Ramón Mauricio González Gutiérrez (born September 4, 1983), known by his pen name José Baroja, is a Chilean writer, academic and editor. He is a member of the Poets of the World Movement, representative of the Neofantastic and social realism short stories in the context of the new Chilean narrative

Biography

As the eldest son of three brothers, he was born in the Regional Hospital of Valdivia, Chile, in 1983. But he lives his adolescence in the city of Maipú in

Santiago de Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital city, capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's Chilean Central Valley, central valley and is the center ...

. There, he studied at Colegio Internacional Alba and at Oxford College. He graduated from the

Pontifical Catholic University of Chile The Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (UC Chile; ) is a traditional private university based in Santiago, Chile. It is one of the thirteen Catholic universities existing in Chilean university system and one of the two pontifical univ ...

with a bachelor's degree in Letters, with a mention in Linguistics and Hispanic Literature, and a master's degree in Letters and a mention in Literature. Between 2007 and 2017, he began to give lectures and workshops on both subjects in several universities and institutes in Chile, mainly in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

Talca Talca () is a city and commune in Chile located about south of Santiago, and is the capital of both Talca Province and Maule Region (7th Region of Chile). As of the 2012 census, the city had a population of 201,142. The city is an important ...

and Valdivia. Besides this, he participates in seminars and congresses in the area, among which Primer Encuentro Nacional de Escritores

Gabriela Mistral Lucila Godoy Alcayaga (; 7 April 1889 – 10 January 1957), known by her pseudonym Gabriela Mistral (), was a Chilean poet-diplomat, educator, and Catholic. She was a member of the Secular Franciscan Order or Third Franciscan order. She was ...

stands out, in Los Andes, and Tercer Encuentro Internacional de Historia y Literatura Araucanía 2017 of The University of la Frontera, in

Temuco Temuco () is a List of cities in Chile, city and Communes of Chile, commune, capital (political), capital of the Cautín Province and of the Araucanía Region in southern Chile. The city is located south of Santiago de Chile, Santiago. The cit ...

. Still in 2017, he premiered his literary recognition with the first prize in the Gonzalo Rojas Pizarro Literary contest. This was followed by other awards in Argentina and Chile, as well as the publication of his first book, ''El hombre del terrón de azúcar y otros cuentos''. At the end of this year, he founded the RunRun storytelling group, presenting his work in various libraries and schools in Maule and O'Higgins. In 2018, after participating in some interviews about the death of

Nicanor Parra Nicanor Segundo Parra Sandoval (5 September 1914 – 23 January 2018) was a Chilean physicist and poet. He has been considered one of the most influential Spanish-language Chilean poets of the 20th century. Parra described himself as an " an ...

, Baroja was invited to Mexico for the first time, first for the XI Encuentro Internacional de Investigadores de Lengua y Literatura and the XII Festival Internacional de Literatura "Palabra en el Mundo", organized by Universidad Autónoma de Chiapas in

Tuxtla Gutiérrez Tuxtla Gutiérrez, or Tuxtla, (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Mexico, Mexican southeastern state of Chiapas. It is the seat of the municipality of the same name, which is the most developed and populous in the state. A busy govern ...

and San Cristóbal de las Casas, and, later, for the

Guadalajara International Book Fair The Guadalajara International Book Fair, better known as the FIL (from its Spanish name: ) is the largest book fair in the Americas, and second-largest book fair in the world after Frankfurt Book Fair, Frankfurt's. It is also considered the most i ...

. In October of that same year, he published several articles and stories about the social outburst in Chile. In November, he was invited to participate in the First Chonchón Latin American Meeting of Poets and Narrators, in Lebu, Chile. In 2019, after a fleeting visit to

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, Toronto,

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

and

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, the latter places where ''El curioso caso de la sombre que murió como un recuerdo y otros cuentos'' and ''Cuentos Reunidos-Antología Breve'' are born, he decided to migrate to

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

, Mexico. Later that year, he co-founded in Lebu, Chile, the arts and letters magazine ''Sudras y Parias'', together with Chilean writers Jaime Magnan and Alfredo Ojeda Torres and was invited to the Fourth Meeting of Writers of

Tapachula Tapachula de Córdova y Ordóñez, simply known as Tapachula, is a city and municipality located in the far southeast of the state of Chiapas, Mexico, near the Guatemalan border and the Pacific Ocean. Economically, it is one of the most importan ...

, in

Chiapas Chiapas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas, is one of the states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises Municipalities of Chiapas, 124 municipalities and its capital and large ...

. During his stay in Mexico, Baroja became a member of the Poets of the World Movement, in addition to becoming the co-founder of Audacia Editorial, in

Zapopan Zapopan () is a city and municipality located in the Mexican state of Jalisco. Part of the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area, Zapopan is the largest city in the state. It's best known as the home of the Virgin of Zapopan, an image of the Virgin ...

Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...

. In 2020, he participated in the International Festival of Sonora Literature, in

San Luis Río Colorado San Luis Río Colorado is a city and also the name of its surrounding municipality in the state of Sonora, Mexico. In the 2020 census, the city had a population of 176,685. The city is the fourth-largest community in the state, and the municipa ...

and publish in

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, ''El lado oscuro de la sombra y otros ladridos''. In 2021, ''No fue un catorce de febrero y otros cuentos'' is published in Spain. In 2022, he married the Mexican writer Leyda Mariscal. In 2023 he is incorporated as an author in the directory of the Creative Community of Los Ríos, dependent on the Ministry of Cultures, arts and heritage of the Government of Chile. It also publishes in

, Spain, ''Sueño en Guadalajara y otros cuentos'', while it was translated into French by Agata Mendes de Carvalho in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and is part of the Chilean delegation that participates in the

, along with writers such as Victor Munita Fritis,

Alejandro Zambra Alejandro Andrés Zambra Infantas (Santiago, Chile, born September 24, 1975) is a Chilean poet, short-story writer and novelist. He has been recognized for his talent as a young Latin American writer, chosen in 2007 as one of the " Bogotá39" (the ...

, Pablo Simonetti, María José Ferrada, the scientists Sebastián Pérez and Paula Jofré, and the visual artists Consuelo Terra, Pablo Delcielo and Catalina Bu. In 2024, he is included in the Encyclopedia of Literature in Mexico (ELEM), a digital

encyclopedia An encyclopedia is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge, either general or special, in a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into article (publishing), articles or entries that are arranged Alp ...

on the

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

of Mexico, edited by the Foundation for Mexican Letters, supported by the Ministry of Culture and the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature from Mexico. This year, he also becomes the host of the radio show ''La Otra Historia: Fútbol, Literatura y Rock & Pop,'' broadcast from Guadalajara and created by Chilean poet Víctor Munita Fritis and cultural manager David Meneses. In 2025, he is included in

Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library The Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library (MCVL; in , BVMC) is a large-scale digital library project, hosted and maintained by the University of Alicante in Alicante, Spain. It comprises the largest open-access repository of digitised Spanish-langua ...

, in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, Spain.

Style and influences

Baroja's narrative is characterized by a simple and well-kept language, although with a complex background that requires an important cultural background; in contrast, his poetry tends towards the visceral and little content. Among his narrative influences,

Jorge Luis Borges Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo ( ; ; 24 August 1899 – 14 June 1986) was an Argentine short-story writer, essayist, poet and translator regarded as a key figure in Spanish literature, Spanish-language and international literatur ...

María Luisa Bombal María Luisa Bombal Anthes (; Viña del Mar, 8 June 1910 – 6 May 1980) was a Chilean novelist and poet. Her work incorporates erotic, surrealist, and feminist themes. She was a recipient of the Santiago Municipal Literature Award. Biogra ...

, Manuel Rojas and

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

stand out, authors from whom he takes satire, irony and care for the language. It is correct to affirm that Baroja's literature moves between the fantastic and social realism.

Works

Short story collections * ''El hombre del terrón de azúcar y otros cuentos'' * ''Un hijo de perra y otros cuentos'' * ''En memoria del alma de Don Trementino Marabunta y otros cuentos'' * ''El curioso caso de la sombra que murió como un recuerdo y otros cuentos'' * ''Historia de dos hombres que se extraviaron en el olvido y otros relatos'' * ''Cuentos Reunidos–Antología Breve'' * ''Cuentos de un escritor chileno en México'' * ''Cuentos de un escritor trasnochado,'' en formato braille * ''Sobre la extraordinaria memoria de Ernesto Faundez Sanhueza'' * ''El lado oscuro de la sombra y otros ladridos'' * ''No fue un catorce de febrero y otros cuentos'' * ''Sueño en Guadalajara y otros cuentos'' Poetry * ''Mi último invierno-Antología de un hombre que está cansado'' Other works *''Sobre la novela picaresca: Presentación Alonso, mozo de muchos amos, edición crítica de M. D. Miguel Donoso'' *''El teatro de

Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a ...

como visión crítica de un hombre de la Modernidad'' *''Acerca del ser brasileño como figura identitaria en el modernismo'' *''

Hernán Rivera Letelier Hernán Rivera Letelier (born 11 July 1950 in Talca, Chile) is a Chilean novelist. Until the age of 11 he lived in the Algorta saltpeter mining town, in the north of Chile. When it was closed down, he and his family moved to Antofagasta, where h ...

: La pampa salitrera como paradigma poscolonial de la identidad chilena''. *"El Laberinto De La Soledad de Octavio Paz como síntesis de la modernidad latinoamericana". En ''

Octavio Paz Octavio Paz Lozano (March 31, 1914 – April 19, 1998) was a Mexican poet and diplomat. For his body of work, he was awarded the 1977 Jerusalem Prize, the 1981 Miguel de Cervantes Prize, the 1982 Neustadt International Prize for Literature, a ...

and India: Enduring Resonances'' *''Emergencia del sujeto marginal en

Hijo de ladrón Nathan Peter Hachero Azarcon (born January 29, 1975) is a Filipino musician, nationalist, songwriter, and producer. He is currently the bassist, vocalist and one of the founding members of Pinoy rock, Filipino rock band Rivermaya. He was also a m ...

de Manuel Rojas'' *''Algunos apuntes sobre la novela negra latinoamericana a partir de La ciudad está triste de Ramón Díaz Eterovic'' *''Sobre estructura y recepción textual de Historia de la monja alférez''.

Awards and honours

Baroja's awards include the Gonzalo Rojas Pizarro International Contest, in Chile, Tierras Poéticas and Exilio, in Argentina. Likewise, his participation in numerous anthologies, both in English and Spanish, stands out, among which we can name ''Alien Minds'', a publication in English by La Rama Dorada, Argentina, ''Nueva Poesía y Narrativa Hispanoamericana del Siglo XXI'', by Ediciones Lord Byron, in

, Spain, ''The 100 most outstanding writers of Ibero-America'', from Ediciones Hispana, in

the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, versions 2018–2019, 2020–2021 and 2022–2023, ''Escritor Libre Internacional'', from Tahiel Ediciones, in

, Argentina, and ''Homenaje an escritores de Jalisco'', from Maya Cartonera publishing house, in

, Mexico. Finally, he has appeared in different literary magazines, such as ''Revista Verbo (Des)nudo'', in Chile, ''Revista Guardatextos'' and ''Revista Interpretextos'', in Mexico, ''Revista Guardarraya'' and Revista Contrapunto de la Universidad de Alcalá, in Spain, science fiction magazine ''Teoría Omicrón'', in

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

, ''Disparates fanzine'', in France, and ''Revista Cultural Calle B'',14 in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, among others.

References

External links

*
Heritage Project

Letras de Chile

Jose Baroja's portfolio

Enciclopedia de la Literatura en México

Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baroja, José 1983 births 20th-century Chilean poets 20th-century Chilean male writers 20th-century short story writers Chilean male poets Chilean male short story writers Weird fiction writers People from Valdivia Chilean literary critics Postmodern writers 21st-century Chilean writers Living people Bibliographies of Chilean writers