Taylor Jenkins Reid is an American author most known for the New York Times Bestselling novels The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (2017), Daisy Jones and the Six (2019), and Malibu Rising (2021). While the books vary in their plots, all the stories deal with characters who struggle with fame.
Taylor Jenkins Reid was born in eastern Maryland and raised in Massachusetts. After earning her film and television degree from Emerson College, she moved to Los Angeles.
After several years in casting, a brief stint in entertainment tech, and trying a career in television writing, she debuted with the novel, Forever, Interrupted, published in 2013.
The romance tells about a Los Angeles librarian who meets the love of her life, marries him, and loses him days after their wedding. The protagonist, Elsie, travels to her mother-in-law’s lavish home in Newport for a “Widow Rehab.” Elsie’s mother-in-law Susan is not a celebrity, but she is the first glimmer of an Evelyn Hugo or Daisy Jones-like character in Reid’s work, a woman who has steeled herself from harsh realities with charisma, talent, and a lot of money.
"I think books are, by nature, a more intimate experience. And so movies have to work harder to be as good. But some adaptations have been spectacular. Sally Rooney’s Normal People, which she helped adapt, is a great example," says Reid.
She has written three more contemporary romances before her dramatic departure from the genre with Evelyn Hugo. The book didn’t make her famous, but it captured an audience none of her prior works had.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo was not an overnight success but get commercial and critical acclaim. The novel tells the story of fictional Old Hollywood star Evelyn Hugo.
"Hollywood gossip is sort of a lifelong hobby of mine," Reid says.
The book only reached the New York Times bestseller four years later.
Reid's 2019 novel Daisy Jones & The Six recounts the ups and downs of a fictional '70s rock band (based on Fleetwood Mac real stories) that was more successful. The story jumped up the New York Times bestseller list and continued to dominate as Reese Witherspoon’s book club selected it for a monthly pick and her production company, Hello Sunshine, optioned it for television.
Amazon Studios is developing Daisy Jones & The Six into a web-based miniseries, with Zola star Riley Keough at the helm as Daisy and The Hunger Games's Sam Claflin attached as the leader of The Six, Billy Dunne.
Now Taylor Jenkins Reid is no longer a niche romance writer. She has tens of thousands of social media followers, and her hit books are becoming television shows.
Taylor Jenkins Reid currently lives with her husband in Los Angeles.
Photo credit: taylorjenkinsreid.com
