• Source: Jen Beagin

    • Jen Beagin (born 1971) is an American novelist and writer.


    Life and career




    = Early life and education

    =
    Beagin grew up in Torrance, California, and moved to Lowell, Massachusetts, in her youth. She returned to college in her mid-30s, and attended the University of Massachusetts Boston. She earned an MFA in Writing from the University of California, Irvine.


    = Professional life

    =
    Among other jobs, Beagin was a long time housecleaner. This inspired the character of Mona, who is the housecleaner protagonist of her first two books.


    Published works




    = Pretend I'm Dead (2015)

    =
    Pretend I'm Dead, her first novel, received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews which also noted it among the Best Fiction of 2018. Pretend I'm Dead was shortlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. The popular website Emily Books gave an early positive review of the book, the first edition of which was published by Northwestern University Press in 2015. The novel was reissued as a hardcover in 2018 by Simon & Schuster.


    = Vacuum in the Dark (2019)

    =
    Vacuum in the Dark, a sequel to Pretend I'm Dead, received a starred Kirkus review and was named a best book for February 2019 by Oprah Magazine. Publishers Weekly has a starred review, calling it "a sharp and superb novel" that "pulls no punches—this novel is viciously smart and morbidly funny."


    = Big Swiss (2023)

    =
    Big Swiss is about a woman who transcribes sex therapy sessions and how she falls for a client Flavia, the titular "Big Swiss".
    Publishers Weekly Tip Sheet notes that "This unconventional love story has a surplus of appeal from page one."


    Critical reception


    Entertainment Weekly said: "Beagin stands out among fiction's fresh crop of promising voices." NPR Books says that "Beagin is a wonderfully funny writer who also happens to tackle serious subjects."


    Awards and nominations




    = Awards

    =
    2017: Whiting Award for fiction
    2018: Pretend I'm Dead shortlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize.
    2019: Vacuum in the Dark shortlist for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction.


    Bibliography




    = Novels

    =
    — (2018). Pretend I'm Dead. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1501183935.
    — (2019). Vacuum in the Dark. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1501182143.
    — (2023). Big Swiss. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1982153083.


    = Short fiction

    =
    — (2013). Juked, Issue 11. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)


    = Essays

    =
    — (2018). PowellsBooks.Blog: Original Essays. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
    — (2019). Publishers Weekly. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)


    See also




    = Articles

    =
    Hart, Michelle (26 February 2019). Oprah Magazine. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)


    = Excerpts

    =
    "Yoko and Yoko" excerpt from Pretend I'm Dead (2016)
    Excerpt from "Hole" in Pretend I'm Dead (2015)
    "Poop" excerpt from Vacuum in the Dark (2019)


    = Interviews and readings

    =
    Ragsdale, Melissa (2015). "Somewhere on the Path Towards Self-Awareness: An Interview with Jen Beagin". Electric Literature.
    "Jen Beagin reads from 'Pretend I'm Dead'". (video) Whiting Foundation. 2017.
    "Jen Beagin on How She Began to Write Fiction". (video) Simon & Schuster. 2019.
    Bartnett, Erin (2019). "Jen Beagin Counters the BS of Who You're Supposed to Be in Your 20s". Electric Literature.
    Canfield, David (2019). "Jen Beagin on writing bad boyfriends, worse behavior, and a hilarious new literary hero". Entertainment Weekly.


    References

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