Mary Higgins Clark is widely known in the world of contemporary literature. She is the author of numerous novels in the genre of detective thriller, mysticism, as well as several books for children. Mary Higgins is the winner of the eight most honored awards for her achievements in the field of writing. The author's works have become bestsellers and have sold over 80 million copies, and this is only in the United States.
Biography Mary Higgins Clark
The future writer (full name is Mary Theresa Eleanor Higgins Clark Conchini) was born in the Bronx, New York, December 24, 1927 in the family of Irish immigrants Luke Higgins and his wife Nora. Mary was an average child and grew up with two brothers.
At an early age, Mary showed interest in writing. She wrote her first poem at seven. At a young age, Mary often composed short sketches for her friends and published children's art in a magazine.
The girl’s parents kept the pub, but with the beginning of the Great Depression in America, the institution was closed. When Mary was 11 years old, she suddenly lost her father. Her mother, Nora, widowed and unemployed, was forced to vacate her daughter's bedroom to rent her room.
Mary graduated from St. Francis Xavier High School and continued her studies at the Villa Maria Academy.
Career and work of writer Mary Higgins Clark
At age 16, Mary Higgins made an attempt to publish her work in the popular women's magazine True Confessions, but she was rejected.
To help her family pay bills, Mary got a job as a telephone operator at the Shelton Hotel. Despite financial assistance to their loved ones, the Higgins family still lost their homes and moved to a more modest apartment.
Mary later went to Wood Secretarial College. Upon completion of the course work, she was hired by Remington Rand as secretary in the advertising department. Higgins turned out to be a diligent worker, and soon Mary began to create catalogs and brochures.
After some time, Mary's interests change, and she gets a job as a flight attendant at Pan American Airlines, flying throughout Europe, Africa and Asia.
After working for some time at an aviation company, Mary decides to take a writing course at the University of New York and form a circle of aspiring writers for students.
In order to share her impressions gained during her work as a flight attendant, Mary writes a short story “Free rider”. Despite the fact that the university positively accepted her work, Higgins was disappointed by the repeated attempts to publish this work in the press. Finally, after six years of failure, only one Extension magazine agreed to buy Mary’s story for $ 100.
After a successful debut, Higgins met with literary agent and editor Patricia Chartle Mirer, who represented Mary's work over the next 20 years. In addition to work, they were also united by strong friendship. Subsequently, Higgins will even name one of his children in honor of Patricia.
Mary Higgins got a job as a screenwriter on the radio to write text for 65 short radio programs. Her work was very successful and Mary was asked to write scripts for other radio projects. Thanks to this opportunity, Higgins gained creative experience and learned to express her thoughts clearly and clearly. However, the financial condition of Mary still left much to be desired and, on the advice of her agent, she begins to work on her first novel, “Strive to Heaven, ” whose main characters were fictional George and Martha Washington. Roman Higgins was published in 1968. Inspired by success and the desire to provide her children with the opportunity to study at universities, Mary continues to write.
The recent trial of a young mother accused of killing her children in New York's news bulletins provides an idea for a novice writer for a new story, and Higgins sits down on the psychological and criminal detective, Children Will Not Return. This second book was published in 1975, after the release of which Mary's life completely changed and she became famous.
Subsequently, Higgins secured the role of a talented writer, annually releasing a book that diverged in millions of copies. Some of Mary Higgins' most successful creations:
- "Crying in the night" (1982);
- "Don't Cry, My Lady" (1987);
- "Loves music, loves to dance" (1991);
- "You Turned to the Moonlight" (1996);
- "Before you say goodbye" (2000);
- "Leave the last dance for me" (2003);
- "Where are you now?" (2008);
- "The shadow of your smile" (2010).
Her creative work includes a number of topics that often cause controversy in real life, for example, parapsychology, medical experiments, or a split personality. Actions in the writer's works often unfold slowly, while maintaining the tension of the plot. For his novels, Higgins chooses independent heroines - women endowed with the mind and courage to deal with problems in life. The characters in Mary's books are as close as possible to real people, thanks to which such events could take place in real life.
Higgins books are also number one bestsellers in France. The writer became a holder of the Order of Arts and Literature in France in 2000. She was also awarded the Grand Prix of Literary Policy in France (1980) and the Literary Prize of the Deauville Film Festival (1999). Higgins has won many other international awards and prizes for all the years of his many years of fruitful work, among which there is even an honorary knighthood. Mary Higgins Clark was also elected president of the American Association of Detective Writers.
Mary Higgins is actively involved in charity work to help sick children.
On account of Mary more than 50 books, some of them were embodied on the screens. Also with her daughter, Carol, Higgins has released several mystical novels.
