Daniel Woodrell

{{Short description|American novelist (1953–2025)}} {{Use American English|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox writer  | image = File:Daniel_Woodrell.jpg | name = Daniel Woodrell | caption = | pseudonym = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date|1953|3|4|mf=y}} | birth_place = Springfield, Missouri, U.S. | death_date = {{Death date and age|2025|11|28|1953|3|4}} | death_place = West Plains, Missouri, U.S. | occupation = Novelist | education = University of Kansas (BA)<br>Iowa Writers' Workshop (MFA) | period = 1986–2025 | genre = {{hlist|Crime fiction|"country noir"}} | subject = | movement = | notableworks = | signature = | website = }}

'''Daniel Stanford Woodrell''' (March 4, 1953 – November 28, 2025) was an American novelist and short story writer who wrote nine novels, most of them set in the Missouri Ozarks, and one collection of short stories. Woodrell coined the phrase "country noir" to describe his 1996 novel ''Give Us a Kiss''.<ref name="ozarks">{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009193158/http://www.ozarksmagazine.com/index.html?p=250| archivedate=2007-10-09|url=http://www.ozarksmagazine.com/index.html?p=250|date=March 2007|accessdate=2011-03-20|title=Daniel Woodrell: Voice Of The Other Ozarks|author= Lin Waterhouse|work=Ozarks Magazine}}</ref> Reviewers have frequently since used the term to categorize his writing.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bookreporter.com/reviews/0452283302.asp|date=n.d.|accessdate=2007-03-30|title=Review: ''The Death of Sweet Mister'' |author= Becky Ohlsen|work=Bookreporter.com}} (For one example of "country noir" used in a later review.)</ref>

==Early life and education== Woodrell was born in Springfield, Missouri,<ref name="readmore">{{cite web|url=http://www.jeffersoncountylibrary.org/programs/readmore.shtml|year=2006|accessdate=2007-04-01|title=ReadMOre: ''Winter's Bone'' by Daniel Woodrell|work=JeffersonCountyLibrary.org |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070902172551/http://jeffersoncountylibrary.org/programs/readmore.shtml  |archivedate = 2007-09-02}} (for birth date and location)</ref> in the southwestern corner of the state. He grew up in Missouri and dropped out of high school to join the Marines. Later he earned a BA from the University of Kansas and an MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop.<ref name="ozarks"/> The University of Missouri–Kansas City awarded an honorary doctorate to Daniel Woodrell on December 17, 2016.

==Career== Woodrell has set most of his novels in the Missouri Ozarks, a landscape he knew from childhood. He has created novels based on crime, a style he termed "country noir", a phrase adopted by commentators on his work. However, William Michael Boyle, an avowed fan and fellow author of literary crime fiction, put Woodrell's work in broader context: "this Woodrell guy's got double of everything. Language, plot, dialogue, sense of place, energy, tension...He's interested in the whole of humanity through the lens of his place."<ref>{{Cite news|title = On the Genius of Daniel Woodrell, the 'Battle-Hardened Bard of Meth Country'|date = March 3, 2017|url = https://lithub.com/on-the-genius-of-daniel-woodrell-the-battle-hardened-bard-of-meth-country/|last = Boyle|first = William|work = Literary Hub}}</ref>

In addition to finding readers for his fiction, Woodrell has had three novels adapted for films. Woodrell's second novel, ''Woe to Live On'' (1987), was adapted for the 1999 film ''Ride with the Devil'', directed by Ang Lee.

''Winter's Bone'' (2006) was adapted by writer and director Debra Granik for a film of the same title, and released commercially in June 2010 after winning two awards at the Sundance Film Festival, including the Grand Jury Prize for a dramatic film.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://sundance.bside.com/2010/films/wintersbone_sundance2010 |title=Winter's Bone |year=2010 |work=2010 Sundance Film Festival |publisher=Sundance Institute |accessdate=October 11, 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100420033611/http://sundance.bside.com/2010/films/wintersbone_sundance2010 |archivedate=April 20, 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://movies.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/movies/11winter.html|title= ''Winter's Bone'': Where Life Is Cold, and Kin Are Cruel|format=Review|author= Scott, A. O.|date= June 11, 2010|work= The New York Times|publisher= |accessdate=October 11, 2010}}</ref> Several critics called it one of the best films of the year and an American classic, and it received four Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.metacritic.com/movie/winters-bone|title= Winter's Bone|author= |year= 2010|work= Metacritic|publisher= CBS Interactive|accessdate=October 11, 2010}}</ref>

''Tomato Red'' (1998) was adapted for a 2017 feature film by Irish writer and director Juanita Wilson. This was released in Ireland in March 2017 and went on to be nominated for four awards at that year's Irish Film & Television Awards, including Best Film. Its US debut took place on April 23, 2017, at the Newport Beach Film Festival.<ref>{{Citation|title=Tomato Red|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4927984/|access-date=2019-07-23}}</ref>

While filming a segment for ''Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations'', Woodrell was filmed breaking his shoulder in a fishing boat accident.<ref>{{cite magazine |last= Percy|first= Benjamin|author-link= Benjamin Percy|date= September 7, 2013|title= The Outlaw|url= https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a24632/daniel-woodrell-outlaw/|magazine= Esquire|publisher= Hearst Magazine Media|access-date=February 20, 2022}}</ref>

==Personal life and death== Woodrell lived in West Plains, Missouri, and was married to the novelist Katie Estill.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/daniel-woodrell-the-ozark-daredevil-404146.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100201153025/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/daniel-woodrell-the-ozark-daredevil-404146.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 1, 2010|date=2006-06-16| accessdate=2011-03-20 | title=Daniel Woodrell: The Ozark daredevil|author=John Williams|work=The Independent}}</ref>

Woodrell died of pancreatic cancer in West Plains, on November 28, 2025, at the age of 72.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Traub |first1=Alex |title=Daniel Woodrell, ‘Country Noir’ Novelist of ‘Winter’s Bone,’ Dies at 72 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/obituaries/daniel-woodrell-dead.html |website=The New York Times |access-date=November 30, 2025}}</ref>

==Honors== {| class="wikitable" ! Year !! Title !! Award !! Category !! Result !! Ref. |- ! 1992 | ''The Ones You Do'' || Hammett Prize || — || Special Mention || |- ! 1998 | rowspan="3" | ''Tomato Red'' || Hammett Prize || — || {{sho}} || |- ! 1999 | PEN Center USA Literary Award|| Fiction || {{won}} || <ref>{{cite web |date=n.d. |title=PEN USA Literary Awardees and Honorary Award Winners, 1978–2005 |url=http://penusa.org/images/uploads/Awardees_and_Honorary_Award_Winners_1978_2005.pdf |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927110528/http://penusa.org/images/uploads/Awardees_and_Honorary_Award_Winners_1978_2005.pdf  |archivedate=2007-09-27 |accessdate=2007-03-30 |work=penusa.org}}</ref> |- ! 2000 | International Dublin Literary Award || — || {{nom|Longlisted}} || <ref>{{cite web |date=n.d. |title=2000 Award: Nominated Books |url=http://www.impacdublinaward.ie/2000titles.htm |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070206035206/http://www.impacdublinaward.ie/2000titles.htm |archivedate=2007-02-06 |accessdate=2007-04-01 |work=International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award}}</ref> |- ! 2006 | rowspan="2" | ''Winter's Bone'' || ''Los Angeles Times'' Book Prize || Fiction|| {{sho|Finalist}} || |- ! 2011 | Audie Award || Fiction|| {{won}} || |- ! 2013 | ''The Death of Sweet Mister'' || RUSA CODES Listen List|| — || {{Included|Selection}}|| |- ! 2013 | rowspan="4" | ''The Maid's Version'' || ''Los Angeles Times'' Book Prize|| Fiction|| {{sho|Finalist}} || |- ! rowspan="2" | 2014 | Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize || Fiction || {{won}} || |- | Maine Readers' Choice Award || — || {{nom|Longlisted}} || |- ! 2015 | International Dublin Literary Award || — || {{nom|Longlisted}} || |}

==Bibliography== === Books === * ''Under the Bright Lights'' (Henry Holt, 1986) * ''Woe to Live On'' (Henry Holt, 1987) * ''Muscle for the Wing'' (Henry Holt, 1988) * ''The Ones You Do'' (Henry Holt, 1992) * ''Give Us a Kiss: A Country Noir'' (Henry Holt, 1996) * ''Tomato Red'' (Henry Holt, 1998) * ''The Death of Sweet Mister'' (Putnam, 2001) * ''Winter's Bone'' (Little, Brown, 2006) * ''The Outlaw Album'' (Little, Brown, 2011) * ''The Maid's Version'' (Little, Brown, 2013)

=== Omnibus === * ''The Bayou Trilogy'' (Mulholland Books, 2011) (collects ''Under the Bright Lights'', ''Muscle for the Wing'', and ''The Ones You Do'')

==Filmography== * ''Ride with the Devil'' (adapted from novel ''Woe to Live On'') (1999) * ''Winter's Bone'' (adapted from novel) (2010) * ''Tomato Red'' (adapted from novel) (2017)

==References== {{reflist|2}}

==External links== * {{IMDb name|0940410}} * {{discogs artist|Daniel Woodrell}} * [http://www.esquire.com/fiction/fiction/night-stand-daniel-woodrell-0608 Daniel Woodrell, "Night Stand"], in ''Esquire'', June 2008

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodrell, Daniel}} Category:1953 births Category:2025 deaths Category:20th-century American novelists Category:21st-century American novelists Category:American crime fiction writers Category:American male novelists Category:Iowa Writers' Workshop alumni Category:Writers from Springfield, Missouri Category:University of Kansas alumni Category:People from West Plains, Missouri Category:20th-century American male writers Category:21st-century American male writers Category:Novelists from Missouri Category:Southern noir writers Category:Deaths from pancreatic cancer in Missouri