Josep Usó i Mañanós was born by chance in Castelló in 1959 but has spent most of his life in Vila-real. He has a degree in Chemical Science from the University of Valencia, and worked for three years in the ceramics industry before starting to work as a teacher. At present he teaches in the Broch i Llop Secondary School in Vila-real. He has published a number of manuals of Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics, in collaboration with other authors.

In 1996 he started to write short stories and novels and has not stopped since. His first novel La catifa maleïda (The Accursed Rug – (Eixam Llibres, Tavernes Blanques 1998) has the distinction of being published in the Valencia region without previously having won a prize. He then published Amor amarg (Bitter Love), winner of the 2001 University of Lleida Prize (Pagès Editors, Lleida 2002) and Civils i incivils (Civilians and Uncivil – Abadia Editors, Vilobí d'Onyar, December, 2005), which was a finalist for several prizes and eventually winner of the Sant Carles Borromeu Prize at the 27th Literary Night in Andorra (2004). He continues publishing with great regularity, with titles such as Els retorbats i els perduts (2008), La senda llarga (2009), La Plaça del Gall (2011) and Fàtima i Cristina (2012) awarded the Premi de Narrativa Juvenil Ciutat de Torrent.

He is a member of AELC (Association of Catalan Language Writers).



Web page: Carme Ros for AELC.
Translation: Julie Wark.
Documentation and Photographs: Author's personal files.