I'm not asking for someone to do my homework but I am asking from a good writer's standpoint to give me some tips to make this biography less boring to read. I tried but I came up short with a less than impressive paper. I'm a sophomore in high school and unfortunately my old english teachers never went over biographies very well. Here goes....
Lois Duncan Behind the Chapters
On a warm spring day, April 28, 1934 to be exact, the author who would change suspense writing forever was born. In the town of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Lois Duncan, a tiny girl with an enormous imagination was raised. Little did her parents know at the time, but she would go on to become one of the best mystery novelists of all time.
Lois had one brother named Bill and two loving parents, Joseph and Lois Steinmetz. Her astonishing writing talents appeared early in her life. Her mother accounts the first time Lois’ talents became apparent, “Lois was never one to play with other children at school; she would always break away and start writing. We never paid much attention to it until she was in the third grade and brought home a book she was writing. After that, we knew writing was her gift.†Lois started submitting stories to magazines at age ten, and at age thirteen she had her first story, Calling All Girls, published.
Lois went on to attend Duke University, but she dropped out because she wanted to focus on a family and marriage. She was married twice and had a total of five children. Eventually, she went back to school to receive her Bachelor’s degree in English to help her with her writing. Over this time period she wrote over six novels in the mystery genre for children and young adults. She enjoyed using her gift to spark an interest in reading in the young minds of children. Three of her novels received a Parent’s Choice Award. She also won the American Library Association Best Book award. Lois Duncan’s career as a mystery writer for children gave her the opportunity to perform her talent everyday—writing.
However, success does not always come without obstacles. On July 16, 1989, her youngest daughter, Kaitlyn Arquette, was murdered. The case was never closed in the court records or in Lois’ heart. After her daughter’s death, Lois Duncan wrote her first psychological suspense novel entitled, Who Killed My Daughter?†The novel is considered nonfiction, because all of the facts and events are real occurrences that took place in the case of her daughter’s murder. From that point on, Lois Duncan continued writing thrillers with plots more suitable for a teenager than a child. She wrote over forty books focusing on the supernatural and was nominated for numerous awards in the mystery and suspense category. Even with the enormous tribulation Lois suffered through, it brought out the best of her abilities. She was able to use her daughter’s story to motivate her to pick up the pen day after day.
Lois Duncan has had an impeccable career full of successes and hardships. Lois Duncan is well past the age to retire but cannot seem to give up her passion for writing. She has novels still being published and plans to continue writing for as long as she can. Lois Duncan has set an incredibly high standard for future mystery authors. Her talents and impact on the mystery genre as a whole will be remembered for generations to come.
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