About the author: F. Scott fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald, or F. Scott Fitzegerald, was born on September 24, 1896 in St. Paul, Minnesota to his parents Edward and Mary. At 13 years old, he had first piece of literature published in his school paper. After graduating high school, he attended Princeton University where he was a literature intern. He joined the army in 1917, never graduating from college. He continued practicing his art while in the army, writing a novel he called The Romatic Egotist, which would be revised and renamed, eventually becoming his first published novel in 1920, This Side of Paradise.
While in the army, Fitzgerald met his future wife, Zelda Sayre. He was discharged from the army in 1919 and began working in advertisement in New York. He quit that same year and resought a career in writing. After successfully completing his first novel, him and Zelda rekindled their romance and were married. Their daughter Scottie was born in October of 1921 in Fitzgerald's hometown of St. Paul.
Fitzgerald began drinking, leading to him being taken unseriously in his profession despite the success of This Side of Paradise. In 1924, he moved his family to France and began writing The Great Gatsby, which would end up being the novel that makes him so well-known today. Unfortunately at the time, the novel did not gain any traction and was held back by negative reviews by critics. During this time, Zelda's mental health began deteriorating, and she would be in and out of mental hospitals for the remainder of her life. Fitzgerald attempted to write short stories in an attempt to support Zelda.
F. Scott Fitzgerald died of a heart attack on December 21st of 1940 at the age of 44. Although he was known throughout his lifetime, he became a prominent name in literature following his death due to the popularity The Great Gatsby gained in the 1950s and upholds today.
Fitzgerald's Works
This Side of Paradise (1920)
The Beautiful and Damned (1922)
Tales of the Jazz Age (1922)
The Great Gatsby (1925)
Tender is the Night (1934)
The Crack-up (1936)
The Last Tycoon (1941)