Beatrice Gormley

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When I was nine, I decided I wanted to become a writer.

My cat Luke, editing my writing.

Beatrice reads to her niece Shannon

My Life

Here I am in my home office. Can you tell from my clothes what time of year it is, and how much I save on my heating bill? I'm holding C.S. Lewis: The Man Behind Narnia. On the walls are pictures I used for writing another biography, Julius Caesar.

Photo credit: Peggy Aulisio and Westport Shorelines

California beginning


Have you ever wondered how someone becomes a writer? I used to wonder that, too, ever since I decided (at age nine) to become a writer myself. But it took me a long time to figure out how to make my dream come true.
I grew up in Southern California, graduated from Pomona College, and then went to work for a book publisher. That's how I met my husband, Robert Gormley - he was an editor working for the same company. We had two children, Katie and Jenny, and then we all moved from California to Massachusetts.

My first book


Soon afterward, I started to give serious time to my own writing. I was thrilled to have some articles and essays and book reviews published, but still my stories were always rejected. Then, when my children were nine and seven, I tried writing a book for children. Bingo - at last I was writing the kind of stories that made me want to become a writer, back when I was nine! A year or so later my first book, Mail-Order Wings, was published.

Stars and cats, aliens and history


Ever since, I've written about things that matter to me. For instance, my interest in astronomy led me to write a biography of Maria Mitchell, the first American woman astronomer. My love of history, and my fondness for the idea of time travel, led me to write Back to the Titanic! and Back to Paul Revere! and Back to the Day Lincoln Was Shot!

I also love the places I've lived. My first novels were set in a town in Massachusetts like Duxbury, where I lived at the time. Then I moved to a town on the Hudson River, in New York, and my stories took place there. Now that I'm back in Massachusetts, my characters will probably want to relocate, too.

Other interests of mine: cats and dogs and birds, long hikes, friends, aliens from outer space, and people who struggle to achieve their dreams. You'll find them all in my books.



Some of My Books

Biography
Malcolm X: A Revolutionary Voice
A powerful black leader
Marie Curie: Young Scientist
The courageous girl who became a brilliant scientist.
Julius Caesar: Young Statesman
The ruler of ancient Rome.
C.S. Lewis: The Man Behind Narnia
Story of the author of the beloved Chronicles of Narnia.
First Ladies: Women Who Called the White House Home
All the presidents' wives, from Martha Washington to Laura Bush.
Louisa May Alcott, Young Novelist
Story of the author of Little Women.
Amelia Earhart, Young Aviator
A heroine of early aviation.
Althea Gibson, Young Tennis Player
The world's first African-American tennis champion
Laura Ingalls Wilder, Young Pioneer
The story of the author of the "Little House" books.
Fiction
Salome
Salome's story, in her own words.
ADARA
A novel of ancient Israel
Back to the Day Lincoln Was Shot!
Three kids from the present visit Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865.
Back to Paul Revere!
The Travelers Through Time ride with Paul Revere.
Back to the Titanic!
Three kids from the present travel to 1912 to save the great ship.
Mail-Order Wings
Nine-year-old Andrea orders wings through the mail with a guarantee to fly.



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