Douglas Stuart is the 2020 Booker Prize winning author. His story is one of survival, perseverance and defying people’s expectations. Douglas’ incredible debut novel Shuggie Bain was inspired by his upbringing in Glasgow, a time when he describes himself as a young queer son of a single mother struggling with addiction and poverty. Following his mother’s death, Douglas fended for himself and remarkably went on to study fashion at the Royal College of art in London where he was recognised and moved to New York to work for some of the biggest fashion brands in the world. He still lives in New York but now finally, after many rejections, as a writer, an acclaimed writer. Revisiting his past and putting pen to paper changed everything for him. 

His writing is so immersive, due to his granular descriptions of the worlds his characters inhabit. They struggle against and around brutal violence and substance use and always with the backdrop of relentless poverty. His stories are sad, and frightening and viscerally told. His books take over your world and you can’t forget them. Here he shares the story of his life changes with Annie.

Stuart’s second novel Young Mungo will be published this Thursday (14th April). You can pre order it here: https://www.douglasdstuart.com/books-1

Should you be affected by any of the issues raised in this episode, in the UK, The Samaritans can be reached on 116 123. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline is 1-800-273-8255. Hotlines in other countries can be found here http://www.suicide.org/international-suicide-hotlines.html

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