GORDON, Giles (Alexander Esme) 1940-2003

OBITUARY NOTICE—See index for CA sketch: Born May 23, 1940, in Edinburgh, Scotland; died November 14, 2003, in Edinburgh, Scotland. Literary agent, editor, and author. Gordon was a highly respected literary agent in England who also wrote experimental fiction. Initially trained in design at Edinburgh Art College, his lack of drawing skills led him instead to a trainee position at the publisher Oliver & Boyd in 1959. This would be followed by several more editorial jobs for various publishing companies, including Secker & Warburg, Hutchinson & Co., Penguin Books, and Victor Gollancz. Having by the early 1970s published several books himself, including the poetry collections Two and Two Make One (1966), Twelve Poems for Callum (1970), and Between Appointments (1971), short story collections such as Pictures from an Exhibition (1970), and the experimental novels The Umbrella Man (1971) and About a Marriage (1972), Gordon possessed insights from both ends of the publishing business that would make him an effective literary agent. He joined Anthony Sheil Associates in 1972, which later became Sheil Land Associates in 1990, working with such talents as Peter Ackroyd, Sue Townsend, and members of the British royalty. In 1995, Gordon left Sheil Land to work for Curtis Brown as both its director and literary agent. Though never as critically or popularly successful as the authors for whom he served as agent, Gordon continued to write and edit books throughout his career. Some of his later books include the poetry collection The Oban Poems (1977), the novels Couple (1978) and Ambrose's Vision: Sketches towards the Creation of a Cathedral (1980), the coauthored nonfiction work Scotland from the Air (1995), and his tongue-in-cheek memoirs of his life in publishing, Aren't We Due a Royalty Statement? (1993). For his contributions to publishing, Gordon was honored by being named a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1990.

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Independent (London, England), November 17, 2003, p. 18.

Times (London, England), November 15, 2003.