Stephenie Meyer Biography

Writer and producer Stephanie Meyer was born in 1973 in Hartford, Connecticut. Today, Meyer is known as one of the most successful young adult authors of the era, with her smash-hit vampire series Twilight having sold millions of copies and spawned one of the most successful film franchises of all time. But Meyer hadn’t always aspired to become a novelist, even though she graduated as an English major from Brigham Young University in 1997.

When Stephanie began writing the Twilight series, she had never written any kind of short story or novel before. She had briefly entertained the notion of pursuing a law degree but the birth of her children in her twenties steered her focus in another direction. Meyer has stated that the idea for the Twilight series came to her in a dream, and that upon waking, she felt compelled to write. She began writing, starting with what would become Chapter Thirteen in the actual book, and built the story around that impression.

Ultimately the first installment of the series, Twilight (2005), resulted in a bidding war, with the rights ultimately going to Little, Brown, and Company in a three-book deal. The book rose into the top ten on the New York Times Best Seller list, eventually rising to number one and spawning translated copies in over twenty-six countries. It was followed by the additional sequels: New Moon (2006), Eclipse (2007), and Breaking Dawn (2008.) Even more successful than the novels themselves were the films adapted from them; the Twilight film franchise was optioned by Summit Entertainment in 2007 and launched the worldwide careers of stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart.

Today, the Twilight book franchise has sold more than one hundred million copies in thirty-seven languages, making Meyer the best American author for the years 2008 and 2009 and earning her a spot on Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People for the year 2008. Stephanie Meyer’s most recent novel, an adult sci-fi work, was released in 2008. The Host, as it is called, debuted at the number one spot on the New York Times Best Seller list and spawned the film adaptation in 2013.