Betts, Doris (1932–)
Betts, Doris (1932–)
American novelist and short-story writer. Born June 4, 1932, in Statesville, North Carolina; only child of William Elmore Waugh (cotton mill worker) and Mary Ellen (Freeze) Waugh; attended Woman's College of University of North Carolina at Greensboro and University of North Carolina; m. Lowry Betts (lawyer), 1952; children: 3.
Began teaching creative writing at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1966), becoming Alumni Distinguished Professor of English there and serving 2 terms as chair of the faculty, the 1st woman to achieve that distinction; published 1st short-story collection, The Gentle Insurrection (1954), which won the Putnam prize; followed that with The Astronomer and Other Stories (1966), which is considered her masterpiece, and Beasts of the Southern Wild (1973); novels include Tall Houses in Winter (1957), The Scarlet Thread (1964), The River to Pickle Beach (1972), Heading West (1981) and Souls Raised from the Dead (1994). Won Southern Book Award; her short story "Violet" was filmed and won an Academy Award (1982).