Diana Gabaldon, the author of the Outlander book series, has seen her work brought to life on the small screen by Starz, much to the delight of fans who have fallen in love with characters Claire and Jamie Fraser.
Diana Gabaldon, the creative mind behind the globally adored Outlander book series, has seen her literary creations come alive on the small screen through Starz. Fans worldwide have been captivated by characters Claire (portrayed by Caitríona Balfe) and Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan).
The 73 year old award-winning author has been a fervent supporter of the historical romance’s transformation into a TV series. However, many are unaware that the story almost didn’t see the light of day.
Besides establishing her own success, she has also boosted the careers of lead actors Balfe and Scotsman Heughan. But what’s the backstory, and what does Diana’s life look like when she’s not weaving tales?
Gabaldon had dreamt of becoming a novelist since she was eight, but life got in the way, and she didn’t pen her first novel until she was 35.
Her mother served as her writing muse, and once she started, she “never stopped.”, reports the Scottish Daily Express.
A young man in a kilt on the BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who inspired her to set her story in Scotland. As a researcher who couldn’t afford an overseas trip to verify her setting, she decided that historical fiction would be the most feasible genre for her debut novel, given that she could source all necessary historical data from books, according to the Daily Record.
Reflecting on her work, she observed, “I could see what I had was a fish-out-of-water story-a stranger in a strange land,”.
Diana Gabaldon didn’t start her writing journey with her now-famous Outlander series; instead, she cut her teeth on creating tales for iconic Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Uncle Scrooge. She even whipped up a comic called Nutrition Adventures with Orange Bird for the mouse house itself.
Gabaldon, who began the Outlander saga at the age of 39, recalls the urgency she felt to write: “When I turned 35, I told myself I’d better get started writing. Mozart died at thirty-six.”
Now at the ripe age of 73, Gabaldon is renowned for her night-owl tendencies, dedicating six nights a week to pen around a thousand words in the witching hours. Her writing rituals include starting at midnight, igniting a candle for ambiance, and continuing until around 4:30 am before catching some z’s.
During this time, her supportive husband Doug Watkins would don the apron, rousing the kids, and serving up breakfast. .
Gabaldon’s first Outlander book quickly earned a spot on the bestseller shelves of Walden and B. Dalton—two major bookstore chains that were staples in 1990s American malls.
It wasn’t, however, until her third release that she made her debut on the acclaimed New York Times list. .
Fun fact: the initial title for the historical romance series was Cross Stitch, inspired by main character Claire Randall’s time-tangled trip from post-WWII Inverness, Scotland, to that same place but hundreds of years earlier.
The Outlander series, initially on the brink of cancellation due to its unclear genre classification, became a sensational hit after Starz adapted the books for television. Gabaldon vividly recalls the process as “It’s kind of like boiling a frog. It was very gradual layers of escalation,” highlighting the slow but escalating excitement that saved the series from its near-demise.
The Outlander novels have since achieved global acclaim, selling over 50 million copies across 114 countries and being translated into 38 languages.
In her personal sphere, author Diana Gabaldon enjoys life in Scottsdale, Arizona, with her husband Watkins and their adult children. Mirroring his mother’s literary path, her son Sam Watkins, pen-named Sam Sykes, has carved out his name in the fantasy genre.
Diana couldn’t hide her enthusiasm on social media, praising her son’s cover artist and promoting his fantasy trilogy, which includes the soon-to-be-released “THREE AXES TO FALL.”
She invites fans to Sykes’ Poisoned Pen launch event, mentioning, “I really love this cover artist (whose name I forget, but will find out). Here’s the trilogy, including the new one, THREE AXES TO FALL (out Dec. 6th). Btw, Sam’s doing a launch event w/ the Poisoned Pen–so you can get an autographed book, if you order from them.”
She then proudly discloses her maternal connection: “These are written by Sam Sykes, a well-known fantasy author (also my son…).”
Sykes, famed for her epic fantasy tales, boasts a bibliography with titles like An Affinity for Steel, the Bring Down Heaven trilogy, Brave Chef Brianna, and now, The Grave of Empires series. She’s got a sweet connection with actor Sam Heughan, playfully calling him “Sheugs”, while he affectionately refers to her as “Gabs”.
While “Sheugs” might conjure images of a field boundary ditch in Gaelic, it also cheekily alludes to the space between the buttocks. Their friendship took the spotlight when they shared a smooch at RingCon in Germany back in 2015, sparking quite the buzz during a Q&A with fans.
Showbiz cheatsheet reported that the peck sent fans into overdrive, leading Diana to take to Twitter to set the record straight: “We’d just done a successful show and everybody was kissing/hugging everybody onstage,” she posted. “Gary kissed me about 10 seconds after that, and Graham kissed me before Sam did.”
She also dished on the backstory of her nickname for Heughan, noting it’s her son’s name [Sam] too, which caused confusion at home, so she coined the moniker, drawing from his full name.
Gabaldon is currently penning the last installment of her Outlander saga, promising a finale distinct from the Starz series, with the book’s conclusion diverging from the TV show’s ending.
The finale of season seven took a surprising turn from the books, exploring an alternate timeline where Faith Fraser, the first daughter of Jamie and Claire who was presumed dead, might have actually survived.