About the Author Long before his name became synonymous with the modern legal thriller, John Grisham was working 60-70 hours a week at a small Southaven, Mississippi law practice, squeezing in time before going to the office and during courtroom recesses to work on his hobby--writing his first novel.
When he sold the film rights to The Firm to Paramount Pictures for $600, 000, Grisham suddenly became a hot property among publishers, and book rights were bought by Doubleday..
The day after Grisham completed A Time to Kill, he began work on another novel, the story of a hotshot young attorney lured to an apparently perfect law Firm that was not what it appeared.
However, he had already begun his next book, and it would quickly turn that hobby into a new full-time career--and spark one of publishing\'s greatest success stories.
That might have put an end to Grisham\'s hobby.
Initially rejected by many publishers, it was eventually bought by Wynwood Press, who gave it a modest 5, 000 copy printing and published it in June 1988. every day to get in several hours of writing time before heading off to work, Grisham spent three years on A Time to Kill and finished it in 1987. m.
Getting up at 5 a.
One day at the De Soto County courthouse, Grisham overheard the harrowing testimony of a twelve-year-old rape victim and was inspired to start a novel exploring what would have happened if the girl\'s father had murdered her assailants.
In 1983, he was elected to the state House of Representatives and served until 1990.
After graduating from law school at Ole Miss in 1981, he went on to practice law for nearly a decade in Southaven, specializing in criminal defense and personal injury litigation.
Realizing he didn\'t have the right stuff for a pro career, he shifted gears and majored in accounting at Mississippi State University.
Born on February 8, 1955 in Jonesboro, Arkansas, to a construction worker and a homemaker, John Grisham as a child dreamed of being a professional baseball player.
About the Author Long before his name became synonymous with the modern legal thriller, John Grisham was working 60-70 hours a week at a small Southaven, Mississippi law practice, squeezing in time before going to the office and during courtroom recesses to work on his hobby--writing his first novel