Tui T. Sutherland facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tui T. Sutherland
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Sutherland at the 2017 New York Comic Con
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| Born | Tui Tamara Sutherland July 31, 1978 Caracas, Venezuela |
| Pen name | Heather Williams Erin Hunter (shared) Rob Kidd (shared) Tamara Summers |
| Occupation | Author |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Williams College |
| Genre | Children's literature |
| Notable works | Wings of Fire (novel series) |
| Children | 2 |
Tui Tamara Sutherland (born July 31, 1978, in Caracas, Venezuela) is an American children's book author. She has written over 60 books, some under her own name and others using different pen names. She is most famous for her exciting Wings of Fire series, which is about dragons. Her books have sold more than 15 million copies! In 2009, she even won $46,200 on the TV show Jeopardy!.
Contents
Tui Sutherland's Early Life and Writing Journey
Tui T. Sutherland was born in Caracas, Venezuela, on July 31, 1978. Her mother, who was from New Zealand, named her after the tūī, a bird native to that country. Tui lived in several places like Asuncion, Miami, and Santo Domingo for short times. She then moved to New Jersey when she was in high school.
While in high school, Tui enjoyed working backstage in theater. She later went to Williams College and earned a degree in English Literature in 1998. After college, she decided to write children's books. She joked that this choice made her career "more stable and lucrative" (meaning more steady and profitable).
Becoming a Published Author
Tui Sutherland started her writing career as an editor in Brooklyn, New York. Her first solo book, This Must Be Love, came out in 2004. She became a New York Times bestselling author with her book based on the movie Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.
She also became well-known for joining the Erin Hunter team. This team writes the popular Warriors series, which is about cats, and the Seekers series, which is about bears. Working on these series helped her learn a lot about publishing. This gave her the confidence to write and publish many of her own books. Eventually, Tui left her job as an editor to become a full-time writer. She later moved to Watertown, Massachusetts.
Tui Sutherland uses her real name for some books. She also writes under other names, called pseudonyms or pen names. These include Tamara Summers, Heather Williams, and Rob Kidd.
The Wings of Fire Series
After finishing her Pet Trouble series, which was about dogs, Tui had an idea for a new series. She wanted to write an exciting fantasy series where dragons were the main heroes. She shared this idea with her agent and the team at Scholastic Inc..
The first book in the Wings of Fire series came out on July 1, 2012. It quickly became very popular. Over time, the series gained a huge fan base and became an international bestseller.
Tui Sutherland's Personal Life
Tui grew up with her younger sister, Kari. They often shared ideas and explored classic stories together. Tui married her husband, Adam, in October 2007. They live in Watertown, Massachusetts with their two sons.
Tui doesn't often share many private details about her life. However, she has mentioned that she gets ideas from different religious traditions. She went to a Baptist missionary school in Paraguay and studied Buddhism in college. She is raising her children with Judeo-Christian influences, as her husband is Jewish. She hopes her writing can start discussions and make readers think about big questions in the fantasy worlds she creates.
Tui also gets ideas for her fantasy worlds from places she has visited. These include the Waitomo Glowworm Caves in New Zealand and the Amber Palace in India. She also watches nature documentaries like Planet Earth to help her imagine different environments.
Tui's Jeopardy! Experience
Tui Sutherland has always been a big fan of the TV show Jeopardy!. She even named one of the dogs in her Pet Trouble series after the show! In 2009, she was a champion on Jeopardy!, winning a total of $46,200 over three episodes. She won her first two games by a small amount. In her last game, she didn't bet enough money on the final question and lost. If she had bet everything, she would have won that game too!
In June 2024, Tui started a free online newsletter to connect with her fans.
Tui Sutherland's Books
Tui Sutherland has written many books, both by herself and with other authors. Here are some of her well-known works:
Single Titles
- Who Was Harry Houdini? (2002)
- This Must Be Love (2004)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - The Junior Novelization (2007)
Books Under Other Names
As Erin Hunter
Tui helped write several books for the popular Warriors and Seekers series:
- Warriors: Secrets of the Clans (2007)
- Seekers: The Quest Begins (2008)
- Seekers: Smoke Mountain (2009)
As Rob Kidd
Tui also contributed to the Legends of the Brethren Court series:
- Legends of the Brethren Court: The Caribbean (2008)
- Legends of the Brethren Court: The East (2008)
As Tamara Summers
- He's With Me (2007)
- Save the Date (2008)
Series by Tui T. Sutherland
Pet Trouble
This series is about different dogs and their funny problems:
- Pet Trouble: Runaway Retriever (2009)
- Pet Trouble: Loudest Beagle on the Block (2009)
- Pet Trouble: Mud-Puddle Poodle (2009)
- Pet Trouble: Bulldog Won't Budge (2009)
The Menagerie
Tui wrote this series with her sister, Kari Sutherland:
- The Menagerie (2013)
- The Menagerie: Dragon on Trial (2014)
Wings of Fire
This is Tui's most famous series, featuring different tribes of dragons:
- Wings of Fire: The Dragonet Prophecy (2012)
- Wings of Fire: The Lost Heir (2013)
- Wings of Fire: The Hidden Kingdom (2013)
- Wings of Fire: The Dark Secret (2013)
- Wings of Fire: The Brightest Night (2014)
- Wings of Fire: Moon Rising (2014)
- Wings of Fire: Winter Turning (2015)
- Wings of Fire: Escaping Peril (2015)
- Wings of Fire: Talons of Power (2016)
- Wings of Fire: Darkness of Dragons (2017)
- Wings of Fire: The Lost Continent (2018)
- Wings of Fire: The Hive Queen (2018)
- Wings of Fire: The Poison Jungle (2019)
- Wings of Fire: The Dangerous Gift (2021)
- Wings of Fire: The Flames of Hope (2022)
Wings of Fire: Graphic Novels
These are comic book versions of the Wings of Fire stories:
- Wings of Fire - The Graphic Novel: The Dragonet Prophecy (2018)
- Wings of Fire - The Graphic Novel: The Lost Heir (2019)
- Wings of Fire - The Graphic Novel: The Hidden Kingdom (2019)
- Wings of Fire - The Graphic Novel: The Dark Secret (2020)
- Wings of Fire - The Graphic Novel: The Brightest Night (2021)
- Wings of Fire - The Graphic Novel: Moon Rising (2022)
- Wings of Fire - The Graphic Novel: Winter Turning (2023)
