Author Profile: John D. MacDonald

" To diggers a thousand years form now ... the works of John D. MacDonald would be a treasure on the order of the tomb of Tutankhamen."

So said Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. -- most readers of MacDonald would agree. Before his life ended on December 31st, 1986, MacDonald had written more than 500 short stories and 66 novels, and had sold more than seventy million copies worldwide.

MacDonald was a graduate of the Harvard School of Business Administration, and served as a lieutenant colonel in World War II. His first piece of fiction was a letter written from overseas to his wife. "The only kind of letters that would pass through censorship in those days made pretty dull reading, so instead of a letter, I wrote my wife a short story." he said. She promptly sold it to a magazine for $25. Beginner's luck. When he got out of the service he spent 4 months writing 7 days a week. He sometimes had as many as fifty manuscripts in the mail at once. Total sales - Zero! Broke, but not discouraged, he took a day job and continued to write at night. By 1945 his stories began to sell. The rest is history.

John D. MacDonald readers know of the variety and excitement of his stories, the brilliance of his characterization, the magic of his words, humor and wit, and the depth of his understanding. His special feeling for the Florida coast, his tightly woven plots, and his convincing portrayal of contemporary life have made him one of the most admired writers in the mystery genre. Of his 66 novels, 21 were about Travis McGee, who has become one of the most popular heroes of contemporary fiction. The beach-bum savant whose affairs, travails, and triumphs have thrilled and delighted millions of readers around the world, has now been sold to Fox Pictures. Already hard to obtain in first edition, these books can only go up in value. Start or add to your collection now -- before it's too late (or too expensive).

Copyright 1996 - 2001 C. Dickens Fine, Rare and Collectible Books, Atlanta, Georgia