Kathleen Woodiwiss
Encyclopedia
Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, née Kathleen Erin Hogg (June 3, 1939 – July 6, 2007), was a U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....

, pioneered the historical
Historical romance
Historical romance is a subgenre of two literary genres, the romance novel and the historical novel.-Definition:Historical romance is set before World War II...

 romance
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...

 genre with the 1972 publication of her novel The Flame and the Flower.

Early years

She was born Kathleen Erin Hogg in Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....

, the youngest of eight children of Charles Wingrove Hogg, a disabled World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 veteran, and his wife, Gladys (Coker). As a child, she relished creating her own stories, and by age six was telling herself stories at night to help fall asleep. Her father died suddenly when Woodiwiss was only twelve, leaving her to be raised by her mother and older sisters. Woodiwiss would later remark that, "every single one of us had minds of our own even then; I was no exception. I suppose that carried over into my creations of heroines who weren't weak-willed."

At the age of sixteen, she met U.S. Air Force Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...

 Ross Eugene Woodiwis at a dance. They married the following year, on July 20, 1956. She attended school locally and graduated in 1957. Her husband's military career led them to live in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, where she worked part-time as a fashion model for an American-owned modeling agency. After three and a half years in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, the family moved to Topeka, Kansas
Topeka, Kansas
Topeka |Kansa]]: Tó Pee Kuh) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is situated along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was...

 and then settled in Minnesota. During these years, she attempted to write a novel several times, but each time stopped in frustration at the slow pace of writing in longhand. After buying her husband an electric typewriter
Typewriter
A typewriter is a mechanical or electromechanical device with keys that, when pressed, cause characters to be printed on a medium, usually paper. Typically one character is printed per keypress, and the machine prints the characters by making ink impressions of type elements similar to the pieces...

 as a Christmas present, she appropriated the machine to begin her novel in earnest.

Writing career

Her debut novel, The Flame and the Flower
The Flame and the Flower
The Flame and the Flower is the debut work of romance novelist Kathleen E. Woodiwiss. The first romance novel to detail physical intimacy between the protagonists, the book revolutionized the historical romance genre. It was also the first full-length romance novel to be published first in...

, was rejected by agents and hardcover publishers as being too long at 600 pages. Rather than follow the advice of the rejection letters and rewrite the novel, Woodiwiss instead submitted it to paperback publishers. The first publisher on her list, Avon, quickly purchased the novel. Legendary editor Nancy Coffey provided a $1500 advance and arranged for an initial 500,000 print run. The Flame and the Flower was revolutionary, featuring an epic historical romance with a strong heroine and actual sex scenes. This novel, published in 1972, sold over 2.3 million copies in its first four years of publication and is credited with spawning the modern romance
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...

 genre, becoming the first romance novel "to [follow] the principals into the bedroom." The success of this novel prompted a new style of writing romance
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...

, concentrating primarily on historical fiction tracking the monogamous relationship between helpless heroines and the hero who rescued her, even if he had been the one to place her in danger. The romance novels which followed in her example featured longer plots, more controversial situations and characters, and more intimate and steamy sex scenes.

Woodiwiss had a direct impact on the career of fellow novelist LaVyrle Spencer
LaVyrle Spencer
LaVyrle Spencer is an American best-selling author of contemporary and historical romance novels. She has successfully published a number of books, with several of them made into movies. Twelve of her books have been New York Times bestsellers, and Spencer was inducted into the Romance Writers...

. Soon after finding her own success, Woodiwiss read a manuscript written by Spencer, who had yet to earn a publishing contract. Woodiwiss promptly mailed Spencer's novel to her own editor at Avon. The editor purchased the novel, The Fulfillment, beginning Spencer's career. In addition, many modern romance novelists cite Woodiwiss as their inspiration. Julia Quinn
Julia Quinn
Julia Quinn is the pseudonym used by Julie Pottinger , a best-selling American historical romance author, who says she chose her pseudonym so her Regency romances would be on bookshelves next to those of the successful romance writer Amanda Quick...

 remarked that "Woodiwiss made women want to read. She gave them an alternative to Westerns and hard-boiled police procedurals. When I was growing up, I saw my mother and grandmother reading and enjoying romances, and when I was old enough to read them myself, I felt as if I had been admitted into a special sisterhood of reading women."

Woodiwiss published twelve best-selling romance novels, with over thirty-six million copies in print. Woodiwiss was known for the quality of her novels rather than the quantity of works she published. She often took four to five years to write a single novel. In some cases, Woodiwiss attributed the lag in publication time to personal and health issues, while in others she confessed to having suffered burnout
Burnout
Burnout or burn-out may refer to:*Burnout , a psychological term for a syndrome characterized by long-term exhaustion and diminished interest, especially in one's career*Burnout , when a vehicle's tires are spun so they smoke...

 and needing a rest to recover her interest in writing.

All of her novels were historical romances set in varied backgrounds, including the American Civil War, 18th-century England, or Saxony in the time of William the Conqueror. The heroines of the novels are strong-willed young women with "a spark of life and determination." Woodiwiss describes her novels as "fairy tales. They are an escape for the reader, like an Errol Flynn
Errol Flynn
Errol Leslie Flynn was an Australian-born actor. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films, being a legend and his flamboyant lifestyle.-Early life:...

 movie."

Later years

Woodiwiss was an avid horse rider who at one time lived in a large home on 55 acres (222,577.3 m²) in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

. After her husband's death in 1996, she moved back to Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

. She died in a hospital in Princeton, Minnesota
Princeton, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,933 people, 1,624 households, and 998 families residing in the city. The population density was 887.7 people per square mile . There were 1,670 housing units at an average density of 376.9 per square mile...

, aged 68, from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

.

She is survived by two sons, Sean and Heath, their wives, and numerous grandchildren. A third son, Dorren, predeceased her. Her final book, Everlasting, was released on October 30, 2007.

Birmingham Family Saga Series

  1. The Flame and the Flower
    The Flame and the Flower
    The Flame and the Flower is the debut work of romance novelist Kathleen E. Woodiwiss. The first romance novel to detail physical intimacy between the protagonists, the book revolutionized the historical romance genre. It was also the first full-length romance novel to be published first in...

    , 1972
  2. "The Kiss" in THREE WEDDINGS AND A KISS, 1995 (with Catherine Anderson
    Catherine Anderson
    Catherine Anderson, born in 1947, is an American best-selling writer of historical and contemporary romance novels.-Biography:Some of Anderson's earliest memories are of hearing her mother type stories on an old typewriter, and then read the finished work aloud. With this inspiration, Anderson...

    , Loretta Chase
    Loretta Chase
    Loretta Chase, née Loretta Lynda Chekani is an American writer of romance novels since 1987.-Biography:Born Loretta Lynda Chekani in 1949, she attended New England public schools and she obtained a B.A. in the Clark University....

    , Lisa Kleypas
    Lisa Kleypas
    Lisa Kleypas is a best-selling American author of historical and contemporary romance novels. In 1985, she was named Miss Massachusetts and competed in the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City.-Biography:...

    )
  3. "Beyond the Kiss" in MARRIED AT MIDNIGHT, 1996 (with Jo Beverley
    Jo Beverley
    Jo Beverley, née Mary Josephine Dunn is a prolific British-Canadian writer of popular historical romance novels....

    , Tanya Anne Crosby
    Tanya Anne Crosby
    Tanya Anne Crosby is an American writer of romance novels. A New York Times bestselling author, she is a five-time nominee for a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award...

    , Samantha James
    Samantha James
    Samantha James is an American dance musician from Los Angeles. She released her debut album, Rise, in 2007 on Om Records, which features production work by Sebastian Arocha Morton . The title track from the album was released as a single and has reached #1 on the US Billboard Dance charts...

    )
  4. A Season Beyond a Kiss, 2000
  5. The Elusive Flame, 1998

Single Novels

  • Wolf and the Dove, 1974
  • Shanna
    Shanna
    Shanna is an American feminine given name, and may refer to:* Shanna Collins , American actress* Shanna Compton, American poet* Shanna Crossley , American professional basketball player...

    , 1977
  • Ashes in the Wind, 1979
  • A Rose in Winter, 1981
  • Come Love a Stranger, 1984
  • So Worthy My Love, 1989
  • Forever in Your Embrace, 1992
  • Petals on the River, 1997
  • The Reluctant Suitor, 2002
  • Everlasting, 2007

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK