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Gabaldon wrote her first novel while juggling the demands of motherhood and career: in between her job as an ecology professor, she also had a part-time gig writing freelance software reviews. Gabaldon had never written fiction before, and didn't intend to publish this first novel, which she decided to call Outlander. This, she decided, would be her "practice novel". Worried that she might not be able to pull a plot and characters out of thin air, she settled on a historical novel because "it's easier to look things up than to make them up entirely."
The impulse to set her novel in 18th-century Scotland didn't stem -- as some fans have assumed—from a desire to explore her own familial roots (in fact, Gabaldon isn't even Scottish). Rather, it came from watching an episode of the British sci-fi series Dr. Who and becoming smitten with a handsome time traveler in a kilt. A time-travel element crept into Gabaldon's own book only after she realized her wisecracking female lead couldn't have come from anywhere but the 20th century. The resulting love affair between an intelligent, mature, sexually experienced woman and a charismatic, brave, virginal young man turned the conventions of historical romance upside-down.
Gabaldon has said her books were hard to market at first because they were impossible to categorize neatly. Were they historical romances? Sci-fi adventure stories? Literary fiction? Whatever their genre (Gabaldon eventually proffered the term "historical fantasias"), they eventually found their audience, and it turned out to be a staggeringly huge one.
Even before the publication of Outlander, Gabaldon had an online community of friends who'd read excerpts and were waiting eagerly for more. (In fact, her cohorts at the CompuServe Literary Forum helped hook her up with an agent.) Once the book was released, word kept spreading, both on the Internet and off, and Gabaldon kept writing sequels. (When her fourth book, "Drums of Autumn," was released, it debuted at No. 1 on the Wall Street Journal bestseller list, and her publisher, Delacorte, raced to add more copies to their initial print run of 155,000.)
With her books consistently topping the bestseller lists, it's apparent that Gabaldon's appeal lies partly in her ability to bulldoze the formulaic conventions of popular fiction. Salon writer Gavin McNett noted approvingly, "She simply doesn't pay attention to genre or precedent, and doesn't seem to care that identifying with Claire puts women in the role of the mysterious stranger, with Jamie -- no wimp in any regard -- as the romantic 'heroine."'
In between Outlander novels, Gabaldon also writes historical mysteries featuring Lord John Grey, a popular, if minor, character from the series, and is working on a contemporary mystery series. Meanwhile, the author's formidable fan base keeps growing, as evidenced by the expanding list of Gabaldon chat rooms, mailing lists, fan clubs and web sites -- some of them complete with fetching photos of red-haired lads in kilts.
Gabaldon gets 30 to 40 e-mails a day from her fans, who often meet online to discuss her work. "I got one letter from a woman who had been studying my book jacket photos (with a magnifying glass, evidently), who demanded to know why there was a hole in my pants," wrote Gabaldon on her web site. "This strikes me as a highly metaphysical question, which I am not equipped to answer, but which will doubtless entertain some chat-groups for quite a long time."
Anonymous
Posted November 4, 2012
This is my 7th time reading the series. I finally decided it was more economically to buy a nook and dowload the series rather than replacing the well worn paperbscks again. Thank you Diana for such a wonderfully entertaining series.
10 out of 11 people found this review helpful.
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Posted November 29, 2012
My favorite books of all time! I re-read the series once every year or so. Such vivid, descriptive writing and wonderful characters. I can't say enough about how good this author and this series is!
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 19, 2013
This has to be the best series I have ever read, and I am so excited to have these novels together as one e-book.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.breesideas
Posted January 5, 2013
Love, Love, Love this series! I've been reading and re-reading these books for nearly 20 years now. The story is so wonderful, so exciting that I've found myself reading all night on many occations. I first read these books in paperback, loved them so much I bought the hard covers, and now I'll get them on my Nook. Unlike other books this story keeps going, evolving and adapting as time changes the world around them and they change within it. The characters have become a part of my life and I'm so happy I picked up that first paperback so many years ago.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 13, 2013
I know it is not ordinary for teenagers to read this genre of books, let alone read at all. I started to read the series when I was 16 and I have read them three times since then in the past two years. This series exposes you to a world that we can hardly begin to understand, and I learn something new every time. For all of you who see this, take a step out of your comfort zone and try the series. It is well worth it!
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 3, 2013
You will love this book if you- love history,like to travel, like romance. This book also manages to cover subjects such as morality, religion, and evolution of society for past 200+ years. I simply love these series. I can't wait for the next one.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 9, 2012
The Outlander Series is my favorite of all the hundreds of books I have ever read. The characters are so real they almost feel like family. The descriptions are so vivid I can see exactly where they are in my mind
's eye. Wonderful, every word.
4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 28, 2012
I love this series. The detail is amazing. I have read other historical series and this is definatly the best one so far.can't wait till the next one comes out
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 10, 2012
I am now reading the entire series gor the second time, and love it even more this time! I plan to re-read the series every couple of years!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted June 17, 2013
Very excelent series!!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted June 2, 2013
A huge series to read but the writing is amazing. The best characters. The first novel will be a series on Starz.
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Posted June 1, 2013
My favorite series.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Silverangel49
Posted May 26, 2013
I have read these boos so many times that the covers came off so I bought the hardbacks and then I just decided I needed them on my nook so that i never have to worry about them falling apart again! I love these books so amazing . Considering I bought my first book "Dragonfly in Amber" off the $.25 cent rack at my local library after reading I went out and bought outlander then Voyager. I Love this series! I wish there were more books to it. I have also read the Lord John Grey novels also well written and totally enjoyable
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted March 14, 2013
Good people your not wrighting storys im meaning to be rude blanks
0 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted March 13, 2013
Once you start reading Outlander you will be hooked!
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Posted January 8, 2013
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Posted December 11, 2012
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Posted February 14, 2013
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Posted January 10, 2013
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Posted February 15, 2013
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Overview
“Great fun . . . marvelous and ...