BIO

PhiLip Crawford

Philip Crawford is a novelist, journalist, editor, and jazz musician based in Paris. 

Originally from Summit, New Jersey, Philip finished high school in 1972, then attended college part-time and began concentrating on a musical career—ultimately spending the decade of his twenties as a professional pianist for hotels, restaurants, and private engagements throughout New England, USA.

He returned to undergraduate school at age 31, entering Amherst College in fall 1986 as a sophomore. It was at Amherst that he developed a deep interest in France (via courses in French history and language), as well as a love for writing. Following graduation in 1989 with a BA in European history, he began a journalism career, eventually relocating to Paris in fall 1991. There, he began free-lance writing for the International Herald Tribune (IHT), then co-owned by The New York Times and The Washington Post.

At the IHT, Philip initially wrote for the weekend investing section, The Money Report, then branched out to other sections—including features, special reports, the op-ed page, and sports—before being brought onto the staff as a business-desk editor in early 1995. He returned to school part-time in 1997–99 to earn an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business (Barcelona campus), then left the IHT in 2001 to move into the corporate writing sector. 

On the musical side, Philip continues to perform sporadically in Parisian venues with a trio/quartet or as a solo artist. Over the years, he has played at the Hôtel Plaza-Athénée, Maxim’s, and at jazz clubs such as Le Petit Journal Saint-Michel, Le Petit Journal Montparnasse, Café Universel, and the Swan Bar.

Something I Keep Upstairs is his first novel.