About Diane Cook

Diane Marie Cook is an American writer known for her fiction and her work in radio. She is currently based in Brooklyn, New York. Cook earned her MFA from Columbia University and began her career as a producer for the radio program This American Life, where she developed skills in storytelling and narrative craft. Her first book, the short story collection Man V. Nature (2015), was widely acclaimed, becoming a finalist for the Guardian First Book Award, the Believer Book Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, and receiving an Honorable Mention for the PEN/Hemingway Award. The stories in this collection have appeared in prominent literary journals such as Harper’s, Tin House, and Granta, and have been included in anthologies like The Best American Short Stories and The O. Henry Prize Stories. Cook’s debut novel, The New Wilderness (2020), was shortlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize, marking a significant achievement in her literary career. The novel has also been adapted for television, with Cook serving as writer and producer alongside director Matt Reeves. Her writing is recognized for its imaginative exploration of human relationships with nature and society, often blending realism with speculative elements. Cook has received several fellowships and awards, including a 2016 fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts and fellowships from Yaddo, MacDowell, Playa, and the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology. She has taught writing and literature at Columbia University and the University of Michigan’s New England Literature Program. In 2020, she was the Leeds Lit Fest “International Writer in Residence.” Diane Cook continues to be an influential figure in contemporary American literature, with her work regularly featured in major publications and her presence felt in both literary and media circles.

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