Eoin Colfer was born in Wexford on the South-East coast of Ireland in 1965, where he and his four brothers were brought up by his father (an elementary school teacher, historian and artist of note) and mother (a drama teacher). He first developed an interest in writing in primary (elementary) school with gripping Viking stories inspired by history he was learning in school at the time!
After leaving school he got his degree from Dublin University and qualified as a primary school teacher, returning to work in Wexford. He and his wife spent about 4 years between 1992 and 1996 working in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Italy. His first book, Benny and Omar, was published in 1998, based on his experiences in Tunisia; it has since been translated into many languages. A sequel followed in 1999, followed by some other books. Then in 2001 the first Artemis Fowl book was published and he was able to resign from teaching and concentrate fully on writing.
Since then, Artemis Fowl, which was named the public’s favourite Puffin Modern Classic of all time, has sold in excess of 25 million copies and has been translated into 40 languages. There are eight books in the series, alongside numerous companion books, limited edition releases, audiobooks and digital releases. In 2019, a brand new spin-off series called The Fowl Twins was released by Disney Books (US) and HarperCollins (UK). An Artemis Fowl Movie has been adapted by Walt Disney Studios and was released on Disney+ in May 2020 due to cinema closures globally during the coronavirus pandemic.
Eoin’s books have won numerous awards including The British Children’s Book of the Year, The Irish Book Awards Children’s Book of the Year and The German Children’s Book of the Year. The BBC made a hit series based on his book Half Moon Investigations.
In 2009, Eoin was commissioned by Douglas Adams’ estate to write And Another Thing, the concluding episode of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, which became a worldwide bestseller. In 2017, the collaboration between Eoin, Andrew Donkin and Giovanni Rigano was published to great critical acclaim by Hodder: a groundbreaking graphic novel about asylum seekers called Illegal. The trio’s next graphic novel, Global, was published in 2023.
Eoin was Ireland’s Children’s Laureate and still wears the medal at all times, even in the bath.
Speaker | 2024 | NLF Reading Challenge
Author Interaction | NLF Reading Challenge 2024