E. L. James
Erika Mitchell (born 7 March 1963),[1][2] known by her pen name E. L. James, is a British author. She wrote the best-selling Fifty Shades series of erotic romance novels,[3][4] which spawned a multimedia franchise including a film trilogy of the same name.[5] Prior to this, she wrote the Twilight fan fiction "Master of the Universe" that served as the basis for the Fifty Shades series under the web name Snowqueens Icedragon. In 2019 she published her first book unconnected with the fictional world of Fifty Shades, The Mister, to negative critical reaction.[6][7][8]
E. L. James
Erika Mitchell
7 March 1963
Willesden, London, England
E. L. James
Snowqueens Icedragon
Author
Romance, erotica, fan fiction
2011–present
2[1]
The Fifty Shades novels have sold over 150 million copies worldwide, over 35 million copies in the United States and set the record in the United Kingdom as the fastest selling paperback of all time.[9][10][11][12] In 2012, Time magazine named her one of "The World's 100 Most Influential People".[13]
Early life
Erika Mitchell was born on 7 March 1963 in Willesden, Middlesex to a Chilean mother and a Scottish father who was a BBC cameraman.[1][14] She was brought up in Buckinghamshire.[1]
James was educated at the independent Pipers Corner School and at Wycombe High School, a state grammar school for girls in the town of High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, followed by the University of Kent in South East England where she studied history.[1]
After leaving university, James became a studio manager's assistant at the National Film and Television School in Beaconsfield.
Personal life
James married Niall Leonard, a novelist and screenwriter from Northern Ireland, in 1987. They have two sons. As of 2012, they live in Brentford, West London.[1][15]
