E. L. James facts for kids

Quick facts for kids E. L. James
E. L. James at the 2019 London Book Fair
Born	Erika Mitchell (1963-03-07) 7 March 1963 (age 62) Willesden, London, England
Pen name	E. L. James Snowqueens Icedragon
Occupation	Author
Education	Wycombe High School
Alma mater	University of Kent
Genre	Romance, ..., fan fiction
Years active	2011–present
Spouse	Niall Leonard ​ (m. 1987)​
Children	2

Erika Mitchell (born on March 7, 1963) is a British author. She is famous for her pen name, E. L. James. She wrote the very popular Fifty Shades series of romance novels. These books became so popular that they led to a film trilogy and other related projects.

Before writing the Fifty Shades series, she wrote a fan fiction story called "Master of the Universe." This story was based on the Twilight book series. She published it online using the name Snowqueens Icedragon. This fan fiction later became the starting point for her Fifty Shades books.

Her Fifty Shades novels have sold over 150 million copies around the world. They also set a record in the United Kingdom for being the fastest-selling paperback books ever. In 2012, Time magazine recognized her as one of "The World's 100 Most Influential People."

Early Life and Education

Erika Mitchell was born on March 7, 1963, in Willesden, Middlesex, England. Her mother was from Chile, and her father was from Scotland. Her father worked as a cameraman for the BBC. Erika grew up in Buckinghamshire.

She attended Pipers Corner School and Wycombe High School. After high school, she went to the University of Kent in South East England. There, she studied History.

After finishing university, James worked as an assistant studio manager. This was at the National Film and Television School in Beaconsfield. In 1987, she married Niall Leonard, who is a novelist and screenwriter from Northern Ireland. They have two sons. As of 2012, they live in Brentford, West London.

Her Writing Career

E. L. James has shared that the idea for her Fifty Shades books came from the Twilight vampire series. In late 2008, she watched the movie Twilight. She then became very interested in the books it was based on. She read the Twilight novels many times in just a few days. After that, she decided to write her own story as a sequel to those books.

Between January and August 2009, she quickly wrote two such books. She then found out about fan fiction, which is when fans write their own stories using characters from existing books or movies. This discovery led her to publish her novels as Kindle books. She used the pen name "Snowqueens Icedragon" for these early works. She started writing the Fifty Shades books in August 2009.

James has said she was very surprised by how successful her books became. She mentioned that the huge interest "took me completely by surprise." She did not begin writing until January 2009. She once said, "I started writing in January 2009 after I finished the Twilight saga, and I haven't stopped since."

In August 2013, James was at the top of Forbes magazine's list of the highest-earning authors. This was because of her book sales. She earned $95 million, which included $5 million for the film rights to Fifty Shades of Grey.

Awards and Recognition

E. L. James has received several awards and honors for her work:

• 2012: Named one of "The 100 Most Influential People in the World" by Time magazine.
• 2012: Named "Publishing Person of the Year" by Publishers Weekly.
• 2012: Won the National Book Award (UK) for "Popular Fiction Book of the Year" for Fifty Shades of Grey.
• 2012: Also won the National Book Award (UK) for "Book of the Year" for Fifty Shades of Grey.

Books Made into Movies

Some of E. L. James's books have been turned into popular films. She also worked as a producer on these movies.