A. J. Bermudez is an American author and screenwriter. Her short fiction and screenwriting have won a number of awards, including the PAGE International Screenwriting Award (iCON, 2021),[1][2] the Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize ("The Lady Will Pay for Everything", 2021),[3] and the Iowa Short Fiction Award (Stories No One Hopes Are About Them, University of Iowa Press, 2022).[4] Her films have been produced in the U.S. and internationally,[5] and her literary writing has appeared in McSweeney's,[2] Virginia Quarterly Review,[6] Story,[7] Chicago Review,[8] The Masters Review,[9] Fiction International,[10] Electric Literature,[11] Boulevard,[12] Creative Nonfiction,[13] and elsewhere.
A. J. Bermudez | |
---|---|
Born | Amanda J. Bermudez |
Occupation | Writer |
Genre | Screenwriting, fiction, short fiction |
Notable works | My Dead Friend Zoe, iCON, Nightingale, Stories No One Hopes Are About Them |
Notable awards | PAGE International Screenwriting Award, Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize, Iowa Short Fiction Award |
Website | |
amandajbermudez |
Personal life
editBermudez grew up in various parts of the United States, and after graduating high school at age 16, she moved to Russia, where she worked as a music translator and with the Afghan refugee population in Moscow.[14][15] Prior to screenwriting, Bermudez worked as an EMT.[14][16]
In interviews, Bermudez has talked about the loss of her parents at a young age, and has described "writing, like mourning, [as] a constant negotiation between the political and the personal."[17][18]
Career
editBermudez has been a vocal advocate of social justice and the arts.[19] In 2019, she was named one of the Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch by the International Screenwriters Association.[20] Her debut book was called a "must-read" by Publishers Weekly[21] and was described by Anthony Marra as "an absolutely brilliant collection, so of the moment formally and politically yet timeless in its pursuit of human contradiction."[22]
Bermudez was announced as Co-Editor of The Maine Review in January 2022, and currently serves as Editor.[23][24] As a writer, Bermudez's work has been noted to focus on "intersections of power, privilege, and place," with characters who subvert traditional ideas of literary protagonists.[25][26]
In 2022, Bermudez was one of the inaugural residents artists of the Nawat Fes Residency in Fez, Morocco.[27][28][29]
Bermudez co-wrote the film My Dead Friend Zoe, which premiered at South by Southwest in 2024, with director Kyle Hausmann-Stokes.
Awards and honors
editYear | Work | Accolade | Result | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | My Dead Friend Zoe | South by Southwest Narrative Spotlight Award | Winner | [30] |
2023 | Stories No One Hopes Are About Them | Lambda Literary Award | Finalist | [31][32] |
2023 | "The Real India" | Pushcart Prize | Winner | [33] |
2023 | Self | Steinbeck Fellowship | Winner | [34] |
2023 | "Picking the Wound" | Best Small Fictions | Nominee | [35] |
2022 | Stories No One Hopes Are About Them | Iowa Short Fiction Award | Winner | [4] |
2022 | Stories No One Hopes Are About Them | The Story Prize | Nominee | [36] |
2021 | iCON | PAGE International Screenwriting Award | Winner | [1] |
2021 | "The Lady Will Pay for Everything" | Alpine Fellowship Writing Prize | Winner | [3] |
2021 | "Obscure Trivia of the Antarctic" | Pushcart Prize | Nominee | [37] |
2021 | "Octopus" | Adina Talve-Goodman Fellowship | Finalist | [7] |
2020 | Self | SmokeLong Fellowship for Emerging Writers | Finalist | [38] |
2019 | Self | Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch | Selection | [20] |
2018 | Nightingale | Best 60-Minute Teleplay | Winner | [39] |
2018 | Nightingale | Emerging Screenwriters Award | Winner | [40] |
2017 | The Face of the Earth | Diverse Voices Award | Winner | [41] |
Bibliography
edit- Stories No One Hopes Are About Them (University of Iowa Press)[22][4]
- "The Real India" (Virginia Quarterly Review)[42]
- "Bottle Girl" (Electric Literature)[43]
- "All the Places You Will Never Be Again" (Chicago Quarterly Review)[44]
- "Misery & Company" (Creative Nonfiction)[18][45]
- "Rabbitfish" (SmokeLong Quarterly)[46][25]
- "Ori Dreams of a Tree" (City in a Wild Garden: Stories of the Nature of Cities)[47]
- "The Third Trip" (Coastal Shelf)[48]
- "Octopus" (Story)[49]
- "Conservancy" (Litro)[50]
- "The Voice as Heirloom" (Fiction International)[10]
- "Obscure Trivia of the Antarctic" (Boulevard)[12][51]
- "Mnemophobe" (Chicago Review)[52]
- "Rosa" (Every Day Fiction)[53]
- "Fall" (The Baltimore Review)[54][55]
- "Ní de Aqui, Ní de Alla" (Arachne Press)[56]
- "Casualty" (Columbia Journal)[57]
- "Water & Earth" (Bad Bride)[58]
- "Orphea" (Fearsome Critters)[59]
- "Insertion" (The Offing)[60]
- "Maslow's Hierarchy of Post-Pandemic Wish Fulfillment Fantasies" (McSweeney's)[2]
- "The Body Electric" (Gertrude Press)[61]
- "Walk-Off" (Hobart)[62]
- "On the Negligible Proximity of Money and Mouths" (Heirlock)[63]
- "Year of the Snake" (The Masters Review)[9]
- "Totenhaus" (Black Static)[64][65]
- "Eating the Leaves" (Lunch Ticket)[66][67]
- "Sabbatical" (Cheap Pop)[68]
- "Cain vs. Cain" (Iron Horse Literary Review)[69]
- "Disenchantment" (Spider Road Press)[70]
- "The Breakneck Boys" (Concīs)[71]
References
edit- ^ a b "PAGE Award: Past Winners".
- ^ a b c "McSweeney's – Authors".
- ^ a b ""The Lady Will Pay for Everything" by A. J. Bermudez, Alpine Fellowship 2021 – Writing Prize Winner".
- ^ a b c Bermudez, A. J. (November 14, 2022). Stories No One Hopes Are About Them. University of Iowa Press. ISBN 978-1-60938-863-8.
- ^ "Internet Movie Database: A. J. Bermudez". IMDb.
- ^ "Virginia Quarterly Review – A. J. Bermudez".
- ^ "Chicago Review – A. J. Bermudez". February 16, 2021.
- ^ a b Bermudez, A. J. (March 18, 2019). "Year of the Snake". The Masters Review. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ a b Bermudez, A. J. (September 1, 2021). "The Voice as Heirloom". Fiction International. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ "Electric Literature – Author AJ Bermudez".
- ^ a b Bermudez, A. J. (May 21, 2021). "Obscure Trivia of the Antarctic". Boulevard Magazine. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ "Creative Nonfiction – Contributor A. J. Bermudez".
- ^ a b "Amanda Bermudez on Nightingale". Creative Screenwriting. March 13, 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
- ^ "MovieBytes Interview: Screenwriter A. J. Bermudez". MovieBytes. May 5, 2017. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ "Envy Is a Big Waste of Time". Bonsai Film. April 24, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ "Being Great in the Room with AJ Bermudez". Apple. May 2, 2019. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
- ^ a b Bermudez, A. J. (May 16, 2022). "Misery & Company". Creative Nonfiction. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Gray, Kathryn (March 26, 2021). "Art, community and social change a part of Social Justice Conference". San Diego City Times. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
- ^ a b "Top 25 Screenwriters to Watch". International Screenwriters Association. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ "Stories No One Hopes Are About Them". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
- ^ a b Bermudez, A. J. (November 14, 2022). Stories No One Hopes Are About Them. Iowa University Press. ISBN 9781609388645. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
- ^ Gargiulo, Rosanna (January 20, 2022). "Q&A with Co-Editor AJ Bermudez". The Maine Review. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (April 21, 2023). "Letter from the Editor". The Maine Review. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
- ^ a b Czyzniejewski, Michael (March 21, 2022). "Smoke & Mirrors with A. J. Bermudez". SmokeLong Quarterly. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ Veloux, Andre (October 29, 2021). "Velouminous Episode 7: AJ Bermudez". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ "Nawat Fes Artist Residents". American Language Center. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ Jadrawi, Siham (June 20, 2022). ""Nawat" artistic program: 14 international artists explore cultural diversity in Fez". Aujourd'hui. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
- ^ Drihem, Mohammed (June 18, 2022). "ALC/ALIF Inaugre: La première édition de la résidence Nawat Fès au cœur de la médina de Fès". OujdaCity (in French). Retrieved June 27, 2021.
- ^ "SXSW Film & TV Awards". SXSW. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
- ^ "Current Finalists". Lambda Literary. Archived from the original on June 13, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
- ^ "2023 Lambda Award Shortlist Finalists Announced". Book Riot. March 15, 2023. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
- ^ "Pushcart Prize XLVIII : best of the small presses". Washington County Library System. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
- ^ "Announcing the 2023-2024 Steinbeck Fellows". Literary Hub. May 8, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
- ^ "Moon City Review's 2023 Best Small Fictions Nominations". Moon City Review. December 29, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
- ^ "The Story Prize". Bookshop.org. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
- ^ "Pushcart 2021 Nominations". Boulevard Magazine. December 2, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ "The SmokeLong Flash Fellowship for Emerging Writers". SmokeLong Quarterly. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ Olson, Liza (March 8, 2017). "Cinequest's Screenwriting Competition Winners". Premise and Plot. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ "Emerging Screenwriters Shoot Your Sizzle Announcements". Emerging Screenwriters. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ "Announcing the Diverse Voices Fall 2017 Winners". WeScreenplay. January 15, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (September 15, 2022). "The Real India". Virginia Quarterly Review. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (November 16, 2022). "Bottle Girl". Electric Literature. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (May 4, 2022). "All the Places You Will Never Be Again". Chicago Quarterly Review. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (May 23, 2022). "A Few Notes on the Past (and Possible Future) of Public Mourning". LitHub. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (March 21, 2022). "Rabbitfish". SmokeLong Quarterly. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Maddox, David (November 15, 2021). City in a Wild Garden: Stories of the Nature of Cities. Publication Studio Guelph. ISBN 9781989157114.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (October 1, 2022). "The Third Trip". Coastal Shelf. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (June 1, 2021). "Octopus". Story Magazine. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (August 21, 2021). "Conservancy". Litro. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ "Pushcart 2021 Nominations – Boulevard Magazine". Boulevard Magazine. December 2, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (February 18, 2021). "Mnemophobe". Chicago Review. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (February 17, 2021). "Rosa". Every Day Fiction. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (February 1, 2021). "Fall". The Baltimore Review. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Curtis, Jenny (October 26, 2021). "Episode 311 – "Fall" by A. J. Bermudez". A Moment of Your Time. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ Potts, Cherry (December 17, 2021). Tymes Goe by Turnes. Arachne Press. ISBN 9781913665180.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (October 24, 2020). "Casualty". Columbia Journal. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (October 23, 2020). "Water & Earth (for Sigríður Tomasdóttir, Iceland's First Environmental Activist)". Bad Bride. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (July 28, 2020). "Orphea". Fearsome Critters. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (June 23, 2020). "Insertion". The Offing. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (June 18, 2020). "The Body Electric". Gertrude Press. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (April 13, 2020). "Walk-Off". Hobart. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (February 1, 2021). "On the Negligible Proximity of Money and Mouths". Heirlock Magazine. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (March 1, 2021). "Totenhaus". Black Static. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Guran, Paula (August 2, 2019). "Paula Guran Reviews Short Fiction: Uncanny, Black Static, The Dark, Nightmare, and Tor.com". Locus. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (February 28, 2019). "Eating the Leaves". Lunch Ticket. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Curtis, Jenny (March 31, 2020). "Episode 4 – "Eating the Leaves" by A. J. Bermudez". A Moment of Your Time. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (January 25, 2018). "Sabbatical". Cheap Pop. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (January 1, 2018). "Cain vs. Cain". Iron Horse Literary Review. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (October 25, 2017). "Disenchantment". Spider Road Press. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- ^ Bermudez, A. J. (June 5, 2017). "The Breakneck Boys" (PDF). Concīs. Retrieved June 13, 2021.