Ana Maria Gonçalves (born 1970) is a Brazilian writer. She was born in Ibiá,

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

. Gonçalves was a professor of English and then a publicist in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

. In 2002, she decided to pursue writing full-time. Later that year she published her first novel ''Ao lado e à margem do que sentes por mim«'' ("Beside and at the edge of what you feel for me"). In 2006, she published the novel ''»Um defeito de cor«'' ("A color defect"); it received the

Casa de las Américas Prize The Casa de las Américas Prize (''Premio Literario Casa de las Américas'') is a literary award given by the Cuban Casa de las Américas. Established in 1959, it is one of Latin America’s oldest and most prestigious literary prizes. The award ...

for the category Brazilian literature in 2007. In 2009, she was included in a list published by the newspaper ''

O Globo ''O Globo'' (, ''The Globe'') is a Brazilian newspaper based in Rio de Janeiro. ''O Globo'' is the leading daily newspaper in the country and the most prominent print publication in the Grupo Globo media conglomerate. Founded by journalist Ir ...

'' of the best Brazilian books from the previous decade. Her short stories have been included in anthologies published in Portugal and Italy. Gonçalves was writer in residence at

Tulane University The Tulane University of Louisiana (commonly referred to as Tulane University) is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by a cohort of medical doctors, it b ...

in 2007, at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

in 2008 and at

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...

in 2009. As of 2019, she was living in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. In 2015, an adaptation of the book A Color Defect was announced for a television series, scheduled for release in 2021. In December 2016, Ana Maria Gonçalves became a columnist on racial, cultural and political issues for The Intercept Brazil. On 10 July 2025, she was elected to occupy the Chair number 33 at the

Brazilian Academy of Letters The Academia Brasileira de Letras (ABL; English: ''Brazilian Academy of Letters'') is a Brazilian literary non-profit society established at the end of the 19th century. The first president, Machado de Assis, declared its foundation on Tuesday, ...

, in succession to Evanildo Bechara.

References

1970 births Living people Brazilian women novelists Brazilian expatriate academics in the United States 20th-century Brazilian women writers 21st-century Brazilian women writers Tulane University faculty Stanford University faculty Middlebury College faculty People from Minas Gerais 20th-century Brazilian novelists 21st-century Brazilian novelists Public relations people Members of the Brazilian Academy of Letters {{Brazil-writer-stub The Intercept people