Tobias Wolff Keynote Speaker

  • Award-winning memoirist and novelist
  • National Medal of Arts Recipient
  • Author of the critically acclaimed memoir, "This Boy's Life," adapted into a successful film

Tobias Wolff's Biography

Tobias Wolff Speaker Profile:

Tobias Wolff is a short story writer, memoirist, and novelist. He is known for his memoirs, particularly “This Boy’s Life” (1989), and “In Pharaoh’s Army” (1994). He has written two short story collections, including “The Barracks Thief “(1984), which won the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. Wolff received a National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama in September 2015.  He has also been the editor of Best American Short Stories, The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories, and A Doctor’s Visit: The Short Stories of Anton Chekhov. His work appears regularly in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Harper’s, and other magazines and literary journals.

Wolff’s work has found a wider audience through its adaptation to film. “This Boy’s Life” became a feature film directed by Michael Caton-Jones which starred Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Ellen Barkin. In 2001, Wolff’s acclaimed short story “Bullet in the Brain” was adapted into a short film by David Von Ancken and C.J. Follini starring Tom Noonan and Dean Winters.

Wolff is the Ward W. and Priscilla B. Woods Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences at Stanford, where he has taught classes in English and creative writing since 1997. He also served as the director of the Creative Writing Program at Stanford from 2000 to 2002.

Prior to his current appointment at Stanford, Wolff taught at Syracuse University from 1980 to 1997. While at Syracuse he served on the faculty with Raymond Carver and was an instructor in the graduate writing program. Authors who worked with Wolff while they were students at Syracuse include Jay McInerney, Tom Perrotta, George Saunders, Alice Sebold, William Tester, Paul Griner, Ken Garcia, Dana C. Kabel, Jan–Marie Spanard, and Paul Watkins.

For availability and speaker fees, please contact Tobias Wolff’s speaking agent at Chartwell here, or call +1 972 385 1021 for U.S. inquiries or +44 207 293 0864 for international inquiries.

Read More

Videos of Tobias Wolff

A Conversation with Tobias Wolff Directed by Lawrence Bridges
A Conversation with Tobias Wolff Directed by Lawrence Bridges
Tobias Wolff, 2007 Pee Dee Fiction Festival
Tobias Wolff, 2007 Pee Dee Fiction Festival

Check Tobias Wolff's speaking fees and availability

    Sending your message…

    Please wait, this can take a moment

    Message sent…

    Close

    Please provide your details and we’ll get in touch as soon as possible.

    We can only respond to requests for professional speaking engagements. We are unable to respond to requests for autographs, shoutouts and personalized messages.

    View our related Speakers

    Jonathan Hill Speaker
    Exclusive
    Jonathan Hill
    Expert on the EU's financial services sector
    Koen Schobbers speaking
    Koen Schobbers Speaker
    Exclusive
    Koen Schobbers
    Gaming and esports expert
    robin niblett
    Robin Niblett Speaker
    Exclusive
    Robin Niblett
    Expert Geopolitical Analysis - Director and Chief Executive, Chatham House (2007-2022)
    James Crabtree Speaker
    Exclusive
    James Crabtree
    Executive Director of the Asia office of the International Institute of Strategic Studies
    adah parris headshot
    Adah Parris Speaker
    Exclusive
    Adah Parris
    Futurist, Keynote Speaker, Cultural Strategist; TED2019 Emerging Innovator
    Elin Hilderbrand Speaker
    Exclusive
    Elin Hilderbrand
    NY Times Best-Selling Author & Cancer Survivor
    Oliver Bullough Speaker
    Exclusive
    Oliver Bullough
    Investigative journalist and critically acclaimed author of 'Butler to the World' and 'Moneyland"
    Jane Green Speaker
    Exclusive
    Jane Green
    New York Times Best-Selling Author and TV and Radio Contributor
    Kathryn Strachan Speaker
    Exclusive
    Kathryn Strachan
    CEO of CopyHouse – a global content marketing agency
    Merryn Somerset Webb Speaker
    Exclusive
    Merryn Somerset Webb
    Senior Columnist, Bloomberg Opinion - expert on personal finance and investments