In honour of our first Alternative Muse of the Month, we are preparing to go into Official Katherine Mansfield Mode. Until then, here are some random facts about the short story writer.
- Kathleen (Katherine) Mansfield Beauchamp was born in Wellington, New Zealand on 14 October 1888.
- Her cousin was writer Elizabeth von Arnim (Mary Annette Beauchamp), best known for her novels The Enchanted April and Mr. Skeffington.
- Her second husband was English writer John Middleton Murry.
- Her best writing was done during her final, tuberculosis-plagued years.
- She was an excellent cellist.
- She was highly influenced by Anton Chekhov.
- Her brother Leslie was killed in World War I.
- She spent her last months desperately seeking a cure for the tuberculosis that eventually killed her on 9 January 1923. She died at Georges Gurdjieff’s Institute for the Harmonious Development of Man in Fontainebleau, France.
- She remains one of the most important-and best-short story writers of the 20th century.
Related articles
- [Drumroll] Our First Alternative Muse of the Month is….. (onetrackmuse.com)
- A Year in Books/Day 118: The Garden Party and Other Stories (onetrackmuse.com)
- Of Katherine Mansfield and Raindrops on My Window Pane (onetrackmuse.com)
A Small Press Life: Books. Art. Writing. Life. Tea. 
Will you be discussing any particular story written by her?
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Likely! I have several things in the works. I’ve had to do a bit of filler, as I just got back from vacation. But fear not, the more in-depth pieces will be coming soon!
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