The King of Inventors: A Life of Wilkie Collins by Catherine Peters, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (
Wikipedia), is her biography of the classic Victorian novelist (
Wikipedia), exploring his life, influences, friendships, and literary legacy, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour Press' Odyssey imprint.
This was originally published in 1991 by Martin Secker & Warburg Ltd., and later reprinted by Princeton University Press as part of their Princeton Legacy Library series.
Currently free @
Amazon (available to Canadians & in the UK and pretty much everywhere else worldwide that Amazon sells, since this is being done via their KDP Select exclusive or else program)
Description
Born Thursday, 8th January in 1824, William ‘Wilkie’ Collins’ birth coincided with a period of change: where Romanticism was being overtaken by respectability.
Collins’s early life was surrounded by friends and family who were all writers or painters.
Unlike his father, Wilkie was more determined to become a writer. Although his father was diligent that both his sons would have a good education, Wilkie believed that further travels would aid his ambitions.
Italy was the source of his greatest inspiration.
Having travelled and lived there with his family, Wilkie was familiar with the culture and language.
Although his writing career was taking off, things were not smooth. Following rejections from publishers, his mother willingly helped him financially.
Wilkie met Charles Dickens through his endeavours and learnt a lot about marketing, and over time, they became good friends. Dickens proved to be rather instrumental in Wilkie’s career.
The King of Inventors gives an in-depth and engrossing insight of Wilkie Collins’ life, loves and legacy.