Six years. Twenty two rejected novels. More than four hundred ‘thanks, but no thanks’ letters from over a hundred publishers. It would be easy to forgive UK crime author R.J. Ellory if he’d given up on a writing career long before getting to that point, but Ellory, who describes himself as bloody-minded, wasn’t one to let ‘a few’ rejections sway him from his course.Finally, his persistence paid off when his first published novel, CANDLEMOTH, hit the shelves in 2004. This lead the way for another seven novels, including his bestseller, A QUIET BELIEF IN ANGELS, which won a number of prestigious prizes.
This tenacity to succeed could be attributed to the turmoil of his childhood. Abandoned by his father at birth, Ellory was sent to boarding school at seven years of age, after the death of his mother left him and his brother orphaned and alone. By seventeen, Ellory was experiencing life on the wrong side of the law, after he was caught poaching chickens.
Ellory’s story promises to be as compelling as his writing and audiences will have the opportunity to hear him speak at events in Auckland, Wellington, Nelson and Dunedin next week as part of the New Zealand tour to promote his new book SAINTS OF NEW YORK (Orion, $38.99 RRP).
Event details
- Wednesday September 8: 6pm, Takapuna Library, Auckland
- Thursday September 9: 12pm-1pm, Nelson Library
- Thursday September 9: 5.30pm Marsden Books, Karori, Wellington
- Friday September 10: 3.30pm Mosgiel Library
- Friday September 10: 5.30pm Dunedin City Library, Dunedin
For more information or to request please contact:
Gemma Finlay
Orion Publicist, Hachette NZ
Ph: 09 478 1033 / 027 628 9695
gemmaf@hachette.co.nz
Craig - Thanks so much for this info. I sure wish I could be there, but since I can't, I do appreciate the reminder of how persistence can pay off...
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