Lauren Beukes is a renowned author from South Africa who has made a significant impact in the literary world with her distinctive storytelling. She is not only a novelist but also a screenwriter, television writer, comic book writer, and journalist. Beukes has received numerous awards for her work, including the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the University of Johannesburg prize, the August Derleth Prize, the Strand Critics Choice Award, and the RT Thriller of the Year.
Beukes' novels have been translated into 26 languages and have been optioned for film and television. Some of her most notable works include "Broken Monsters," a novel about art, ambition, damaged people, and not-quite-broken cities, and "The Shining Girls," a story about a time-traveling serial killer. Her novel "Zoo City," which won the Arthur C Clarke Award, is a phantasmagorical noir set in Johannesburg, exploring themes of guilt and redemption through the use of spirit animal familiars. Another one of her early works, "Moxyland," is a dystopian political thriller set in a corporate apartheid state where people are controlled by their cell phones.
In addition to her work as a novelist, Beukes has also made her mark in the world of comics. She has worked on the New York Times-bestselling graphic novel, "Fairest: The Hidden Kingdom," as well as a Wonder Woman one-shot for kids, "The Trouble With Cats," set in Mozambique and Soweto. Her film and television work includes directing the documentary "Glitterboys & Ganglands" and writing for the Disney shows "Mouk" and "Florrie's Dragons." She was also the showrunner on South Africa's first full-length animated TV series, "URBO: The Adventures of Pax Afrika."
Before becoming a full-time writer, Beukes was a freelance journalist for eight years, writing for a variety of magazines ranging from The Sunday Times Lifestyle to Nature Medicine, Colors, The Big Issue, and Marie Claire. She has been recognized for her contributions to the arts, including being honored in South Africa's parliament and receiving the Mbokodo Award from the Department of Arts and Culture, celebrating women in the arts for her work in the Creative Writing field. Beukes currently resides in Cape Town, South Africa with her daughter.