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Tom Franklin

トム・フランクリン

Tom Franklin

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1963-07-07 （Dickinson, Alabama, United States）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Dickinson, Alabama → Mobile, Alabama → Fayetteville, Arkansas → Oxford, Mississippi

Career

Occupations
Writer, Professor
Active Years
1999-
Affiliations
University of Mississippi (Department of English)
Influenced By
Rick Bass, Raymond Carver

Education

University of South Alabama
Degree: B.A.
Country: United States
Earned B.A. at the University of South Alabama in Mobile
University of Arkansas
Degree: M.F.A.
Year of Graduation: 1998
Country: United States
Completed an M.F.A. in 1998; met his wife Beth Ann Fennelly while attending

Awards

Edgar Award for Best Mystery Short Story
2000
Work: Poachers (short story)
Organization: Mystery Writers of America
Result: Winner
Gold Dagger Award
2010
Work: Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
Organization: Crime Writers' Association
Result: Winner
Los Angeles Times Book Prize
2010
Work: Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
Organization: Los Angeles Times
Result: Winner
Willie Morris Award for Southern Fiction
2010
Work: Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
Organization: Unknown
Result: Winner
RT Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Contemporary Mystery
2010
Work: Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
Organization: RT (Romantic Times)
Result: Winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Poachers (short story collection)

1999 Short stories / Mystery

A collection of ten short stories set in the American South (Alabama). The title story received acclaim as a mystery short story.

Southern regionalismCrimeHuman relationships

Hell at the Breech

2003 Historical fiction / Novel

A fictionalized account of a violent 1892 feud (the Mitcham War) in Clarke County, Alabama, depicting violence and local conflict.

Local historyViolenceRevenge

Smonk

2006 Crime fiction / Novel

A novel centered on the trial of a rapist who terrorized a small Alabama town, exploring trauma and community reaction.

TrialsTraumaCommunity

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter

2010 Crime fiction / Regional fiction

A mystery novel that explores racial tensions and friendship in a small Alabama town, where past events resurface and test characters' bonds.

Racial tensionFriendshipSmall-town secrets

The Tilted World (with Beth Ann Fennelly)

2013 Historical fiction / Novel

Co-written with Beth Ann Fennelly; set against the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, the novel examines disaster and human relationships.

Natural disasterCollaborationHistory

Bibliography

  • Poachers (1999)
  • Hell at the Breech (2003)
  • Smonk (2006)
  • Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter (2010)
  • The Tilted World (2013, with Beth Ann Fennelly)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
RealismSouthern Gothic elementsNoir
Recurring Motifs
Southern regionalismSecrets and shadows of the pastRacial tensionMasculinity

Legacy

Tom Franklin is known for crime and regional fiction set in the American South. His novel 'Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter' received international recognition and is regarded as a notable work of contemporary Southern noir.

Archives

  • University of Mississippi archives (possible repository for related materials)

Trivia

  • Full name Thomas Gerald Franklin.
  • Married to poet Beth Ann Fennelly; they have one daughter and two sons.
  • The title story of Poachers won an Edgar Award.
  • Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter received multiple awards and broad acclaim.
  • Cites Rick Bass and Raymond Carver as influences.
  • Serves as an associate professor in the Department of English at the University of Mississippi.