David Gemmell - A Brief Biography
Honouring the Life and Works of One of Fantasy's Great Authors
David Gemmell has been rightly heralded as one of fantasy's most talented and prolific writers and a standard-bearer of the heroic fantasy sub-genre
Credited as one of the defining voices of heroic fantasy, David Gemmell was the author of thirty acclaimed novels written over a span of more than twenty-five years. With only one of these titles currently out of print, Gemmell’s bold, broad style has received widespread acceptance and his heroes number among the most entertaining and memorable figures ever to stride forth from the pages of fantasy; with many endeared to readers by as blunt, unabashed and delightfully frank a nature as their creator was himself said to possess.
An Author’s Story
Born in west London during the summer of 1948, Gemmell’s was a colourful upbringing, with a childhood that culminated in expulsion from school at the age of sixteen after he was found guilty of orchestrating a gambling syndicate. In the following years he found employment as a labourer and part-time bouncer in Soho, and eventually took to working as a freelance journalist.
By the early 80’s Gemmell had been working for a number of years as a writer/editor for several south England papers, and though he put much of his free time toward writing fiction, it was not until he received a misdiagnosis of cancer – later amended – that he set about his true passion in earnest. Certain that his days were limited, the apparently doomed author-to-be completed his first book, Legend, in 1984.
Heroic Works
Gemmell was the author of several fantasy collections, including the Drenai, Rigante and Hawk Queen series, as well as numerous other stand-alone titles. Also a writer of historic fiction, Gemmell’s most recent project was the much anticipated Troy trilogy, set, as the title suggests, during the Trojan War. Sadly, he would not live to conclude this latest series, though his wife Stella, armed with her husband’s detailed chapter notes and having herself played a prominent role in the initial research and early development of the collection, has promised to see this last project through to completion.
In addition to those titles written under his own name, Gemmell did step briefly from the realm of fantasy in order to pen White Knight, Black Swan, a rough-knuckle crime-fiction set in the British underworld and reportedly based on some of the author’s own pre-fame experiences. Fearing a negative reaction from fans over this apparent departure from his home-genre, Gemmell wrote White Knight under the guise of Ross Harding.
Said to have been originally drafted for television, White Knight was first published in 1993 and has since gone out of print, making it one of the more sought-after items for literary collectors and Gemmell fans alike.
Final Years
On Friday July 28th, 2006, after undergoing major heart surgery a few weeks previous, David Gemmell died of coronary artery disease at the age of fifty-seven.
Having mistakenly believed himself to be dying of cancer when he wrote his first book, it is possible that Gemmell then suspected Legend would survive in print longer than he would in this life. Oddly enough and in a true testament to his abilities, such was ultimately the case, as over two decades after its first appearance on the market and following its author’s tragic passing, Legend is still to be found on the shelves today.
Once asked in an interview featured on Gemmell Mania as to what annoys him most about his profession, the author answered with the following:
“. . . there are any number of pet hates to choose from. Poor reviewers would be one. Most authors sweat blood to make a story work, rewriting, re-editing, worrying endlessly that the work will be the best they can produce. Then some prat with access to a newspaper or magazine will dismiss it in a few sentences, calling it 'crap'. Anyone who finishes a novel - published or unpublished - should get a medal.” - David Gemmell
