Patrice Lawrence

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

FRSL The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...

(born 1960s) is a British writer and journalist, who has published fiction both for adults and children. Her writing has won awards including the Waterstones Children's Book Prize for Older Children and ''

The Bookseller ''The Bookseller'' is a British magazine reporting news on the publishing industry. Philip Jones is editor-in-chief of the weekly print edition of the magazine and the website. The magazine is home to the ''Bookseller''/Diagram Prize for Oddest ...

'' YA Book Prize. In 2021, she won the

Jhalak Prize The Jhalak Prize for Book of the Year by a Writer of Colour is an annual literary prize awarded to British or British-resident BAME writers. £1,000 is awarded to the sole winner. The Jhalak Prize launched in 2016 and was created by writers Sunn ...

's inaugural children's and young adult category for her book ''Eight Pieces of Silva'' (2020).

Biography

Patrice Lawrence was born in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and was brought up in an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The country is home to people of many different national, ethnic and religious origins. As a ...

family, her mother having come to England from Trinidad to train as a psychiatric nurse. Lawrence has an MA in Writing for Film and TV, and was mentored by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

as a prospective comedy writer. Her first story to be published was "Duck, Duck, Goose", which was included in ''The Decibel Penguin Prize Anthology'' (

Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Arvon Foundation The Arvon Foundation is a charitable organisation in the United Kingdom that promotes creative writing. Arvon is one of Arts Council England's National Portfolio Organisations. Andrew Kidd is the Chief Executive Officer, Patricia Cumper is Ch ...

crime writing course led by Dreda Say Mitchell and

Frances Fyfield Frances Fyfield (born 18 November 1948) is the pseudonym of Frances Hegarty, an English lawyer and crime-writer. Biography Born and brought up in Derbyshire, Hegarty was mostly educated in convent schools before reading English at Newcastle Uni ...

that Lawrence had the idea for her debut young adults' novel, ''Orangeboy''. Published in 2016, ''Orangeboy'' won ''

''s YA Book Prize 2017,Caroline Carpenter,
"Lawrence's Orangeboy scoops YA Book Prize"
''The Bookseller'', 1 June 2017. the Waterstones Children's Book Prize for Older Children 2017, and was shortlisted for the 2016 Costa Children's Book Award. It received a five-star rating from

MuggleNet MuggleNet is the Internet's oldest and largest ''Harry Potter'' and Wizarding World fansite. Founded in 1999, MuggleNet distinguished itself early on by its unique and comprehensive content. Barely one year after it was launched, the site was see ...

, with the reviewer stating: "I absolutely adored this moving story. It is full of tears and laughter, unfettered fears and furious joy, family and friendship. This important, gripping, heart-in-your-throat contemporary about a teen boy swept up in trouble is not to be missed. For fans of

Malorie Blackman Malorie Blackman is a British writer who held the position of Children's Laureate from 2013 to 2015. She primarily writes literature and television drama for children and young adults. She has used science fiction to explore social and ethica ...

Jacqueline Wilson Dame Jacqueline Wilson (née Aitken; born 17 December 1945) is an English novelist known for her popular children's literature. Her novels have been notable for featuring realistic topics such as adoption and divorce without alienating her lar ...

Alan Gibbons Alan Albert Gibbons (born 14 August 1953) is an English writer of children's books and campaigner known for his advocacy of libraries. He has written over 60 books and won a number of awards including a ''Blue Peter'' Book Award for his best-s ...

Benjamin Zephaniah Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah (born 15 April 1958)Gregory, Andy (2002), ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa, p. 562. . is a British writer and dub poet. He was included in ''The Times'' list of Britain's top 50 post-wa ...

, and

Melvin Burgess Melvin Burgess (born 25 April 1954) is a British writer of children's fiction. He became famous in 1996 with the publication of '' Junk'', about heroin-addicted teenagers on the streets of Bristol. In Britain, ''Junk'' became one of the best-kn ...

. If you like your stories real, heartfelt, and moving, ''Orangeboy'' is one for you." Lawrence herself has been reported as saying of the novel that "though her primary aim had been to promote hope in her story of a teenager caught in gang violence, she wanted to reflect the real situation faced by many black teenagers in Britain". Her follow-up book, ''Indigo Donut'' (2017), was described by Alex O'Connell in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' as "addictive", having "many of the themes of a Jacqueline Wilson novel: bullying, fostering, teenage relationships. Yet Lawrence’s tale is told with unfettered dialogue and broad-ranging cultural references for an older audience who don’t need to be spared the details." ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' reviewer wrote: "Her award-winning debut ''Orangeboy'', a gripping urban thriller, announced Patrice Lawrence as a bold, fresh voice in young adult fiction. This promise is realised in her second book, a tender and complex story of first love, family and belonging." Both novels are set in Hackney, London, where Lawrence has lived in

Lower Clapton Clapton is a district of East London, England, in the London Borough of Hackney. Clapton is divided into Upper Clapton, in the north, and Lower Clapton to the south. Clapton railway station lies north-east of Charing Cross. Geography and ori ...

since 1997. Lawrence also writes a regular blog centering on her experiences of writing and having her work published, called The Lawrence Line, about which she has said: "There are a lot of people coming up behind you and you want to let them know how it happens, particularly for young black writers. I want to show that I've had a good experience of publishing and give people hope that they can tell their stories."Anna James
"An Interview with Costa Shortlisted Author Patrice Lawrence"
''Books For Keeps'', No. 221, November 2016. Lawrence is a contributor to the 2019 anthology ''

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, ...

'', 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' ...

. In October 2021, Lawrence was announced as taking on the role of ambassador for

First Story First Story is an English non-profit organisation that encourages young people to write creatively, outside the curriculum, for self-expression, pleasure and agency. Its stated mission is to empower young people from low-income communities to find ...

, a charity promoting creative writing for young people, with a focus on those in low-income communities. In 2023, she was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...

Selected bibliography

* ''Granny Ting Ting'' – for children (A & C Black, 2009, , 80 pp.) * ''Orangeboy'' (Hodder Children's Books, 2016, . Also available as an audiobook, narrated by

Ben Bailey Smith Benjamin Harvey Bailey Smith (born 21 September 1977), also known by the stage name Doc Brown, is an English actor, comedian, rapper, screenwriter, songwriter, and voiceover artist. He portrayed DS Joe Hawkins in the television series '' Law & ...

."Orangeboy"
at

Audible Audible may refer to: * Audible (service), an online audiobook store * Audible (American football), a tactic used by quarterbacks * ''Audible'' (film), a short documentary film featuring a deaf high school football player * Audible finish or rush ...

. * ''Indigo Donut'' (Hodder Children's Books, 2017, ) * ''Eight Pieces of Silva'' (Hodder Children's Books, 2020, ) * ''Rat'' (Oxford University Press, 2021, )

References

External links

"The Lawrence Line"
"A blog about writing, selling writing and the family stories that inspire writing".
"A Book That Changed my Life , Patrice Lawrence"
''Precious'', 6 June 2017.
"Patrice Lawrence Q&A:'I get to write a black girl into Enid Blyton's Malory Towers'"
''

New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members ...

'', 20 February 2019. * Jacob Hope
"An Interview with Patrice Lawrence"
CILIP, 2 August 2020. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lawrence, Patrice Living people 21st-century British women writers 21st-century English novelists Black British women writers British women novelists British women short story writers English children's writers English people of Trinidad and Tobago descent Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Members of the Order of the British Empire Writers from Brighton Year of birth missing (living people)