Jacqueline Crooks

Jacqueline Crooks
FRSL
Born
Jamaica
EducationUniversity of Roehampton
Goldsmiths, University of London
OccupationWriter
Notable workThe Ice Migration (2019)
Fire Rush (2024)

Jacqueline Crooks is a British writer whose debut novel, Fire Rush, was shortlisted for the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction. She was described as one of the "10 best new novelists for 2023" by The Observer.

Early life

Crooks was born in Jamaica and raised in Southall, west London. She graduated from the University of Roehampton with a degree in Social Policy and from Goldsmiths, University of London, with a Master of Arts (MA) in Creative and Life Writing.

Writing career

Crooks wrote a short-story collection titled The Ice Migration, which was longlisted for the 2019 Orwell Prize for Political Fiction. One of her short stories was shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award in 2019.

Her debut novel, Fire Rush, took 16 years to write and is based on her diary entries.

She was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (FRSL) in 2024.

Awards

YearTitleAwardCategoryResultRef.
2019 "Silver Fish in the Midnight Sea" BBC National Short Story Award —Shortlisted
The Ice Migration Orwell Prize Political Fiction Longlisted
2023 Fire RushWaterstones Debut Fiction Prize—Shortlisted
Women's Prize for Fiction—Shortlisted
2024 Authors' Club Best First Novel Award—Shortlisted
Diverse Book Awards Adult Longlisted
Jhalak Prize—Shortlisted
Paul Torday Memorial Prize—Won
McKitterick Prize—Shortlisted

Bibliography

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Cummins, Anthony; Kenny, Ursula; Morris, Kadish; Anderson, Hephzibah; O'Kelly, Lisa (8 January 2023). "Meet the 10 best new novelists for 2023". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  2. ↑ "Jacqueline Crooks". David Higham Associates. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
  3. 1 2 "The Orwell Prizes 2019: Longlists announced | The Orwell Foundation". www.orwellfoundation.com. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  4. ↑ Allfree, Claire (23 February 2023). "Fire Rush review: 1970s dancefloor rhythms pulse through a terrific first novel". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  5. ↑ "Crooks, Jacqueline". Royal Society of Literature. 11 July 2024. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
  6. ↑ "Welsh writer Jo Lloyd wins BBC Short Story prize". BBC News. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2025.
  7. ↑ Shaffi, Sarah (26 April 2023). "Three debut novels compete among Women's prize for fiction shortlist". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  8. ↑ Davidson, Anna (13 July 2023). "Waterstones debut fiction prize 2023 shortlist announced". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  9. ↑ Passmore, Lynsey (26 April 2023). "Announcing the 2023 Women's Prize shortlist". Women's Prize. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  10. ↑ "2024 Best First Novel Award Winner Announced". The Authors' Club. Retrieved 6 October 2024.
  11. ↑ "2024 SHORTLIST". The DB Awards. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  12. ↑ "The Diverse Book Awards 2024 - Shortlists Announced!". Diverse Book Awards. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  13. ↑ "The Prize". www.jhalakprize.com. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  14. ↑ "Paul Torday Memorial Prize – The Society of Authors". Retrieved 22 March 2025.
  15. ↑ "McKitterick Prize". The Society of Authors. Retrieved 6 October 2024.