Terry Goodkind Biography

"If the road is easy, you're likely going the wrong way."- Terry Goodkind

Terry Goodkind is a contemporary author who is well-known for his fantasy novels, which had been translated into 20 different languages worldwide. His hard work led to great achievements and numerous awards, which further influenced teenagers and a number of adults to read the whole series, and reread them yet again. Though having an effectual obstacle in his early life, his passion for writing helped him overcome it. It was reported in Publisher's Weekly article that his best-selling series, The Sword of Truth, has sold 25 million copies internationally. Goodkind's main goal in his writing career is to inspire the readers, which he does effectually because his books are more than just traditional fantasy; they are partly focused on philosophical and human themes. ("http://fantasy-fan.org/terry_goodkind")

Goodkind was born in 1948, in Omaha, Nebraska, where he attended Catholic Catechism Instruction and an art school. ("http://www.blurtit.com/q302946.html")There, he learned at an early age that he suffered from dyslexia, which brought on perpetual humility from teachers and peers when he had difficulty reading and writing. After graduation, he dropped out of college and worked as a carpenter, an artifact restorer, and a violin maker. Goodkind was known for some of his marine and wildlife paintings as well. He moved to Maine in 1983 with his wife, where he began drafting characters. In 1993, he decided to commence work on his own novel. ("http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Goodkind")

Goodkind's first novel, Wizard's First Rule, was auctioned to publishers for six times more than the record price antecedently paid for fantasy novels in 1994. This novel of the series had a first print run of 60,000 copies, where the usual range is 3,000-5,000. Goodkind made a record-breaking first appearance and became an international favorite. He published eleven other novels and one novella, Debt of Bones, to extreme success. ("http://nathanrahl.tripod.com/TGBio.html.") All of his novels, with the exception of his first two works, have appeared on the New York Times Best Sellers List. ("http://www.fantasybookreview.co.uk/TerryGoodkind/biography.html") In 1995, Terry Goodkind was nominated for the Locus Poll Award for Wizard's First Rule, and he won 7th place in the Best First Novel category. He was also selected for the Locus Poll Award in 1996 for the Stone of Tears in the Fantasy Novel category, in which he won 15th place. From 1997 to 1999, Goodkind won two Locus Poll Awards in 18th and 19th places as well. He won 4th place for the Prometheus Award in 2004, and in 2006, he was a finalist for the Prometheus Award, for his novel, Chainfire.

In an interview, Terry Goodkind said: