Amanda Hocking (born July 12, 1984) is an American writer of

paranormal romance Paranormal romance is a subgenre of both romantic fiction and speculative fiction. Paranormal romance focuses on romantic love and includes elements beyond the range of scientific explanation, blending together themes from the speculative fiction ...

young adult fiction Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is primarily targeted at adolescents, approximately half of YA readers are adults. The subject matter and genres of YA correlate ...

Early life

Hocking was born and raised in

Austin, Minnesota Austin is a city in, and the county seat of, Mower County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 26,174 at the 2020 census. The town was originally settled along the Cedar River and has two artificial lakes, East Side Lake and Mill Po ...

. After high school, she studied Human Services while working in a group home for people with disabilities.

Career

While employed as a group home worker, she wrote 17 novels in her free time. Hocking left her employment as a group home worker and started self-publishing in 2010, at the age of 25. She's since published over twenty novels, several of which made the New York Times Bestseller list. In April 2010, she began

self-publishing Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to written media, such as books and magazines, either as an ebook or as a physical copy using POD (pr ...

her novels as

e-book An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Alt ...

s. By March 2011, she had sold over a million copies of her first nine books and earned two million dollars from sales, previously unheard of for self-published authors. In early 2011, Hocking averaged 9,000 book sales each day.

Work

Hocking's published work, originally self-published, consists of ''My Blood Approves'', a

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

romance series; the ''Trylle Trilogy'', which covers a teenage girl's journey of self-discovery in an

urban fantasy Urban fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy which places imaginary and unreal elements in an approximation of a contemporary urban setting. The combination provides the writer with quixotic plot-drivers, unusual character traits, and a platform for cl ...

setting; and ''Hollowland'', a

zombie A zombie (Haitian French: , ht, zonbi) is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. Zombies are most commonly found in horror and fantasy genre works. The term comes from Haitian folklore, in whic ...

novel. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' characterized her novels as "part quirky girl-like-Hocking characters, part breakneck pacing, part Hollywood-style action, and part bodice-ripping romance – they are literature as candy, a mash-up of creativity and commerce." In March 2011, Hocking signed her first conventional publishing contract for four books, for two million dollars, with

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

. It concerns her new young-adult paranormal series called ''Watersong''. Book one, ''Wake'', was released in August 2012. All three books in her previously self-published Trylle Trilogy were also sold to

, and have been re-released from January–April 2012. In 2015 Hocking announced she had signed a new three-book deal with St. Martin's and revealed that the books would be a standalone and a duology, respectively. The standalone called ''Freeks'' set around a traveling circus in the 1980s, was published in January 2017, while the duology to be based on Norse Mythology about Valkyries is set for a 2017 release.

Bibliography

*''My Blood Approves'' series: **''My Blood Approves'' (March 27, 2010) **''Fate'' (April 15, 2010) **''Flutter'' (May 25, 2010) **''Wisdom'' (August 22, 2010) ***''Letters to Elise: A Peter Townsend Novella'' (December 19, 2010) ** ''Swear'' (November 9, 2016) *''

Trylle Trilogy Trylle Trilogy is a young adult fantasy series by American author Amanda Hocking. The trilogy follows the story of Wendy Everly, a 17-year-old girl who stumbles upon another world where she eventually learns of her true identity. Hocking had origin ...

'' **''

Switched Switched may refer to: * Switched (band), an American music group * ''Switched'' (novel), first book in the young adult Trylle series by Amanda Hocking * ''Switched!'' (American TV series) * ''Switched!'' (Singaporean TV series) * "Switched" (' ...

'' (self published 2010, with St. Martin's January 24, 2012) **''

Torn Torn may refer to: Film and television * ''Torn'' (2009 film), an American film by Richard Johnson * ''Torn'' (2013 American film), directed Jeremiah Birnbaum * ''Torn'' (2013 Nigerian film), directed by Moses Inwang * ''Torn'' (TV series), a ...

'' (self published 2010, with St. Martin's February 28, 2012) **''Ascend'' (self published 2011, with St. Martin's April 24, 2012) *''The Hollows'' series: **''Hollowland'' (October 5, 2010) **''Hollowmen'' (November 8, 2011) *''Virtue'' (May 27, 2011) * ''Watersong series'' ** ''Forgotten Lyrics'' (October 30, 2012) ** ''Wake'' (August 7, 2012) **''Lullaby'' (November 27, 2012) **''Tidal'' (June 4, 2013) **''Elegy'' (August 6, 2013) *''The Kanin Chronicles'' **''Frostfire'' (January 2015) **''Ice Kissed'' (May 2015) **''Crystal Kingdom'' (August 2015) *''Freeks'' (January 3, 2017) *''

Valkyrie In Norse mythology, a valkyrie ("chooser of the slain") is one of a host of female figures who guide souls of the dead to the god Odin's hall Valhalla. There, the deceased warriors become (Old Norse "single (or once) fighters"Orchard (1997:36) ...

'' ** ''Between the Blade and the Heart'' (January 2, 2018) ** ''From the Earth to the Shadows'' (March 27, 2018) *''The Omte Origins'' **''The Lost City'' (2020) **''The Morning Flower'' (2020) **''The Ever After'' (2021) *''Bestow the Darkness'' (2021) *''Seven Fallen Hearts Saga'' **''Virtue'' (2021) **''Tristitia'' (2022) **''Superbia (coming late 2022)''

Adaptations

In February 2011, the Trylle Trilogy was

optioned In the film industry, an option is a contractual agreement pertaining to film rights between a potential film producer (such as a movie studio, a production company, or an individual) and the author of source material, such as a book, play, or s ...

for a film, with

Terri Tatchell Terri Tatchell (born January 1, 1978) is a Canadian screenwriter, best known for co-writing the screenplay of ''District 9'' and was nominated for Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay at the 82nd Academy Awards. Car ...

writing the

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, fe ...

. As of 2015 the rights have reverted to Hocking, with no prospects for future development.

Personal life

Hocking lives in

Rochester, Minnesota Rochester is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Olmsted County. Located on rolling bluffs on the Zumbro River's south fork in Southeast Minnesota, the city is the home and birthplace of the renowned Mayo Clinic. Acco ...

with her husband and step-son.

References

External links

Amanda Hocking's blog and website

Amanda Hocking's Smashwords Author Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hocking, Amanda 1984 births 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers Novelists from Minnesota American writers of young adult literature American fantasy writers American women novelists American romantic fiction writers American women bloggers American bloggers Living people People from Austin, Minnesota Women science fiction and fantasy writers Women romantic fiction writers Women writers of young adult literature