Hélia Correia

Hélia Correia (born 1949) is a Portuguese novelist, playwright, poet and translator.

Early life Correia was born in Lisbon in February 1949, and raised in Mafra, her mother's home town. Her father was an anti-fascist who was arrested before her birth by the Salazar regime. During these years, she began publishing poetry in literary supplements of the time, such as the Juvenil do Diário de Lisboa under the aegis of Mário Castrim.

Career After a period working as a high school teacher, Hélia Correia undertook postgraduate studies in Classical Theatre.

Her literary career started in earnest in the 1981 with the publication of her debut work titled O Separar das Águas. She quickly achieved great commercial success and critical renown, with critics lauding her innovative writing which remained linked to the best literary traditions. They saw influences of Camilo Castelo Branco and Emily Brontë, as well as connections to ancient Greek drama.

From the 1990s, she began to create theatrical works. She reinterpreted ancient Greek myths from the view point of female heroines, such as Antigone in Perdition, Helen of Troy in Hatred, and Medea in Boundless.

In 2001, her most popular book, Lillias Fraser, appeared, set between 1746 and 1762 and ranging across Scotland and Portugal, covering the earthquake of Lisbon. The book won the Portuguese PEN Club prize.

Works

Fiction 1981 – O Separar das Águas 1982 – O Número dos Vivos 1983 – Montedemo 1985 – Villa Celeste 1987 – Soma 1988 – A Fenda Erótica 1991 – A Casa Eterna 1996 – Insânia 2001 – Lillias Fraser 2001 – Antartida de mil folhas 2002 – Apodera-te de mim 2008 – Contos 2014 – Vinte degraus e outros contos

Poetry 1986 – A Pequena Morte / Esse Eterno Canto 2012 – A Terceira Miséria

Theatre 1991 – Perdição, Exercício sobre Antígona 1991 – Florbela 2000 – O Rancor, Exercício sobre Helena 2005 – O Segredo de Chantel 2008 – A Ilha Encantada

For children 1988 – A Luz de Newton (seven stories about colours) 2013 Prémio Literário Correntes d'Escritas - for A Terceira Miséria, a tribute to Greece. 2015 Grand Prize Camilo Castelo Branco - for 20 Degraus e Outros Contos. 2015 Camões Prize