Briony Collins

Briony Collins was born in Leicester, and lived there until she was fourteen. Her mother passed away when she was five, and so she spent her childhood growing up without a mother figure, often helping to take care of her younger brother. 

Life in Leicester was difficult, as her family didn't have much money, and her father was on benefits. She was also bullied consistently and badly throughout school, but the stresses at home made it difficult to find reassurance in her family. This led her to seek success and confidence through her education instead, and eventually brought about her love of writing. 

In 2009, her father remarried to an American, and the following year they moved to the United States. The marriage didn't last long and when they divorced, Briony moved with her father and brother to Laramie, Wyoming. 

Life outside of the home was excellent in Laramie. She excelled in school and became involved in theatre, acting for competitions and in plays ever year. However, the situation at home was becoming more difficult, as her depression began to develop. Eventually, her relationship with her father collapsed, and she moved in with his ex-wife when she was seventeen. 

The distress at home and the constant moving left Briony struggling to find her identity. A couple of weeks after she turned eighteen, she dropped out of high school and returned to the UK alone. She moved in with her grandparents, and began attending college, taking her writing more seriously. 

In March 2017, Briony won the Exeter Novel Prize, which made her a more confident writer, driving her to pursue her ambition to become an author. She was also tutored on a residential writing course by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and Gillian Clarke (National Poet of Wales 2008 - 2016), prompting her to explore poetry as well as prose fiction.