Rory Waterman (born in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

, 1981) is a

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

, critic, editor and academic resident in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

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 ...

Early life

Waterman grew up mainly in a lodge house to an estate near

Nocton Nocton is a village and civil parish in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated on the B1202 road, south-east from Lincoln city centre. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 819. To the east o ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

with his mother and grandmother, then in a council house in

Metheringham Metheringham is an English village and civil parish in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 3,605. It is about south of the city and county town of Lincoln and north of Sleafor ...

, with long stays in

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from ga, Cúil Rathain , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern I ...

in Northern Ireland from the age of 10, to see his father. He then took degrees in English at the

University of Leicester , mottoeng = So that they may have life , established = , type = public research university , endowment = £20.0 million , budget = £326 million , chancellor = David Willetts , vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah , head_labe ...

and

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

Career

Waterman teaches at

Nottingham Trent University Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is a public research university in Nottingham, England. It was founded as a new university in 1992, although its roots go back to 1843 with the establishment of the Nottingham Government School of Design, w ...

, and co-edits the poetry pamphlet press New Walk Editions, with Nick Everett at the

. He is also a critic and reviewer, writing regularly for the ''

Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...

'', ''

PN Review Launched as ''Poetry Nation'', a twice-yearly hardback, in 1973, ''PN Review'' - now an A4 paperback - began quarterly publication in 1976 and has appeared six times a year since 1981 (PN Review 21). Two hundred and twenty-five issues of the magaz ...

'', and other publications, and the author of several books of literary criticism. His poetry has been shortlisted for a Ledbury Forte Prize and a Seamus Heaney Prize, and has been made a PBS Recommendation. In addition to his three collections with Carcanet, his poems have appeared in the ''New Statesman'', ''The Guardian'', ''The Financial Times'', and various other magazines and newspapers, as well as a number of anthologies, including ''The Best British Poetry'' and ''The Forward Book of Poetry''. ''The Manchester Review'' wrote that 'Rory Waterman’s first complete collection, ''Tonight the Summer’s Over'' was much lauded, seen as "the best first collection for the past couple of years" and was a PBS recommendation. The splendidly titled ''Brexit Day on the Balmoral Estate'' is a fine widening out of subject matter.' The ''TLS'', reviewing his second book, commended him for a 'seriousness of form and subject uncommon among his generation', and describes his work as 'subversive – and substantial.' His critical essays have appeared in ''Essays in Criticism'', ''English'', ''Poetry Review'', ''PN Review'', and elsewhere.

Books

Poetry

*''Sweet Nothings'' (

Carcanet Press Carcanet Press is a publisher, primarily of poetry, based in the United Kingdom and founded in 1969 by Michael Schmidt. In 2000 it was named the '' Sunday Times'' millennium Small Publisher of the Year. History ''Carcanet'' was originally a li ...

, 2020) *''Sarajevo Roses'' (

, 2017) - shortlisted for the Ledbury Forte Prize 2019 *''Brexit Day on the Balmoral Estate'' (Rack Press, 2017) - pamphlet *''Tonight the Summer's Over'' (

, 2013) -

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, shortlisted for Seamus Heaney Prize 2014

Criticism

*''Wendy Cope'' (Liverpool University Press, 2021) *''Poets of the Second World War'' (Liverpool University Press, 2016) *''Belonging and Estrangement in the Poetry of Philip Larkin, R. S. Thomas and Charles Causley'' (Routledge, 2014)

Edited by

*with Anthony Caleshu, ''Poetry & Covid-19'' (Shearsman, 2021) *''W. H. Davies: Essays on the Super-Tramp Poet'' (Anthem, 2021) *with David Belbin, ''25'' (Shoestring, 2019) *''Something Happens, Sometimes Here: Contemporary Lincolnshire Poets'' (Five Leaves, 2015) *''W. H. Davies, The True Traveller: A Reader'' (Carcanet/Fyfield Books, 2015)

References

External links

*
Carcanet Press author page

Staff profile at Nottingham Trent University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waterman, Rory Academics of Nottingham Trent University Male poets from Northern Ireland Living people Writers from Belfast 1981 births Male writers from Northern Ireland 21st-century writers from Northern Ireland 21st-century poets from Northern Ireland Alumni of Durham University