William Bell (author)
{{Short description|Canadian children's writer}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = William Bell
| birth_date = {{birth date|1945|10|27|df=yes}}
| birth_place = Toronto, Ontario
| death_date = {{death date and age|2016|07|30|1945|10|27|df=yes}}
| death_place = Orillia, Ontario
| occupation = Teacher, Author
| genre = Children's Literature
| spouse = {{plainlist}}
- Susan Arnup
- Ting-Xing Ye
{{endplainlist}}
| children = 3
| education = University of Toronto (M.A., 1969; M.Ed., 1984)
}}
William Edwin Bell (27 October 1945{{spnd}}30 July 2016){{Cite web |title=Bell, William 1945- |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/bell-william-1945 |access-date=2023-05-26 |website=Encyclopedia.com |archive-date=2022-10-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007105905/https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/bell-william-1945 |url-status=live }} was a Canadian author of young adult fiction, born in Toronto, Ontario. He lived in Orillia, Ontario.{{cite web |url=http://www.orillia.ca/en/insidecityhall/resources/cityoforillia_halloffame.pdf |title=Orillia Hall of Fame |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102074033/http://www.orillia.ca/en/insidecityhall/resources/cityoforillia_halloffame.pdf |publisher=City of Orillia |archive-date=2013-11-02 |url-status=dead}}
Personal life and education
Bell was born in Toronto on 27 October 1945 to William B. and Irene (nee Spowart) Bell.{{cite web |last=Stoffman |first=Judy |date=2016-08-31 |title=Acclaimed novelist William Edwin Bell wrote of teen angst |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/acclaimed-novelist-william-edwin-bell-wrote-of-teen-angst/article31651910/ |access-date=2016-12-07 |website=The Globe and Mail |publisher= |archive-date=2016-11-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161108051654/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/acclaimed-novelist-william-edwin-bell-wrote-of-teen-angst/article31651910/ |url-status=live }} He attended New Toronto Secondary School, which inspired his novel Crabbe.{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}} In 1969, he received a Master of Arts in literature from the University of Toronto, and in 1984, he received a Master of Education in education curriculum and administration from the university's Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.
He married Susan Arnup{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}} and had three children: Dylan, Megan and Brendan. Before his death, he lived with his wife, Chinese-Canadian author Ting-Xing Ye. He died in Orillia on 30 July 2016 at the age of 70.{{Cite web |last=Orillia |first=Frank Matys |date=2016-08-04 |title=Orillia author William Bell dead at 70 |url=https://www.simcoe.com/news/orillia-author-william-bell-dead-at-70/article_4c149623-2910-524f-852f-49210c24872b.html |access-date=2023-05-26 |website=Simcoe |language=en}}
Career
= Teaching =
Bell taught in a variety of settings. He was a high school teacher at several schools in Simcoe County and the head of the English department at Orillia District Collegiate & Vocational Institute.{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}} In the early 1980s, he taught English in China at the Harbin University of Science and Technology and the Foreign Affairs College. He also worked at the University of British Columbia and the Simcoe County Board of Education.{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}} He was frequently invited to give presentations at conferences and to speak to elementary and secondary school students on creative writing.{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}}
= Writing =
The inspiration to become a writer came to Bell when he heard a speech by John Metcalf, author of one of his favourite short stories.{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}} Bell said he likes to write for young people because they are "the best audience: they are loyal to the writers they like and they are enthusiastic readers".{{cite web |url=http://www.stellaraward.ca/author.php?id=23 |title=Stellar Award |author=Niki B. |access-date=October 22, 2012 |archive-date=April 21, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120421210155/http://www.stellaraward.ca/author.php?id=23 |url-status=live }}
Bell wrote many books, including three set near his home in Orillia, Ontario (Five Days of the Ghost, Stones and Fanatics), two in Barrie (Death Wind, The Cripples' Club), one in Toronto (Julian) and one in Fergus (Zack).
Bell's work has been widely published outside of Canada. His books have been translated into Chinese, French, German, Spanish, Polish, Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch and Japanese.{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}}
Awards and honors
Books
- Crabbe - 1986
- Metal Head - 1987
- The Cripples' Club - 1988 (reissued in 1993 as Absolutely Invincible)
- Death Wind - 1989
- Five Days of the Ghost - 1989
- Forbidden City - 1990
- No Signature - 1992
- Speak to the Earth - 1994
- The Golden Disk - 1995 (a picture book)
- River My Friend - 1996 (a picture book)
- Zack - 1998
- Stones - 2001
- Alma - 2003
- Throwaway Daughter – 2003 (written with his wife Ting-Xing Ye)
- Just Some Stuff I Wrote - 2005
- The Blue Helmet - 2006
- Only in the Movies - 2010
- Fanatics - 2011
- Julian - 2014
{{Portal|Children's literature}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{official website |orillia.org/williambell}} (Ting-xing Ye and Bell)
- [http://www.orillia.ca/en/insidecityhall/resources/cityoforillia_halloffame.pdf Orillia Hall of Fame]
- {{ISFDB name|139355}}
- {{LCAuth|n87932063|William Bell|10|ue}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, William}}
Category:Canadian children's writers
Category:Canadian male novelists
Category:Novelists from Toronto
Category:20th-century Canadian novelists
Category:20th-century Canadian male writers