Boyne was born in Dublin, where he still lives. His first short story was published by the Sunday Tribune and in 1993 was shortlisted for a Hennessy Literary Award.[2][3] A graduate of Trinity College Dublin (BA) and the University of East Anglia (MA), in 2015 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of East Anglia. He chaired the jury for the 2015 Scotiabank Giller Prize.[4]Boyne is gay, and has spoken about the difficulties he encountered growing up gay in Catholic Ireland.[5][6][7]He regards John Banville as "the world's greatest living writer".