Meg Cabot, author of ‘The Princess Diaries,’ takes her young readers on a fascinating voyage into the realm of princesses, ghosts, and true love. Cabot has several No. 1 New York Times bestsellers to her credit, demonstrating her ability to create magic with words. She was infatuated with princesses as a child and always wanted to be one. She was a voracious reader who read and reread fairytales until she was persuaded she was a princess living a normal life. She entertained herself in her spare time by composing stories, thanks to her strong imagination and creativity. Despite her passion for writing, she had never contemplated making it a full-time career; her foray into the literary world was entirely by coincidence. Even after she started working, she continued to write as a passion and decided to try to get her work published. For the first seven years of her creative career, she had only rejections before a publisher opted to publish her debut work, “Where Roses Grow Wild.” She tried her hand at creating a novel for younger audiences after releasing several other romantic novels. Her claim to fame was ‘The Princess Diaries,’ which garnered her countless honors. The world-famous author’s works have sold over 15 million copies worldwide.
Childhood and Adolescence
Meg Cabot was born in Indiana’s Bloomington. Her childhood was traumatic because many members of her family were alcoholics, including her father, grandmother, and uncle. Her mother, on the other hand, was a supportive mother who encouraged her daughter’s artistic endeavors.
She loved comic books, science fiction, and fairy tales and consumed them all. She likes princess stories because they allowed her to escape the terrible reality of her childhood. She began writing stories as a hobby in high school.
She studied painting at the University of Indiana and received a bachelor of fine arts degree in 1991.
Meg Cabot’s Career
She moved to New York City with the intention of pursuing her goal of becoming an illustrator. She did, however, find work at New York University as an assistant manager of the freshmen hostel.
She continued to write as a hobby while working full-time. She decided to try her hand at becoming published around this time and sent her manuscripts to many publishers. Years of rejection and disappointment greeted her.
In 1998, she released her debut novel, ‘Where Roses Grow Wild,’ under the alias Patricia Cabot. The story was set in the past. In 1999, she wrote two more romantic novels, ‘Portrait of My Heart’ and ‘An Improper Proposal.’
Around this time, she began work on a series of chick-lit novels for younger adults called “The Princess Diaries.” The tales are based on her own experiences when her widowed mother began dating and later married one of Meg’s instructors.
The Princess Diaries, the first book in the series, was rejected 17 times before being released by Harper Collins in 2000. It followed the adventures of a little girl named Mia who discovers she is a princess. The book was an immediate success and a New York Times bestseller.
Whitney Houston adapted the book into a film of the same name in 2001, starring debutant Anne Hathaway as the protagonist. Cabot became a superstar as a result of the film’s success.
Cabot was signed to write at least three additional books in the ‘Princess Diaries series by Harper Collins. In 2001, she published ‘The Princess Diaries Volume II: Princess in the Spotlight.’
Cabot also created a series of six novels called ‘The Mediator Series’ about the same time she began work on ‘The Princess Diaries’ (2000-05). Susannah, a teenage girl who is a mediator, was the protagonist of the series.
She went on to produce numerous more volumes in the ‘Princess Diaries series over the next decade, all of which were hugely popular with adolescent girls and young women. ‘The Princess Diaries, Volume X: Forever Princess,’ the series’ final volume, was published in 2009.
In addition to these series, the prolific author also wrote the ‘All American Girl Series,’ ‘Avalon High Series,’ ‘The Airhead Trilogy,’ and ‘Heather Wells Series,’ among others.
Her Major Projects
Her best-known work is the ‘Princess Diaries series, which has been translated into over 40 languages and adapted into a Hollywood blockbuster film. The first book in the series was a New York Times bestseller that stayed on the list for 38 weeks.
Achievements and Awards
For ‘An Improper Proposal,’ she earned the Romantic Times Reviewers Choice Award for Best British Isles Historical Romance in 1999.
She won the Evergreen Young Adult Book Award for her series “The Princess Diaries.” The Tennessee Volunteer State TASL Book Award was also given to this series.
Personal History and Legacy
Since 1993, she has been married to financial writer and poet Benjamin D. Ignatz. She decided not to have children because she had a tough upbringing herself. They have two kitties together.
She is passionate about philanthropy and has mentored seriously and terminally ill children via the Make-a-Wish Foundation and the Starlight Children’s Foundation. She also distributes the profits from her book sales to various charities.
Estimated Net worth
Meg Cabot is an author from the United States with an estimated net worth of $80 million. Meg Cabot is a well-known author of children’s, young adult, and adult fiction who is best known for her books “The Princess Diaries,” “Avalon High,” and “Insatiable.”