Joe Dunthorne (born 1982) is a Welsh novelist, poet and journalist, who first made his name with his novel, Submarine (2008), which was made into a film in 2010. His second novel, Wild Abandon (2011), won the Society of Authors' Encore award. A collection of his poems was published in 2010 in the Faber New Poets series.
Joseph Oliver Dunthorne was born in Wales in 1982 in Swansea. He has two sisters, Anna and Leah. He was educated in Swansea at Olchfa School, and before going on to study at the University of East Anglia. At UEA he took his B.A. and M.A. in Creative Writing. In the final year of his B.A. course he began writing his novel, Submarine, and while at university had several poems published in literary periodicals. During his studies for his M.A. he won his university's Curtis Brown prize.
His first novel, Submarine, in which a teenager records with comedy and anguish his relationship with his girlfriend and his lop-sided view of the strains on his parents' marriage, was published to critical acclaim in 2008. Shortly afterwards the novel was made into a film, Submarine, directed by Richard Ayoade and starring Craig Roberts. The film premiered in Toronto in 2010, and was shown in London, Berlin and Swansea before going on general release in Britain in March 2011. In 2010 Faber published Joe Dunthorne Faber New Poets 5. The following year Dunthorne's second novel, Wild Abandon, appeared. It is an account of a brother and sister living in a rural commune; and it won the Society of Authors' Encore Award. Alex turner thus volunteered to write, produce and design the cover art for the soundtrack.
Joe Dunthorne lives in London, England.