Michael Scott (Irish author) facts for kids

Michael Scott (born September 28, 1959) is a famous Irish writer. He writes many types of books, including science fiction, fantasy, and horror. He also writes romance novels using the name Anna Dillon. Michael Scott is well-known for his exciting book series, The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. He also loves to collect and share old folk tales.

Michael Scott's Writing Journey

Michael Scott has written over 100 books in more than 30 years! He writes stories for adults, young adults, and children. His books cover many genres like science fiction, fantasy, horror, and romance.

Starting as a Writer

Before he became a writer, Michael Scott traveled all over Ireland. He bought and sold rare and old books. This helped him discover many old Irish folk tales.

His very first book, Irish Folk and Fairy Tales, volume 1, came out in 1983. He was very interested in Irish myths. This book was the start of a three-book series. It helped share many Irish folk tales that had only been told by speaking, not written down.

Famous Book Series

Michael Scott is most famous for his six-book series for young adults, called The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. This series has become very popular around the world.

When the Irish Times newspaper reviewed his The De Danann Tales, they called him "the King of Fantasy in these Isles." The Irish Children's Book Trust also praised him for his "unparalleled contribution to Children's Literature."

Writing for TV and Stage

Besides books, Michael Scott has also written scripts for plays and TV shows. He worked for a company that created Riverdance. While there, he wrote for big events like the 2003 Special Olympics in Ireland. He also wrote for the Irish Film and Television Awards.

In 1991, when Dublin was the European City of Culture, Michael Scott was the Writer in Residence. This means he was a special writer invited to live and work there.

Writing as Anna Dillon

Michael Scott also writes drama and romance novels. For these books, he uses a different name: Anna Dillon.

Doctor Who Story

In 2013, Michael Scott wrote a short story called The Nameless City. The BBC asked him to write it to celebrate 50 years of the TV show Doctor Who. This story features the second Doctor, played by Patrick Troughton, and his friend Jamie McCrimmon. It was first released as an ebook.

His Writing Style

Michael Scott says his favorite topic is mythology. Growing up in Ireland, with its rich history of myths, naturally drew him to them. Irish myths are special because they weren't changed much by Roman or Greek stories. History was also his favorite subject in school, and it influences his writing.

He writes about whatever interests him. This is why he writes in so many different styles and genres. He doesn't like to be limited to just one type of writing. He simply wants to be a writer, not just a fantasy writer or a science fiction writer.

The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel Series

This popular series by Michael Scott is about the adventures of Nicholas Flamel.

Book Success

The first book in the series, The Alchemyst, was a huge hit! It reached #2 on the New York Times Best Seller list for Children's books in 2007. By 2008, it had sold over 150,000 copies.

The second book, The Magician, also did very well. It reached #4 on the New York Times Best Seller list in 2008. The series has been translated into 20 languages and is available in 37 countries. Michael Scott wrote the series because he loves history and found inspiration in many places.

Online Games for the Series

The The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series even inspired online games!

• The Codex Master: This was the first game. Players had to guess a secret code made of colored orbs. You used logic to figure out the right sequence.
• The Challenges of the Elder: This game came out to celebrate the release of The Sorceress book. Michael Scott himself guided players through four challenges with video scenes.
  • The first challenge was a moving jigsaw puzzle of the series' logo.
  • The second challenge was a memory game where players matched symbols on books.
  • The third challenge was a color sequencing game, where players repeated patterns.
  • Finally, players answered questions about the books and got a "colored aura ranking" based on their score and speed.

Film Plans

The film rights for The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series were bought by Lorenzo di Bonaventura in 2009. He is known for helping bring Harry Potter to Warner Bros. Michael Scott will be an executive producer for the movie.

Michael Scott said:

"Well, I have been promising news of the Flamel movie. Here's the press release. The movie was set up with New Line, but New Line were absorbed by Warner and the rights reverted to me. There has been tremendous interest in the series and eventually, it went to Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who is the man responsible for bringing Harry Potter to Warner when he was there. He genuinely loves this series. The next step now is to attach a writer — I will not write it, I have 3 more books to do!"

—Michael Scott

Awards for the Series

Michael Scott's The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series has been nominated for 10 literary awards. The Alchemyst won the 2008 Rhode Island Book Award (Teens), beating 200 other books!

The Alchemyst was nominated for:

• Irish Book of the Year 2008
• Kentucky Bluegrass Book Award
• Maine Student Book Award
• Nevada Young Readers Award
• NCSLMA YA Book Award - 2010
• Rhode Island Book Award 2008 – (Winner)

The Magician was nominated for:

• 2009 Irish Book of the Year Award – The Dublin Airport Authority Irish Children's Book of the Year – Snr Category.

The Sorceress was nominated for:

• Amazon - Best Books of 2009, Top 10 Children's Books: Middle Readers.
• Cybills (Children and Young Bloggers Literary Awards) - 2009 Nominations, fantasy & science-fiction: Elementary/Middle Years.

See also

In Spanish: Michael Scott (escritor) para niños