Twilight (novel series)
Twilight is a series of four fantasy romance novels, two companion novels, and one novella written by American author Stephenie Meyer. Released annually from 2005 through 2008, the four novels chart the later teen years of Bella Swan, a girl who moves to Forks, Washington, from Phoenix, Arizona and falls in love with a 104-year-old vampire named Edward Cullen. The series is told primarily from Bella's point of view, with the epilogue of Eclipse and the second part of Breaking Dawn being told from the viewpoint of character Jacob Black, a werewolf. A novella, The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, which tells the story of a newborn vampire who appeared in Eclipse, was published on 2010.[1] The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated Guide, a definitive encyclopedic reference with nearly 100 full color illustrations, was released in bookstores in 2011.[2] In 2015, Meyer published a new novel in honor of the 10th anniversary of the book series, Life and Death: Twilight Reimagined, with the genders of the original protagonists switched.[3] Midnight Sun, a retelling of the first book, Twilight, from Edward Cullen's point of view, was published in 2020.
Author
United States
English
- 2005–2020
5 (with 3 companions)
Since the release of the first novel, Twilight, in 2005, the books have gained immense popularity and commercial success around the world. The series is most popular among young adults; the four books have won multiple awards, most notably the 2008 British Book Award for Children's Book of the Year for Breaking Dawn,[4] while the series as a whole won the 2009 Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Book.[5]
As of November 2011, the series had sold over 120 million copies worldwide with translations into at least 38 different languages around the globe.[6] The four Twilight books have consecutively set records as the biggest-selling novels of 2008 on the USA Today Best-Selling Books list[7] and have spent over 235 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list for Children's Series Books.[8]
The novels have been adapted into The Twilight Saga film series by Summit Entertainment. The film adaptations of the first three novels were released in 2008, 2009, and 2010, respectively. The fourth novel was adapted into two films, the first film being released in November 2011 and the second film in November 2012.[9]
Additional material
Graphic novels
On March 16, 2010, Yen Press released Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 1, by artist Young Kim based on the first book in the series.[19] In February 2011, the graphic novel won the 2010 Gem Awards Best Manga of the Year.[20] The sequel, Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2 was released on October 11, 2011,[21] and followed Volume 1 in topping The New York Times Best Seller list for Hardcover Graphic Books in its first week.[22]
The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner
In March 2010, Meyer revealed on her official website that she will be releasing a new novella in the series, The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, which tells the story of a newborn vampire who appeared in Eclipse, on June 5, 2010.[1] An electronic version of the book was made available free from her web site, as well as in bookstores.[23]
Illustrated Guide
In October 2010, Little, Brown and Company announced that The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated Guide, a definitive encyclopedic reference for the saga including character profiles, outtakes, a conversation with Meyer, genealogical charts, maps and extensive cross-references with nearly 100 full color illustrations, was to be released on April 12, 2011, after many publication delays since 2008.[24] It debuted at #1 on The New York Times Best Seller list, where it stayed for three consecutive weeks,[25][26][27] and at #4 on the USA Today Best Seller list.[28]
Inspiration and themes
According to the author, her books are "about life, not death" and "love, not lust".[36] Each book in the series was inspired by and loosely based on a different literary classic: Twilight on Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice, New Moon on William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, Eclipse on Emily Brontë's 1847 novel Wuthering Heights, and Breaking Dawn on a second Shakespeare play, A Midsummer Night's Dream.[37] Meyer also states that Orson Scott Card and L. M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables series are a big influence on her writing.[34] The Cullens were inspired by Meyer's own family[38] as well as characters from the X-Men cartoon.[39] Other influences on the series which Meyer has acknowledged include the 1847 novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, HGTV, and the films Iron Man (2008), Somewhere in Time (1980), Stranger than Fiction (2006), and Baby Mama (2008).[39]
Other major themes of the series include choice and free will.[34][40] Meyer says that the books are centered around Bella's choice to choose her life on her own, and the Cullens' choices to abstain from killing rather than follow their temptations: "I really think that's the underlying metaphor of my vampires. It doesn't matter where you're stuck in life or what you think you have to do; you can always choose something else. There's always a different path."[40]
Meyer, a Mormon, acknowledges that her faith has influenced her work. In particular, she says that her characters "tend to think more about where they came from, and where they are going, than might be typical."[31] The Twilight series analyzes the Christian moral dilemma of mortal temptation. As a vampire, Edward experiences strong carnal temptations that would result in the corruption of his sense of self. Overcoming these temptations illustrates a common Christian principles of "overcoming the natural man".[41] Mormon tenets of immortality and eternal life are also explored in the series. The vampires have perfected, immortal bodies, but the Cullens long for satisfying relationships. Bella achieves both immortality and the Mormon concept of eternal life by becoming a vampire alongside her husband and daughter.[41] Meyer also steers her work from subjects such as sex, despite the romantic nature of the novels. Meyer says that she does not consciously intend her novels to be Mormon-influenced, or to promote the virtues of sexual abstinence and spiritual purity, but admits that her writing is shaped by her values, saying, "I don't think my books are going to be really graphic or dark, because of who I am. There's always going to be a lot of light in my stories."[42]
Origins and publishing history
Stephenie Meyer says that the idea for Twilight came to her in a dream on June 2, 2003. The dream was about a human girl, and a vampire who was in love with her but thirsted for her blood. Based on this dream, Meyer wrote the transcript of what is now chapter 13 of the book.[43] Despite having very little writing experience, in a matter of three months she had transformed that dream into a completed novel.[40] After writing and editing the novel, she signed a three-book deal with Little, Brown and Company for $750,000, an unusually high amount for a first time author.[44] Meyer's literary agent, Jodi Reamer of Writers House, discovered her only because the inexperienced assistant who received Meyer's original letter did not know that young adult books are supposed to be 40,000 to 60,000 words in length, not 130,000 words.[45] Megan Tingley, the Little, Brown editor who signed Meyer, said that halfway through the reading of the Twilight manuscript, she realized that she had a future bestseller in her hands.[46] The book was released in 2005.
Following the success of Twilight, Meyer expanded the story into a series with three more books: New Moon (2006), Eclipse (2007), and Breaking Dawn (2008). In its first week after publication, the first sequel, New Moon, debuted at #5 on the New York Times Best Seller List for Children's Chapter Books, and in its second week rose to the #1 position, where it remained for the next eleven weeks. In total, it spent over 50 weeks on the list.[47] After the release of Eclipse, the first three "Twilight" books spent a combined 143 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List.[40] The fourth installment of the Twilight series, Breaking Dawn, was released with an initial print run of 3.7 million copies.[48] Over 1.3 million copies were sold on the first day alone, setting a record in first-day sales performance for the Hachette Book Group USA.[49] Upon the completion of the fourth entry in the series, Meyer indicated that Breaking Dawn would be the final novel to be told from Bella Swan's perspective.[50] In 2008 and 2009, the four books of the series claimed the top four spots on USA Today's year-end bestseller list, making Meyer the first author to ever achieve this feat.[51][52] The series then won the 2009 Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Book, where it competed against the Harry Potter series.[5]
Impact
While the Twilight series has been a visible presence in many conventions such as ComicCon, there have also been many conventions whose main focus has been on the Twilight series (books and films). Some notable conventions have been TwiCon in 2009 and a series of "Official Twilight Conventions" that are being held by Creation Entertainment.[108]
Forever Twilight in Forks Festival is held in Forks, Washington, every year around September 13, Bella Swan's birthday. Originally called Stephenie Meyer's Day, the festival was created by the Forks City Council, and has led to an increase in tourism to the town. The festival attracts fans to visit famous sites from the movies, including Forks High School, Bella's house, the Cullens' house, Newton hardware store, and La Push Beach. Fans often dress up as their favorite book characters.