|

Terry Goodkind (born 1948 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA) is a contemporary American writer and author of the best-selling epic fantasy series The Sword of Truth, which according to his publisher Tor Books in an August 2006 press release[1] has more than 10 million copies in print and has been translated into 20 different languages. In a recent Publishers Weekly article, it was reported that Goodkind has sold 25 million copies[2] worldwide.
Goodkind was born in 1948 and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, where he also attended schooling in art and Catholic Catechism Instruction.
Goodkind learned early in his life that he suffered from dyslexia, a cause of constant frustration while he was in high school. He later dropped out of college and worked as a carpenter, a violin maker, and a restorer of rare and exotic artifacts and antiques. Before starting his career as a writer, Goodkind was best known for his realistic marine and wildlife paintings.[3] In 1993, during the construction of his home on the forested Mount Desert Island off the coast of Maine with his wife Jeri, he began to write his first novel, Wizard's First Rule, and his writing career was launched with its publication in 1994. In addition to his home in Maine, Goodkind and his wife built a second home in the desert southwest where he now spends the majority of his time
Goodkind's first book, Wizard's First Rule, was auctioned to publishers in 1994 for six times more than the record price previously paid for a first fantasy novel.[5] It had a first print run of 60,000 copies, where 3,000 5,000 is more usual, and became an international bestseller.
Goodkind has subsequently published ten other novels and one novella to great commercial success. All of his books, with the exceptions of Stone of Tears and Wizard's First Rule, have appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List.[6] Of his latest novels, Chainfire, debuted at #3;[7] in January 2005, Phantom at #1[8] in August 2006; and Confessor at #2 in November 2007 on the NYT Best Sellers List.
Goodkind has been largely influenced by the books of Ayn Rand and is a strong supporter of her works and of Objectivist philosophy. While he acknowledges writing in the fantasy genre, he perceives his novels to be more than just traditional fantasy because of their focus on philosophical and human themes
|