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| {{Short description|English author}} | |||
| {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}} | |||
| {{Use British English|date=February 2023}} | |||
| {{multiple issues| | {{multiple issues| | ||
| {{BLP sources|date= |
{{BLP sources|date=October 2023}} | ||
| {{ |
{{Sources exist|date=July 2022}} | ||
| {{cleanup-rewrite|date=December 2013}} | |||
| }} | }} | ||
| {{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see ] --> | {{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see ] --> | ||
| |name = Cliff McNish | |name = Cliff McNish | ||
| |birth_place = ], England |
|birth_place = ], England | ||
| |occupation = Writer |
|occupation = Writer | ||
| |period = |
|period = 2000–present <!-- Doomspell publication date --> | ||
| |genre = |
|genre = Children's fantasy, ], ] | ||
| |notableworks = {{plainlist| | |notableworks = {{plainlist| | ||
| * '']'' | * '']'' | ||
| * ''Breathe'' | * '']'' | ||
| * '']'' | * '']'' | ||
| * ''The Hunting Ground'' | |||
| * ''Angel'' | |||
| * ''Savannah Grey'' | |||
| }} | }} | ||
| |awards = | |||
| |awards = Calderdale Award 2011,2013, Hillingdon Secondary Book of the Year Award 2013, Virginia Readers’ Choice Award, and the Salford Award. | |||
| |website = {{URL|www.cliffmcnish.com}} | |||
| Nominated for the Carnegie Award and the Cybils. | |||
| * | |||
| |signature = | |signature = | ||
| }} | }} | ||
| '''Cliff McNish''' is an English author of |
'''Cliff McNish''' is an English author of fantasy and supernatural novels for young adults. His best-known works include the 2006 ghost novel '']'', '']'', and '']'', which has been translated into 26 languages. | ||
| == Early life and education == | |||
| McNish has won numerous awards for his work. His 2006 ghost novel ''Breathe'' was voted in May 2013 as one of the top 100 adult and children’s novels of all time by the Schools Network of British Librarians. | |||
| ⚫ | McNish was born in ] in the north-east of England. His father, a ], moved south a year later with his wife, and McNish spent most of his childhood in the south east of England. | ||
| ==Career== | |||
| == Biographical details == | |||
| ⚫ | McNish started writing in 1998 and has been a full-time author since 2003, combining writing with visiting workshops in schools on writing fiction. | ||
| ⚫ | McNish was born in Sunderland in the |
||
| Between 2000 and 2003 he released '']'', a fantasy trilogy for middle-grade readers consisting of ''The Doomspell'', ''The Scent of Magic'', and ''The Wizard's Promise'', set partly on Earth and also on the Witch Worlds of Ithrea and Ool. The ''Doomspell'' novels have been published in 26 languages, with wide readership in the UK and Japan. McNish has cited '']'' by ] as an influence on the style and characterisation of the trilogy. | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| '']'' (2003–2005) followed on immediately from the Doomspell Trilogy, and is a science fiction trilogy primarily for middle-grade and lower-teen readers, consisting of ''The Silver Child'', ''Silver City'', and ''Silver World''.<ref name="Ardagh">{{cite news |last1=Ardagh |first1=Philip |title=Six of the best |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2003/sep/20/featuresreviews.guardianreview30 |access-date=17 October 2023 |work=The Guardian |date=20 September 2003}}</ref> The trilogy concerns six children with unusual powers who are battling to prevent a single vast entity from destroying all life on Earth. | |||
| == The Doomspell Trilogy == | |||
| {{Main|The Doomspell Trilogy}} | |||
| '']'' is a fantasy trilogy for middle-grade readers written in 2000–2003. The books are: | |||
| *''The Doomspell'' | |||
| *''The Scent of Magic'' | |||
| *''The Wizard's Promise'' | |||
| ⚫ | McNish's first stand-alone novel, '']'', was released in 2006, and focuses on a group of ghost children trapped in a house by a Ghost Mother. The book won the ], the Virginia Readers' Choice Award, the ], and was shortlisted for the Rhode Island Teen Book Award and the Texas Lonestar Awards. In May 2013, ''Breathe'' was selected by the UK School Librarians' Network as one of the top 100 adult and children's novels of all time. | ||
| The stories are set partly on Earth and also on the Witch Worlds of Ithrea and Ool. | |||
| This was followed in 2008 by ''Angel'', a teen fantasy novel about a 14-year-old girl whose life is shaped by two angels. The novel incorporates darker themes of teen angst, bullying, and how to behave in the world, and was shortlisted for the North East Teenage fiction Award and the Tayshas Reading List. | |||
| ''The Doomspell'' is about two young and gifted siblings, Rachel and Eric, who are dragged from the cellar of their house into Ithrea, a world of ice and snow ruled by a wicked witch called Dragwena. | |||
| ''Savannah Grey'' (2010) is a teen horror novel about a 14-year-old girl who is stalked by three monsters. It was nominated for the Carnegie Award in 2011. | |||
| In ''The Scent of Magic'' the struggle returns to Earth, where the witches of Ool arrive to form children into armies against their ancient adversaries, the wizards. | |||
| ⚫ | ''The Hunting Ground'' (2011) is a second ghost novel aimed at older teens, about two brothers who move into an old house inhabited by the ghosts of children who previously died there. It won the Calderdale Award (2013) and the Hillingdon Secondary Book of the Year Award (2013). It was shortlisted for the Lancashire Book of the Year and the Bay Book Award. | ||
| The final novel of the trilogy, ''The Wizard’s Promise'', pits the children and wizards against the combined forces of the witches for the future of the Earth. | |||
| ''Going Home'' (2014) is a departure from McNish's previous style, a comedy about four dogs stuck in a rescue centre. It was released with illustrations by ]. | |||
| The Doomspell novels have been published in 26 languages worldwide, with an especially wide readership in the U.K and in Japan. McNish acknowledges the influence of C. S. Lewis’ Narnian Chronicles on the style and characterisation of the Doomspell books. | |||
| ==References== | |||
| == The Silver Sequence == | |||
| {{Reflist}} | |||
| The Silver Sequence (2003–2005) followed on immediately from the Doomspell Trilogy, and is a science fiction trilogy primarily for middle-grade and lower-teen readers. The books are: | |||
| *''The Silver Child'' | |||
| *''Silver City'' | |||
| *''Silver World'' | |||
| A marked departure from the more traditional fantasy of the Doomspell books, ''The Silver Sequence'' concerns 6 children with unusual powers: Tom (a ‘giver of beauty,’) Walter (a giant), twin girls Freda and Alice, and Milo, a boy who finally turns into a being with silver wings seven miles long. The story concerns the effort of these children to stop a single vast entity from destroying all life on Earth – an entity known only by the terrifying noise it makes: the Roar. | |||
| Noted for its original storyline and intense imagery, the sequence was described in UK newspaper ''The Guardian'' as taking the reader ‘into uncharted territory, manipulating language in the most extraordinary way.’ | |||
| == Breathe: A Ghost Story == | |||
| ''Breathe: A Ghost Story'' (2006) is McNish’s first stand-alone novel. It is about a group of ghost children – Ann, Oliver, Gwyneth and Charlie – trapped inside a house by a Ghost Mother. A 12 year-old boy, Jack, suffering from chronic asthma, has just moved into the old house with his mother, and discovers that the Ghost Mother wants him to herself. | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| == Angel == | |||
| ''Angel'' (2008) is a teen fantasy novel about a fourteen year old girl, Freya, whose life is shaped by two angels: Hestron, bright, beautiful, surrounded by a mane of golden sunshine, and Mestraal, so impenetrably dark that nearly everything is erased by its shadow. Unusually in McNish’s fiction, ''Angel'' incorporates gritty elements of teen angst and bullying, as well as a moral debate about how to behave in the world. | |||
| Angel was shortlisted for the North East Teenage fiction Award and the Tayshas Reading List. | |||
| == Savannah Grey == | |||
| ''Savannah Grey'' (2010) is a pure teen horror novel about a 14 year-old girl, Savannah Grey, stalked by three monsters: (1) the Nyktomorph – a giant reptile (2) The horror (a terrifying childlike creature with one eye) and (3) The Ocrassa (a unique being that arrived on Earth at the dawn of time). | |||
| McNish has described ''Savannah Grey'' as the novel he worked the longest and hardest on (seven major redrafts) and which ‘received the least attention of all my novels.’ | |||
| Savannah Grey was nominated for the Carnegie Award in 2011. | |||
| == The Hunting Ground == | |||
| ⚫ | ''The Hunting Ground'' (2011) is the |
||
| ''The Hunting Ground'' is a second ghost novel aimed at older teens. Two brothers, Elliott and Ben, move into an old house. At the centre of this house is the East Wing, a labyrinth of almost identical corridors and rooms. At the heart of the East Wing dwells the ancient malevolent ghost of Cullayn and also a child who died in the house – the frightening little girl, Eve. | |||
| == Later work == | |||
| '''Going Home'' is a new McNish novel aimed at middle-grade readers (with illustrations by Trish Phillips). It is a complete departure from McNish’s previous style, a heartfelt comedy about four dogs stuck in a rescue centre. Due to be published April 3rd 2014. | |||
| == Film scripts == | |||
| McNish has written two film scripts. | |||
| 1. Breathe – an adaptation of his novel of 2006, ''Breathe''. This is an adult version of McNish’s ghost novel, focusing less on the ghost children and more on the conflict between the Ghost Mother and Jack’s mother, Sarah. | |||
| 2. The Lure - a black comedy film script about a monster that arrives on Earth in the shape of a lure, and the havoc it wreaks when four college students unleash it. | |||
| == External links == | == External links == | ||
| {{Portal |Children's literature}} | |||
| * | * | ||
| {{Authority control}} | |||
| {{Persondata | |||
| | NAME = McNish, Cliff | |||
| | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | |||
| | SHORT DESCRIPTION = English writer | |||
| | DATE OF BIRTH = 24 August 1962 | |||
| | PLACE OF BIRTH = ], England, UK | |||
| | DATE OF DEATH = | |||
| | PLACE OF DEATH = | |||
| }} | |||
| {{DEFAULTSORT:McNish, Cliff}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:McNish, Cliff}} | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
Latest revision as of 20:36, 17 October 2023
English author
 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages)
|
| Cliff McNish | |
|---|---|
| Born | Sunderland, England |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Period | 2000–present |
| Genre | Children's fantasy, horror, dark fantasy |
| Notable works | |
| Website | |
| www | |
Cliff McNish is an English author of fantasy and supernatural novels for young adults. His best-known works include the 2006 ghost novel Breathe, The Silver Sequence, and The Doomspell Trilogy, which has been translated into 26 languages.
Early life and education
McNish was born in Sunderland in the north-east of England. His father, a Marine Engineer, moved south a year later with his wife, and McNish spent most of his childhood in the south east of England.
Career
McNish started writing in 1998 and has been a full-time author since 2003, combining writing with visiting workshops in schools on writing fiction.
Between 2000 and 2003 he released The Doomspell Trilogy, a fantasy trilogy for middle-grade readers consisting of The Doomspell, The Scent of Magic, and The Wizard's Promise, set partly on Earth and also on the Witch Worlds of Ithrea and Ool. The Doomspell novels have been published in 26 languages, with wide readership in the UK and Japan. McNish has cited The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis as an influence on the style and characterisation of the trilogy.
The Silver Sequence (2003–2005) followed on immediately from the Doomspell Trilogy, and is a science fiction trilogy primarily for middle-grade and lower-teen readers, consisting of The Silver Child, Silver City, and Silver World. The trilogy concerns six children with unusual powers who are battling to prevent a single vast entity from destroying all life on Earth.
McNish's first stand-alone novel, Breathe: A Ghost Story, was released in 2006, and focuses on a group of ghost children trapped in a house by a Ghost Mother. The book won the Calderdale Award, the Virginia Readers' Choice Award, the Salford Award, and was shortlisted for the Rhode Island Teen Book Award and the Texas Lonestar Awards. In May 2013, Breathe was selected by the UK School Librarians' Network as one of the top 100 adult and children's novels of all time.
This was followed in 2008 by Angel, a teen fantasy novel about a 14-year-old girl whose life is shaped by two angels. The novel incorporates darker themes of teen angst, bullying, and how to behave in the world, and was shortlisted for the North East Teenage fiction Award and the Tayshas Reading List.
Savannah Grey (2010) is a teen horror novel about a 14-year-old girl who is stalked by three monsters. It was nominated for the Carnegie Award in 2011.
The Hunting Ground (2011) is a second ghost novel aimed at older teens, about two brothers who move into an old house inhabited by the ghosts of children who previously died there. It won the Calderdale Award (2013) and the Hillingdon Secondary Book of the Year Award (2013). It was shortlisted for the Lancashire Book of the Year and the Bay Book Award.
Going Home (2014) is a departure from McNish's previous style, a comedy about four dogs stuck in a rescue centre. It was released with illustrations by Trish Phillips.
References
- Ardagh, Philip (20 September 2003). "Six of the best". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
