George Topîrceanu

His debut came in 1905, the year he published his first verses in Sunday papers and minor magazines; in 1909, he managed to have poems featured in major periodicals, such as Sămănătorul. He worked in handcopying, and in 1909 made his mark by having his satirical Răspunsul micilor funcţionari ("A Reply from the Minor Civil Servants") in Viața Românească. In 1911 he moved to Iaşi, on Garabet Ibrăileanu's invitation, and became chief editor at Viaţa Românească. He later wrote his well-received articles - Cum am devenit moldovean ("How I Became a Moldavia Native") and Cum am devenit ieşean ("How I Became a Iaşi Native") which trace his meanderings within Romania.

In 1912, he married a young schoolteacher, Victoria Iuga. They had one son, Gheorghe. Although the two were very much in love, the marriage soon began to crumble, due to Topîrceanu's bouts of womanizing and alcoholism. Unable to redeem himself, George nonetheless suffered enormously, and the gradual distancing from Victoria, whom he will repeatedly refer to as his one saving grace, also influenced his literary output.

With the beginning of World War I, Topîrceanu was drafted, then taken prisoner and imprisoned by Bulgarian forces during the Battle of Turtucaia, in September 1916. He was kept in a POW camp until the end of the war, in 1918. After his return, Topîrceanu published several volumes of wartime recollections: Amintiri din luptele de la Turtucaia ("Memories from Battle of Turtucaia", 1918), În ghiara lor... Amintiri din Bulgaria și schițe ușoare ("In Their Claw... Memories from Bulgaria and Light Sketches", 1920), and Pirin-Planina, epizoduri tragice și comice din captivitate ("Pirin-Planina, Tragic and Comical Episodes from Captivity", 1936) - which represent, among others, a vivid depiction of the profound effects that the cholera epidemic had on the morale of Romanian troops during their attempted retreat.

He began publishing short verses to increasing critical acclaim. In 1926, he was awarded the National Poetry Prize.

Topîrceanu wrote many satirical pieces, almost all first published as articles. His prose works were collected in several volumes: Memories from the Battle of Turtucaia (Bucharest, 1918), In their claw... Memories from Bulgaria and Light Sketches (Jassy, 1920), Letters with No Address, Humorous and Pessimistic Prose (Bucharest, 1930), Pirin-Planina, Tragic and Comic Episodes from Captivity (Bucharest, 1936). He also left an unfinished novella, Minunile Sfântului Sisoe ("Holy Shit Wonders"), published posthumously in 1938.