William Sansom

William Sansom (January 18, 1912 - April 20, 1976) was a British novelist, travel and short story writer known for his highly descriptive prose-style. He was born in London and educated at Uppingham School, Rutland, before moving to Bonn to learn German.

From 1930 Sansom worked in international banking for the British chapter of a German bank, but moved to an advertising company in 1935, where he worked until the outbreak of World War II. At this time he became a full-time London firefighter, serving throughout The Blitz. His experiences during this time inspired much of his writing, including many of the stories found in the celebrated collection "Fireman Flower".

After the war, Sansom became a full-time writer. In 1946 and 1947 he was awarded two literary prizes by the Society of Authors, and in 1951 was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He married actress Ruth Grundy.

As well as exploring war-torn London, Sansom's writing deals with romance ("The Face of Innocence"), murder ('Various Temptations'), comedy ('A Last Word') and supernatural horror ('A Woman Seldom Found'). The latter, perhaps his most anthologized story, combines detailed description with narrative tension to unravel a young man's encounter with a bizarre creature in Rome.

Sansom died in London.

Novels

* "The Body" (1949)
* "The Face of Innocence" (1951)
* "The Last Hours of Sandra Lee" (1961)
* "The Guilt in Wandering" (1963)
* "Christmas" (1968)
* "Hans Feet in love" (1971)
* "The marmalade bird" (1973)
* "Proust" (1973)
* "Skimpy" (1974)
* "A Young Wife's Tale" (1974)
* "The Cautious Heart"
* "The Loving Eye"
* "A Bed of Roses"

Short Novels

* "Three"
* "The Equilibriad"

Short Story Collections

* "Fireman Flower" (1944)
* "South" (1948)
* "Something Terrible, Something Lovely" (1948)
* "The Passionate North" (1950)
* "A Touch of the Sun" (1952)
* "Lord Love Us" (1954)
* "A Contest of Ladies" (1956)
* "Among the Dahlias" (1957)
* "Various Temptations" (1957)

Non-fiction

* "Proust" (1973)
* "The Birth of a Story" (1972)
* "A Book of Christmas" (1968)
* "Westminster in War"
* "Blue Skies, Brown Studies"
* "The Icicle and the Sun"
* "Pleasures Strange and Simple"

Children's Literature

* "It Was Really Charlie's Castle"
* "The Light that Went Out"

Illustrator

* "Who's Zoo" - Michael Braude (1953) [http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0000CLYN3]

External links

* [http://www.terminalclick.com/awsf Short story 'A Woman Seldom Found' at terminalclick.com]
* [http://www.enotes.com/short-story-criticism/sansom-william Biography]
* [http://freepages.pavilion.net/tartarus/s2.htm Supernatural Fiction Database entry]
* [http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/s/william-sansom/ Bibliography]

Persondata
NAME=Sansom, William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=British writer who specialized in descriptions of London local life.
DATE OF BIRTH=January 18, 1912
PLACE OF BIRTH=London
DATE OF DEATH=April 20, 1976
PLACE OF DEATH=London