Early Life and Career
Harris was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and spent her early childhood there before her parents moved in 1965 to Glasgow, Scotland. On leaving school she studied English Literature and Drama at the University of Glasgow, then trained as an actress at the East 15 Acting School in London.
After a few years of trying different careers she worked abroad, variously as a dishwasher, a waitress, a chambermaid and an English language teacher. She began writing short stories during this period, while confined to bed in Portugal with a bout of flu.
On her return to Glasgow several of her short stories were published in anthologies. In the early 1990s she was a regular panellist on STV's Scottish Books programme.
She went on to study for the MA in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia under Malcolm Bradbury. After gaining a distinction in her degree she completed a PhD at the same university.
After UEA came a two-year stint as the Arts Council Writer-in-Residence at HMP Durham (1992–4). Following this Harris worked as a script and novel reader for film companies and for The Literary Consultancy, and as a script editor. She also taught Creative Writing for many years, principally at the University of East Anglia.
Harris lives in East London and is married to the film and TV director Tom Shankland.
Read more about this topic: Jane Harris (writer)
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