O! For a Muse of fire....

Booking for Henry VIII has opened today at the Globe, as, of course has every other performance in the 'Kings and Rogues' 2010 season. Yet it is this play, one of Shakespeare's lesser known histories, that holds special significance for this most spectacular of theatres. On June 29th 1613, a cannon, fired for means of a special effects during a performance of Henry VIII, set the theatre's thatched roof alight, and caused the entire building to be razed to the ground ‘all in less than two hours, the people having enough to do to save themselves’. The structure was rebuilt a year later with a tiled roof, yet it seemed to have lost its magic, and it was demolished in 1644 for housing. Now, 397 years after the original incident, with thatch reinstated and sprinklers installed, the play will once again take to the stage; hopefully the fireworks will only be in the performance.

On this day...

Miep Gies was born in 1909. A name that you may not have heard of, yet one whose actions have echoed throughout the decades. Although an Austrian citizen by birth, at the age of 11, Gies moved to Holland, escaping the food shortagesthat existed as the remenents of World War One. By 1933, she had begun to work at 'Opetka', a spice company run by German Otto Frank. Gies' extensive knowledge of both Dutch and German became a useful tool in helping the Franks assimilate into society and she was soon close friends with the family.

The friendship that was forged was tested, yet prove to be ever-enduring, as Gies and her husband helped to hide the Franks from the Nazi patrols for over two years. When the Franks were eventually found and arrested in the Summer of 1944, Gies retrived Anne's diary before the authorities could empty the hiding place, and preserved it, giving it to Otto after the war. Gies' extraordinary humanitarian efforts have since been rewarded, receiving German, Dutch and Israeli honours and even having a minor planet named after her. She died earlier this year, at the age of 100.

Love is in the air...

Love. The subject for emotive prose and simpering poetry, rich drama and intimate letters. Writers throughout the ages have been its biggest supporters and critics, with few failing to express their opinion on the subject. And so, on Valentine's Day, it seems apt to see what some of them have to say..

• 'It's better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved at all' - Alfred Lord Tennyson
• 'The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved' - Victor Hugo
• 'Love is the irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired' - Mark Twain
• 'At the touch of love, one becomes a poet' - Plato
  
• 'Keep love in your heart.A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead' - Oscar Wilde
• 'Love is a springtime plant that perfumes everything with its hope, even the ruins to which it clings' - Gustav Flaubert
  
• 'Love is only a dirty trick played on us to achieve continuation of the species' - W. Somerset Maugham

On this day...

English writer Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, died in 1975, at the age of 93. Better known as 'Plum' to his family and P.G. Wodehouse to his readers, he barely saw his parents in his first few months of life, a trend that was perpetuated by numerous boardings schools throughout his adolescence. Wodehouse was marked down for Oxford, yet the failing of the Indian rupee, the currency of his father's pension, meant that this was not feasible.

Instead, Wodehouse found himself a prolific contributor to a variety of magazines, including 'Punch', 'Vanity Fair', and the 'Daily Express'. During the World War Two, Wodehouse took up residence in France, and, doubting the seriousness of the conflict, found himself a prisoner of war. Thus followed a controversy with the Germans, which ended up in the author being roundly criticised by fellow writer A.A. Milne and even MI5. Influencing the likes of Evelyn Waugh, Rudyard Kipling and Salman Rushdie, Wodehouse's most famous works from his 96 books, include the 'Blandings Castle' and 'Drones Club' series.

Politics and romance, a potent combination...

Louise Bagshawe is in the running to win Romantic Novel of the Year Award. An extraordinary achievement, yet nothing too revolutionary. However, Bagshawe, unlike most potentially award winning writers, is also a prospective parliamentary candidate. The Conservative's nomination for Corby and East Northants will soon get used to competing against others for the the ultimate prize, and she faces no tougher field than in the literary world.

Whilst Bagshawe's 'Passion' has given romance 'a new twist', Rachel Hore, Lucy Dillon, Jean Fullerton, Santa Montefiore and Miranda Dickinson have all got strong entries, making this year's prize provide 'a taste of the broader church of what romantic fiction is'. The winner will be announced on March 16th, but as for the election, who knows?

On this day...

'Peanuts' the comic strip made its last appearance in 2000, the day after writer Charles Schulz's death. First published in 1950, the comic strip actually found its origins two years earlier, published under the name 'Lil' Folks'. After confusion between names of similar comics, it was rebranded 'Peanuts', a name which Schulz hated, saying of it; 'It's totally ridiculous, has no meaning, is simply confusing, and has no dignity'.

Yet it became a major success. Debuting in eight newspapers, its popularity grew exponentially. At its peak it was published in over 2,600 newspapers, courting a readership of 355 million in over 75 countries, and was translated into 21 languages. Schulz often used it as a medium for social criticism, touching on religious, gender, and equality issues, as well as the Vietnam War. The birthplace for Snoopy and Charlie Brown, both highly succesful commercial entities, the comic strip received critical acclaim, even debuting on the cover of 'Time' magazine.

Jacqueline Wilson's library monopoly...

Dame Jacqueline Wilson has been revealed as the most borrowed author of the decade. Figures, from the Public Lending Right, has shown that Wilson's books have been taken out of libraries across the country more than 16 million times since the year 2000. Wilson's 'The Story of Tracy Beaker' has come in as the single most borrowed book of the decade, with other Wilson titles such as 'Double Act' and 'The Suitcase Kid' close behind. Danielle Steel, Catherine Cookson, Josephine Cox and James Patterson complete the top five, with the Harry Potter series borrowing figures steadily growing.

On this day...

Christopher McCandless, subject of biographical work 'Into the Wild', was born in 1968. The child of rich yet argumentative parents, McCandless received a first class education and graduated from Emory University with a major in history and anthropology. Yet shortly afterwards, taking inspiration from writers Leo Tolstoy and W.H. Davies, McCandless began a quest for a period of separation, and, after donating $24,000 to Oxfam, set off.

Under the pseudonym Alexander Supertramp, McCandless travelled from his home in California and two years later found himself in Alaska. During the trip he had often little or no food or human contact, taking pride on survivng with the minimum amount of preparation and equipment. Ignoring advice to the contrary, McCandless set up camp in a abandoned bus with few supplies, believing that foraging and hunting, of which he had no skill, would be sufficient to support him. Yet racked with hunger and with no map to aid him, his body was found on September 6th 1992 weighing just 30kg. His journey is the subject no only of Jon Krakauer's book, 'Into the Wild', but also a 2007 film of the same name.

Is this a dagger which I see before me?...

'So, thanks to all at once and to each one, whom we invite to see us crown'd at Scone'. Thus ends Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'. But what does happen after the curtain closes? With Banquo dead, Macbeth killed and Malcom heir in waiting, how will Scotland fair? It is these questions which the Royal Shakespeare Company are attempting to address in their new play, 'Dunsinane'.

The work is written by award-winning playwright David Grieg, who believes; 'to some degree for Scottish writers, it's always felt a little bit cheeky that unquestionably the greatest Scottish play was written by the great English playwright...so there is a slight sense of answering back'. He also hopes that it demonstrates parallels with current situations in Iraq and Afghanistan, where 'men with good intentions going in and trying to coerce a culture to follow its own rules without quite understanding that foreign culture', and encourages modern political leaders to come and watch the performance. The play is on in the Hampstead Theatre until March 16th, and tickets can be purchased here

On this day...

Poet and artist Elizabeth Siddal died in 1862, at the age of 32. Siddal developed a love of poetry from a young age. It is said that this stemmed from discovering a portion of a Tennyson work on a piece of newspaper used to wrap butter. Yet at the start of her life, Siddal had not the means to pursue such a career, and instead she worked in a hat shop. It was here that she, 'a most beautiful creature with an air between dignity and sweetness', was discovered by the pre-Raphaelite brotherhood, and thus she went on to become one of the famous muses in the art world.

Painted by all three, William Holman Hunt, John Millais and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, it was arguably to Millais that she made the greatest contribution. Whilst posing for his masterpiece, 'Ophelia', she endured icy temperatures float in a bath tub, eventually contracting pneumonia for her efforts. Yet it was Rossetti that she was to marry, and as well as considering aiding his work, she began to develop her own career, even finding funding in the form of art critic John Ruskin. However, following the marriage, Siddal became depressed and addicted to laudanum, a drug that was to tragically end her life. Rossetti buried her with a manuscript of poetry, which he then later published.

Hamster Massacre wins over the critics...

The winner of the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize has been announced today. Katie Davies, married to comedian Alan Davies, was honoured for her 'funny and touching story', 'The Great Hamster Massacre'. The book is based on her own childhood experiences, when her hamsters killed two of their litters in an event Davies merely describes as 'disappointing'. Other contenders were BAFTA winning writer Laura Summers and Suzanne LaFleur. Davies, who received £5,000, will publish her next book in a pet-related tetrology, 'The Great Rabbit Rescue', later this year.

On this day...

Colourful American playwright Arthur Miller, died in 2005 at the age of 89. Born the son of an illiterate yet prosperous businessman, Miller and his family suffered greatly at the hands of the 1929 Wall Street Crash, and he was forced to work numerous jobs merely to fund his education. Yet when there, he seized the opportunity and began to write in earnest, authoring reviews, theatre productions and radio plays.

It was widely speculated that Miller, by this time, had become a member of the Communist Party, and such allegations plagued him all his life, no more so than after the publication of allegory 'The Crucible'. Indeed he was found in contempt of Congress on related charges, a trial he attended with then wife Marilyn Monroe. Yet despite the controversies, glamorous marriages and dubious political affiliations, it should be for his works that Miller is best remembered. Undoubtedly one of the greatest dramatists of the twentieth century, Miller penned such plays as, 'Death of a Salesman', 'A View from the Bridge' and 'All My Sons', winning the Pulitzer Prize whilst doing so.

Golden oldies...

A new campaign has been launched in order to encourage the elder generation into penning down their thoughts. The government funded Bookbite project, which wants to create a generation of 'silver scribblers', has the backing of former Poet Laureate Andrew Motion. He believes it to be a 'terrific idea', saying that; 'writing reminds us that the life of the imagination offers its rewards at all times of life'. Such an initiative is on the back of successes by elder novelists such as Marina Lewycka, who was 59 when she wrote her bestselling work 'A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian'. With publisher HarperCollins suggesting that a 'very high number' of over 50s are aspiring authors, Bookbite will distribute more than 100,000 magazines through charities such as Age Concern.

On this day...

American author, Alice Walker, was born in 1944. The youngest of eight, and the child of a farmer earning only $300 a year, Walker found herself in poor circumstances. As an African American, such circumstances were exaggerated further under the Jim Crow Laws; one white plantation even suggested to Walker's mother that blacks had 'no need for education'. Yet fortunately, Walker's mother refused to abide by such social rules, and indeed sent her to school a year early.

However, at the age of eight, a shooting incident marred Walker's childhood, leaving her permanently blind in one eye and with disfiguring scar tissue. It was then that Walker turned to writing, using it as a solace to which she could escape; an experience which allowed her to 'really notice relationships and to learn to be patient enough to care about how they turned out'. One of the most profound effects on her work, was that of meeting Martin Luther King while a student, and political activism is at the forefromt of many of her novels. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award, Walker's most notable work is 'The Color Purple'.

Hollywood's finest vie for West End title...

The nominations for the Laurence Olivier Theatre Awards have been announced today. Among the names are those who now are seemingly synonymous with awards. Rachel Weisz and Gillian Anderson are pitted head to head in 'Best Actress' category, for their roles in Williams' 'A Streetcar Named Desire' and Ibsen's 'A Doll's House' respectively. The contenders for 'Best Supporting Actress' are similarly strong, including Ruth Wilson for her work alongside Weisz, and Hollywood star Keira Knightley for her performance in newly opened play 'The Misanthrope'. A theatre awards ceremony cannot proceed without recognition for a famous personality in the guise of Shakespeare, and so it is not surprising that Jude Law is nominated for 'Best Actor' as the Danish prince himself, Hamlet. The winners will be announced at a ceremony in London on 21 March.

On this day...

French author Jules Verne was born in 1828. Known as the 'father of science fiction', along with contemporary H.G. Wells, Verne developed an appetite for travel early on in his life, spending summers with the ships of the Loire River. So fascinated was young Jules, that he attempted to sneak aboard a vessel bound for India, only to be caught and whipped by his father, and hence declared, 'I shall from now on only travel in my imagination'.

This he did with aplomb, yet his expanding literary career ensured the withdrawal of parental financial support, as his father had wished him to enter law. Nevertheless, Verne found support in two of the great French writers of the age, Alexandre Dumas and Victor Hugo, and found fortune with publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel, one of the most important members of his trade in the 19th century. Verne's works, all voraciously adapted, concentrate on travel in space, underwater, and air; indeed he was, in technological fields, advanced for the age. Some of his most recognisable novels include, 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea', 'A Journey to the Centre of the Earth', and 'Around the World in Eighty Days'. Behind Agatha Christie, Verne is the most translated author.

The glittering career of a postmistress...

As yet another episode of ever popular 'Lark Rise to Candleford' airs tonight, it appears an appropriate moment to examine the career of actress Julia Sawalha. As postmistress Dorcas Lane, she has produced her own band of followers, yet she has assumed numerous other roles of literary consequence. Her first notable role was that of Mercy Pecksniff, in an adaptation of Dickens' picaresque novel 'Martin Chuzzlewit', a work which he proclaimed to be his best.

She followed this success with arguably her most well-known role, that of Lydia Bennet in the phenomenon that was the BBC's 'Pride and Prejudice'. Starring alongside Colin Firth, she played the youngest of Austen's Bennet sisters, who eloped with the dashing Captain Wickham. Most recently, she appeared in Elizabeth Gaskell's 'Cranford' as Jessie Brown, daughter of the railway entrepreneur. The drama, led by Dame Judi Dench, made its appearance just months before 'Lark Rise to Candleford', shot Sawalha to the level of screen recognition she enjoys today. And thus will she continue for many a year yet.

On this day...

French author Emile Zola was brought to trial over an editorial piece written for the Parisian newspaper 'L'Aurore' in 1898. In an open letter to the French president, then Felix Faure, Zola's article condemned the government for their perceived antisemitic and unjust stance over an issue of military exoneration. Jewish captain Alfred Dreyfus was, at the time of writing, serving a life sentance in an island prison on account of espionage; accusations which had later surfaced to be false.

Yet the army had suppressed the evidence and innocence, and so it was left to Zola in 'J'Accuse', to expose their mistakes. In an affair that deeply divided sections of both the Church and society, Zola was brought to trial for criminal libel and 16 days later was sentanced to one year's imprisonment. Instead he chose to flee to France to England, where he spent an unhappy year until his return in 1899. Dreyfus was not pardoned until 1899, and even then not exonerated until 1906. The issue is still one of some contention.

Six Nations of literature...

With the Six Nations kicking off today, it seemed an apt opportunity to take a look at the literature produced by these countries, which is some of the best in the world.

Italy - Starting with the Latin writings of Ovid and Tacitus, Italian literature spans an enormous period and is considered some of the finest. Continuing with Dante and his 'Inferno' in the Middle Ages and the sonnets of Petrach, modern Italian literature still remains in the form of the the late Italo Calvino and Umberto Eco.

France - Dumas, Flaubert, Zola, Proust; the list is endless. More so than other national literature, the French canon contains numerous philosophical works, the products of Camus, Jean Paul Sartre and Jean-Jacques Rosseau. Drama exists in the shape of Moliere, and France expressed an important voice in Roland Barthes.

Ireland - Irish literature really found its feet in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Bursting forth with the dual force of playwrights Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw, Ireland's literary claim was strengthened through the poetry of Yeats and Goldsmith and its place cemented with the prose works of Joyce.

Wales - Although probably for many, the most famous Welsh writer is poet Dylan Thomas, the literature of Wales is far more diverse. No more so for the strength of works written in its own language, by authors such as William Owen Roberts. Many English writers such as Manley Hopkins have used Welsh subject matter.

Scotland - Scotland's most recent wave of literary tradition came in the Romantic era under the eye of Robert Burns and Walter Scott. Yet it was the Victorian era which propelled it into public eye, Robert Louis Stevenson, Arthur Conan Doyle and J.M. Barrie all becoming household names; Duffy now being the latest.

England - Possibly one of the richest literary histories, all that can be said for England is a list of names. The playwrights; Shakespeare, Marlowe, and Jonson. The poets; Milton, Keats, Shelley, Byron and Tennyson. The novelists: Hardy, Austen, the Brontes, Woolf, Dickens, Forster, Eliot and most recently, Rowling.

So there you have it. Competitors on and off the rugby field. Tradition not only in sport but in literature. Long may it continue...

On this day...

John Steinbeck's novella, 'Of Mice and Men' was published in 1937. Following on from the success of 'Tortilla Flat', Steinbeck's newest book was very much in keeping with the themes which had, and would continue to dominate his works. Born in Salinas in 1902, the Great Depression and its effect on the 'American Dream' concept haunted Steinbeck and so manifested itself in literary form. 'Of Mice and Men' exemplifies this, the narrative following two migrant ranchers in search of work, and the struggles and hardships they encounter. Now required reading in numerous school systems, it had previously been a target for censorship, and indeed is listed as the fourth most challenged book of the 21st century by th American Library Association. The novella was written in such a way as to ease transferral to stage, and subsequently many adaptations have followed, the first in the same year as its publication.

Lost in translation?...

From Chekhov to Ibsen, from Dumas to Cervantes, European literature is a genre which has never disappointed. Yet although widely read since the Middle Ages, is it losing a place in today's market, increasingly flooded by transatlantic offerings? Thriller writers John Grisham and Stephen King both appear more popular than dusty, old classics in bookshops, but, in fact the sale figures do not hold this to be true. Russian literatary favourites, Tolstoy and Pushkin triumph over both in the best-selling fiction authors of all time, the former shifting over 413 million sales and the latter 357 million. In their new podcast, the Guardian explores the issues surrounding translated texts, and suggests what to read next

On this day...

Scottish critic and writer Thomas Carlyle died in 1881, at the age of 85. Born to a strict Calvanist family, Carlyle was brought up in the expectation that he would become a preacher. Yet Carlyle lost his faith at university, whilst retaining the sense of Christian morality; and so he became the embodiment of the Victorian struggle between religion and science. Following the study of German literature, including Goethe and Fichte, Carlyle began to persue his own literary career, publishing his first major work, 'Sartor Resartus', in 1832. Preceding the development of New England Transcendentialism, the work was an attack on English Utilitarianism, using a fictional German 'philosopher of clothes' to explore them.

Meanwhile, Carlyle had married Jane Welsh, a woman of letters; yet their union was said to be unhappy. Indeed novelist Samuel Butler said of them; 'It was very good of God to let Carlyle and Mrs Carlyle marry one another, and so make only two people miserable and not four'. Carlyle's works, including 'The French Revolution' and 'Heroes and Hero Worship', would go on to influence later commentators, such as John Ruskin and Matthew Arnold.

Anton Chekhov's 150th celebration....

As written on January 29th, this year sees the 150th anniversary of Anton Chekhov's birthday. The playwright and short story author is considered part of the 'golden age' of Russian literature, ranking among contemporaries Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky and Pushkin. As such, across the media spectrum, Chekhov's works are being rediscovered and reinvented in honour or the great man.

A production of 'The Three Sisters', is currently being performed at the Lyric Hammersmith, starring Romola Garai, the recent lead role in the BBC's 'Emma', as Masha Prozorov.

BBC Radio is producing numerous programmes about the writer, ranging from readings of his work, to examining his influences of the modern writer.

Finally, the Guardian has a quiz on the author to determine knowledge of the author and his works.

On this day...

James Fenimore Cooper's historical novel 'The Last of the Mohicans' was published in 1826. The second installment in the 'Leatherstocking Tales' pentalogy takes place in 1757 during the Seven Years War, in which the French allied themselves with Native American tribes against British control. The subsequent racial issues which the novel raises, have combined with masterful characterisation to create one of the most popular works from the nineteenth century, and one which remains an integral part of any American literature courses.

However, its critical acclaim is not consistent from all sides. Many have disliked the particularly verbose narrative style which Cooper employed, and indeed its popularity has dwindled slightly in modern audiences for that very reason. Mark Twain believed this style, which Cooper used for his other works, was detremental, saying, 'Cooper has scored 114 offences against literary art out of a possible 115... It breaks the record'. The novel has seen many adaptations, the most recent of which was a film in 1992, starring Daniel Day Lewis.

Brokeback Mountain inciting crime...

The Texan authorities have banned a wealth of famous and influential literature from their prisions. Inmates will now not be able to read works by Pulitzer Prize winners John Updike and Alice Walker, as well of novels by John Grisham, and Annie Proulx's 'Brokeback Mountain'. Even Nobel Laureates have been blacklisted, and a prisoners appeal has done little to abate the action. Any novel detailing drugs or weapons manufacturing, criminal schemes, racial insensitivity or escape aids has been cut, as, according to officers, 'what may not be judged inflammatory in the public at large can be inflammatory in prison'. The Conservative party has suggested a similar censorship for British prisons, however, it is likely to received in a similar manner to this; one of bemusement.

On this day...

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster died in 1399. Perhaps it might at first glance seem an innocuous link to literature, yet the historical figure, and his descendents, play a major role in some of Shakespeare's most successful and popular plays. Father of Henry 'Bolingbroke' IV, and grandsire to Henry V, Gaunt can even caim the illustrious House of Tudor as being directly from his lineage, thus inadvertently inspiring Shakespeare's eponymous works, 'Henry IV part I and II', 'Henry V' and the later 'Henry VIII'. Gaunt himself, appears as a character in 'Richard II'.

The original historical tetralogy was written approximately 200 years after the first events which were portrayed; and indeed the events were vastly important. The overthrow and muder of Richard, the Battle of Shrewsbury and the Battle of Agincourt all feature, and all to some extent, especially 'Henry V', have been seen in a patriotic light since. Introducing the young Prince Hal and jovial Falstaff, the plays are ever popular, and indeed The Globe is staging both parts of Henry IV, in their 2010 season.

History beckons...

A new literary award is to be unveiled, honouring historical novels in the name of the father of the genre. The Walter Scott Prize, is being set up by the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch, to 'properly honour' the author's 'immense achievements', and cement his place 'as one of the world's most influential novelists'. Scott's novel 'Waverly' is generally regarded as one of the first historical novels. Published in 1814 and set in1745, it is this work which is to define the term 'historical novel'; the parameter established as needing at least sixty years between the publication date and time period of its setting. The £25,000 award will feature at the Borders Book Festival in June.

On this day...

One of the most important works of modernist literature, James Joyce's 'Ulysses', was published in 1922. The novel was first serialised in American magazine 'The Little Review' between 1918 and 1920, but it was not until two years later that the work was published in its entirety. From a young age, Joyce was infatuated with Ulysses, otherwise known Odysseus, writing a school essay in which he described him as his 'favourite hero'. Calling Ulysses the only all-round character in literature, this fascination continued into Joyce's literary career. The name was originally thought of as a title for the popular work 'The Dubliners', but later transferred to Joyce's epic novel. The novel itself, of over 265,000 words, is narrated in stream-of-conciousness form, ensuring its place as first in the Modern Library's list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. Yet its journey has not always been smooth. Joyce himself said that he 'put in so many enigmas and puzzles that it will keep the professors busy for centuries arguing over what I meant' and indeed such seemed the confusion, that the novel was banned for obscenity in the United States and later in the United Kingdom. Since then, eighteen editions are thought to have been published; each an imitation on the last.

Better late than never...

Authors whose books were published in the year of 1970 are set to gain the recognition they deserve. One of the most illustrious literary awards, the Man Booker Prize, has come to the realisation that a change in their rules forty years ago, denied the likes of Iris Murdoch and Melvyn Bragg from ever becoming recipients. The award traditonally honoured books published in the previous year, yet in 1971, it was decided that instead it would be given to the best novel published in that year, rendering 1970 to be lost in statisitcs. Now organisers will redress the balance with a special award; 'The Lost Man Booker Prize'. The director of the initiative has described 1970 as a 'remarkable year for fiction written in English', saying that 'recognition for these novels and the eventual winner is long overdue'. The longlist includes names such as Muriel Spark, Iris Murdoch, David Lodge, Melvyn Bragg and Nina Bawden. After the shortlist announcment in March, public voting through the Man Booker website will determine the overall winner to be revealed in May.

On this day...

Differing from the classics, contemporary American author Meg Cabot was born in 1967. Originally intending to become an illustrator, Cabot studied arts at university in order to retain her love for creative writing as a hobby. Yet it was not until the age of 30, having petitioned for three years, that Cabot published her first novel; 'Where Roses Grow Wild', written under pseudonym Patricia Cabot. Several other pen-names followed, as she struggled to find a permanent publisher, writing instead for at least three. Yet her literary breakthrough came with the introduction of the 'Princess Diaries' series. Published in more than 40 countries, the now ten part work, spent 30 weeks on the 'New York Times' children's bestseller list and has made a large contribution  to Cabot's astonishing sales figures; now reaching more than 15 million. As well as winning numerous awards, the books have led to highly successful film adaptations, featuring Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews; a phenomonen, Cabot says, which has only been positive.