the region's English-speaking territories. It is distributed in-flight by C ...

'', ''Moko Magazine'', ''Zing plus'', ''

The Columbia Review Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhattan ...

'', ''Mythium'', ''Tongues of the Ocean'', ''POUi'', ''WomanSpeak, A Journal of Literature and Art by Caribbean Women'', and other outlets.Erin Khar
"A Q&A With Caribbean Author Joanne C. Hillhouse"
''Ravishly'', 12 March 2019. She is also a contributor to the anthologies ''Pepperpot: Best New Stories from the Caribbean'' (2014) and ''

'' (edited by

Margaret Busby Margaret Yvonne Busby, , Hon. FRSL (born 1944), also known as Nana Akua Ackon, is a Ghanaian-born publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster, resident in the UK. She was Britain's youngest and first black female book publisherJazzmine Breary"Let' ...

, 2019)."Joanne C. Hillhouse"
at ''

Poets & Writers Poets & Writers, Inc. is one of the largest nonprofit literary organizations in the United States serving poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. The organization publishes a bi-monthly magazine called ''Poets & Writers Magazine'', ...

''. Among literary events where Hillhouse has been a participant are the Caribbean Fiction Writers Summer Institute (

), Breadloaf Writers Conference, Texas A & M's Callaloo Writers Workshop,

Calabash International Literary Festival The Calabash International Literary Festival is a three-day festival in Jamaica staged on a biennial basis on even years (having been held annually in its first decade).

in Jamaica, the

Brooklyn Book Festival The Brooklyn Book Festival is an annual book fair held in the fall in Brooklyn, New York (state), New York. It was begun in 2006 by Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, co-producers Liz Koch and Carolyn Greer who wanted to showcase the "B ...

Miami Book Fair The Miami Book Fair is an annual two-day street fair and literary festival organized by Miami Dade College. The fair brings over 300 national and international authors exhibitors to a weeklong gathering and includes pavilions for translation, ...

, PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature, and the

Sharjah International Book Fair Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) is an 11-day international book fair held annually in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Its debut edition was launched in 1982 under the guidance and patronage of His Highness Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al ...

,"Hillhouse at Sharjah International Book Fair in UAE"
''Antigua Observer'', 14 November 2019. as well as the Antigua and Barbuda International Literary Festival, and other literary events in the Caribbean such as in Dominca and St. Martin."Joanne C. Hillhouse"
African American Literature Book Club.

Audio-visual work

Hillhouse has worked in local television and was associate producer of ''The Sweetest Mango'' (2001), Antigua's first feature-length film, and production manager on ''No Seed'' (2002).

Wadadli Youth Pen Prize

In 2004 Hillhouse founded the Wadadli Youth Pen Prize and its accompanying workshops for young writers, with the aim of nurturing and showcasing the literary arts in Antigua and Barbuda.

Selected awards and recognition

* 2004:

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Prize of Honour for contribution to the development of public reading and to the literature of Antigua and Barbuda. * 2011: David Hough Literary Prize from the ''Caribbean Writer''. * 2011: JCI West Indies Outstanding Young Person Prize for Excellence, for commitment to Antigua and Barbudan society. * 2014: Leonard Tim Hector Memorial Award, "for her perennial and exemplary contributions to the advancement of Antigua". * 2020: Women of Wadadli Award for Literature received on

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is a global holiday celebrated annually on March 8 as a focal point in the women's rights movement, bringing attention to issues such as gender equality, reproductive rights, and violence and abuse against wom ...

."Antigua Today WoW interview"
''Antigua Today'', 24 March 2020.

Selected bibliography

* ''On Becoming'' (poetry), 2003 * ''The Boy from Willow Bend'', Macmillan Caribbean, 2003; Hansib, 2009, * ''Dancing Nude in the Moonlight'', Macmillan Caribbean, 2004; Insomniac Press, 2014 * ''Oh Gad!: A Novel'' (

Zane The name Zane may be a given name or a surname. Its western usage derives from the Venetian form of ''Gianni'' or an alternate spelling of the German and Jewish name ''Zahn''. An Arabic name Zain, Zayn, or as it is often anglicized Zane, is an Arab ...

Presents), Strebor/Atria/

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

, 2012, * ''Musical Youth'', Caribbean Reads Publishing, 2014; 2nd edition 2019, * ''Lost! A Caribbean Sea Adventure'' (illus. Danielle Boodoo-Fortune), Caribbean Reads Publishing, 2017,

References

External links

Jhohadli website

"Joanne C Hillhouse"
(interview), ''Caribbean Literary Heritage''.
"Interview with Joanne C. Hillhouse"
''Caribbean Book Blog'', 11 April 2012. * M. J. Fievre
"Nobody Go Run Me, An Interview With Joanne C. Hillhouse"
''The Whimsical Project''. 21 November 2014.
"Joanne Hillhouse"
interview with Anderson Edghill, ABS TV. July 2015; via YouTube. * Darkowaa
"Caribbean Literature Chat With Writers, Joanne C. Hillhouse"
''African Book Addict'', 30 July 2017.
"Joanne C. Hillhouse"
at

AALBC.com AALBC.com, the African American Literature Book Club, is a website dedicated to books and film by and about African Americans and people of African descent, with content also aimed at African-American bookstores. AALBC.com publishes book and fi ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hillhouse, Joanne C. Living people Antigua and Barbuda writers 21st-century women writers Antigua and Barbuda women writers People from St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda University of the West Indies alumni 1973 births 21st-century poets Women children's writers

Biography

Early years and education

Literary career

Audio-visual work

Wadadli Youth Pen Prize

Selected awards and recognition

Selected bibliography

See also

References

External links