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James Patterson

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Event Status

James Patterson’s name is synonymous with blockbuster success – it promises to deliver a thrill a minute, and to thoroughly entertain. Like Australia’s own megaselling author Bryce Courtenay, the thriller king’s background is in advertising, and he knows what audiences want. As well as the suspense that cemented his fame, he’s written successful children’s books, romances and historical fiction.

Patterson has been the planet’s bestselling author since 2001, with more than 300 million copies of his books in print and several television deals in the works. ‘Perhaps no author in literary history has more seamlessly melded commerce and creepiness to create an international brand,’ wrote Vanity Fair.

Despite his well-earned reputation for armchair adventure and easy reading, Patterson has a serious side, too. He’s an outspoken critic of Amazon, after his publisher was caught up in a dispute that famously meant Hachette writers were penalised by the online behemoth. ‘If Amazon is the new American way, then maybe it has to be changed,’ he said. And he’s been involved in major philanthropic donations to support independent booksellers and young readers in the US and the UK.

Find out the process behind his books, how he amassed the fortune fiction built, and how he plans to wield his impressive influence – as an author who outsells both J.K. Rowling and Dr Seuss.

James Patterson will be in conversation with Rafael Epstein.

Featuring

James Patterson

Author James Patterson has consistently ranked as the world’s number one selling author on Nielsen’s BookScan, and continued to thrill readers with his crime and romance series. But there has been one significant change since his last visit to Australia in 2004: James Patterson is now a children... Read more

Rafael Epstein

Rafael Epstein is a journalist who has worked in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Timor, Indonesia, Europe and the Middle East. He has covered national elections in the UK and Australia, East Timor’s vote for independence in 1999, the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami, the 2005 London ... Read more

Location

Athenaeum Theatre

188 Collins Street Melbourne Victoria 3000

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