James Patterson Biography
Summary
"James B. Patterson" (born March 22, 1947) is an American author of thriller novels, largely known for his series about American psychologist Alex Cross. Patterson also wrote the Michael Bennett, Women's Murder Club, Maximum Ride, Daniel X, and Witch & Wizard series, as well as many stand-alone thrillers, nonfiction and romance novels.
Biography
After Patterson retired from advertising in 1985, he devoted his time to writing. The novels featuring his character Alex Cross, a forensic psychologist formerly of the Washington D.C. Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation who now works as a private psychologist and government consultant, are his most popular and the top-selling U.S. detective series in the past ten years. Patterson has written 71 novels in 33 years. He has had 19 consecutive #1 "New York Times" bestselling novels, and holds "The New York Times" record for most bestselling hardcover fiction titles by a single author, a total of 63, which is also a Guinness World Record. The world's best-selling author, his novels account for one in 17 of all hardcover novels sold in the United States; in recent years his novels have sold more copies than those of Stephen King, John Grisham and Dan Brown combined.
Patterson's awards include the Edgar Award, the BCA Mystery Guild's Thriller of the Year, the International Thriller of the Year award, and the Children's Choice Book Award for Author of the Year. He is the first author to have #1 new titles simultaneously on "The New York Times" adult and children's bestsellers lists, and to have two books on NovelTracker's top-ten list at the same time. He appeared on the Fox TV show "The Simpsons" (in the episode 'Yokel Chords') and in various episodes of "Castle" as himself.
Patterson works with different co-authors, such as Maxine Paetro, Andrew Gross, and Peter De Jonge and has often said that collaborating with others brings new and interesting ideas to his stories.
In September 2009, Patterson signed a deal to write or co-write 11 books for adults and six for young adults by the end of 2012. "Forbes" reported the deal was worth at least $150 million, but Patterson said the estimate isn't close.
Patterson founded the James Patterson PageTurner Awards in 2005 to donate over US$850,000 to people, companies, schools, and other institutions that find original and effective ways to spread the excitement of books and reading. The PageTurner Awards were put on hold in 2008 to focus on Patterson's new initiative, ReadKiddoRead.com, which helps parents, teachers, and librarians find the best books for their children. The social networking site for ReadKiddoRead is hosted by Ning.
Criticism
Horror novelist Stephen King has dismissed Patterson's bibliography as made up of dopey thrillers, and in one interview called him a terrible writer. In a 10 Questions interview in the July 5, 2010, issue of "Time" magazine, Patterson was asked, 'What do you say to critics like author Stephen King who say you're not a great prose stylist?' Patterson responded, 'I am not a great prose stylist. I'm a storyteller. There are thousands of people who don't like what I do. Fortunately, there are millions who do.'
In his 2009 book "Junk Fiction: America's Obsession with Bestsellers", critic S. T. Joshi analyzes "The Lake House", "Honeymoon", and "The Big Bad Wolf", criticizing Patterson for absurd plots, facile trickery and dreadful prose.
Patterson also received criticism for his continued work with collaborators. His prolific output is partly owed to his many co-authors, who share authorship credit. The authors, in their agreement with Patterson, have agreed not to disclose the terms of their working relationship, including how much involvement Patterson has on each co-authored book. In the same "Time" magazine 10 Questions interview, he responded to a question about his collaborations: 'If I'm working with a co-writer, they'll usually write the first draft. And then I write subsequent drafts.'
Education and personal life
Patterson received a bachelor's degree from Manhattan College and a master's degree from Vanderbilt University.
He lives in Palm Beach, Florida, with his wife, Susan, and son, Jack.
Bibliography
Alex Cross
"Along Came a Spider" (1993, ISBN 0-446-36419-3)
"Kiss the Girls" (1995, ISBN 0-446-60124-1)
"Jack & Jill" (1996, ISBN 0-446-60480-1)
"Cat and Mouse" (1997, ISBN 0-446-60618-9)
"Pop Goes the Weasel" (1999, ISBN 0-375-40854-1)
"Roses Are Red" (2000, ISBN 0-446-60548-4)
"Violets Are Blue" (2001, ISBN 0-446-61121-2)
"Four Blind Mice" (2002, ISBN 0-446-61326-6)
"The Big Bad Wolf" (2003, ISBN 9780316602907)
"London Bridges" (2004, ISBN 0-446-61335-5)
"Mary, Mary" (2005, ISBN 0-316-15976-X)
"Cross" (2006, ISBN 0-316-15979-4 )
"Double Cross" (2007, ISBN 0-316-01505-9)
"Cross Country" (2008, ISBN 0-316-01872-4)
"Alex Cross's Trial" (2009, ISBN 0-316-07062-9, with Richard DiLallo)
"I, Alex Cross" (2009, ISBN 0-316-01878-3)
"Cross Fire" (2010, ISBN 0-316-03617-X)
"Kill Alex Cross" (2011, ISBN 0-316-19873-0)
Michael Bennett
"Step on a Crack" (2007) (with Michael Ledwidge)
"Run for Your Life" (2009) (with Michael Ledwidge)
"Worst Case" (2010) (with Michael Ledwidge)
"Tick Tock" (2011) (with Michael Ledwidge)
Jack Morgan
"Private" (2010, with Maxine Paetro)
Daniel X
"The Dangerous Days of Daniel X" (2008) (with Michael Ledwidge)
"Daniel X: Watch the Skies" (2009) (with Ned Rust)
"Daniel X: Demons and Druids" (2010) (with Adam Sadler)
"Daniel X: Game Over" (2011) (with Ned Rust)
Witch and Wizard
"Witch and Wizard" (2009) ISBN 0-316-03624-2 (with Gabrielle Charbonnet)
"Witch and Wizard: The Gift" (2010) ISBN 978-0316036252 (with Ned Rust)
"Witch and Wizard: The Fire" (2011) ISBN 0-316-10190-7 (with Jill Dembowski)
Women's Murder Club
Four San Francisco friends - a detective, a district attorney, a medical examiner, and a crime reporter - join forces to solve mysteries.
"1st to Die" (2001, ISBN 0-446-61003-8)
"2nd Chance" (2002, ISBN 0-446-61279-0, with Andrew Gross)
"3rd Degree" (2004, ISBN 0-316-60357-0, with Andrew Gross)
"4th of July" (2005, ISBN 0-316-71060-1, with Maxine Paetro)
"The 5th Horseman" (2006, ISBN 0-316-15977-8, with Maxine Paetro)
"The 6th Target" (2007, ISBN 0-316-01479-6, with Maxine Paetro)
"7th Heaven" (2008, ISBN 0-316-01770-1, with Maxine Paetro)
"8th Confession" (2009, ISBN 978-1846052583, with Maxine Paetro)
"The 9th Judgment" (2010, ISBN 978-0316036276, with Maxine Paetro)
"10th Anniversary" (2011, ISBN 0-316-03626-9, with Maxine Paetro)
"11th Hour" (2012)
Graphic novels
"Daniel X: Alien Hunter" (with Leopoldo Gout) (2008, ISBN 0-316-004251)
"Daniel X: Manga 1" (2010, ISBN 0-316-07764X)
"Daniel X: Manga 2" (2010, ISBN 0-316-077658)
"Maximum Ride, Vol. 1 Manga" (with NaRae Lee) (2009, ISBN 0-759-529515)
"Maximum Ride, Vol. 2 Manga" (with NaRae Lee) (2009, ISBN 0-759-52968X)
"Maximum Ride, Vol. 3 Manga" (with NaRae Lee) (2010, ISBN 0-759-529698)
"Maximum Ride, Vol. 4 Manga" (with NaRae Lee) (2011, ISBN 0-7595-2970-0)
"Maximum Ride, Vol. 5 Manga" (with NaRae Lee) (1 December 2011, ISBN 00-9953-844X)
"Witch & Wizard: Battle for Shadowland" (with Dara Naraghi) (2010, ISBN 1-600-107591)
"Witch & Wizard: Operation Zero" (Dara Naraghi) (2011)
Stand-alone novels
"The Thomas Berryman Number" (1976) (Edgar Award, 1977, Best First Novel)
"Season of the Machete" (1977)
"Virgin" (1980)
"The Midnight Club" (1988)
"Hide & Seek" (1996)
"Miracle on the 17th Green" (1996) (with Peter De Jonge)
"See How They Run" (1997, previously published in 1977 as "The Jericho Commandment")
"When the Wind Blows" (1998)
"Black Friday" (2000, previously published in 1986 as "Black Market")
"Cradle and All" (2000, based on, and includes scenes plus characters, from "Virgin" (1980))
"Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas" (2001)
"The Beach House" (2002) (with Peter De Jonge)
"The Jester" (2003, ISBN 0316602051) (with Andrew Gross)
"The Lake House" (2003) (sequel to "When The Wind Blows")
"Sam's Letters to Jennifer" (2004)
"Honeymoon" (2005) (with Howard Roughan)
"Lifeguard" (2005) (with Andrew Gross)
"Beach Road" (2006) (with Peter De Jonge)
"Judge and Jury" (2006) (with Andrew Gross)
"The Quickie" (2007) (with Michael Ledwidge)
"You've Been Warned" (2007) (with Howard Roughan)
"Sundays at Tiffany's" (2008) (with Gabrielle Charbonnet)
"Sail" (2008) (with Howard Roughan)
"Swimsuit" (2009) (with Maxine Paetro)
"The Postcard Killers" (2010) (with Liza Marklund)
"Don't Blink" (2010) (with Howard Roughan)
"Toys" (2011) (with Neal McMahon)
"Now You See Her" (2011) (with Michael Ledwidge)
"Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life" (2011) (with Chris Tebbetts)
Non-fiction
"Against Medical Advice: A True Story (aka: Torn Apart)" (2008) (with Hal Friedman)
"The Murder of King Tut" (2009) (with Martin Dugard)
External links
(Official James Patterson US web site)
(Official James Patterson UK web site)
(James Patterson) at the Internet Book List
(2010 Time Magazine's 10 Questions for James Patterson)
Credit
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article about James Patterson.
