Virginia Cleo Andrews (born Cleo Virginia Andrews) was born on 6 June 1923 in Portsmouth, Virginia. The youngest of three children, Virginia was the only daughter of William Henry Andrews, a career navy man who opened a tool-and-die business after retirement, and Lillian Lilnora Parker Andrews, a telephone operator. She spent her happy childhood years in Portsmouth, Virginia, and lived briefly in Rochester, New York. The Andrews family returned to Portsmouth while Virginia was in high school.
While a teenager, Virginia suffered a tragic accident; she fell down the stairs at her school and incurred severe back injuries. Virginia bravely suffered through the pain that her doctors would not acknowledge. Arthritis and a failed spinal surgical procedure forced her to spend most of her life on crutches or in a wheelchair.
Virginia excelled in school and, at fifteen, won a scholarship for writing a parody of Tennyson's Idylls of the King. She proudly earned her diploma from Woodrow Wilson High School in Portsmouth. After graduation, she nurtured her impressive artistic talent by completing a four-year correspondence art course while living at home with her family, where she recuperated after undergoing more surgical attempts to correct the damage to her hip and back.
William Andrews died in the late 1960s. Virginia and her mother left Portsmouth to live near one of her brothers in Manchester, Missouri. Later, mother and daughter moved again, this time to be close to her other brother in Apache Junction, Arizona. Virginia helped to support her family through her extremely successful career as a commercial artist, portrait painter, and fashion illustrator.
Frustrated with the lack of creative satisfaction that her work provided, Virginia sought creative release through writing, which she did in secret. Her first manuscript was so autobiographical that she destroyed it in order to keep her life private. In 1972, she completed her first novel, The Gods of the Green Mountain <sic>, a science-fantasy story. It was never published. Between 1972 and 1979, she wrote nine novels and twenty short stories, of which only one was published. "I Slept with My Uncle on My Wedding Night", a short fiction piece, was published in a pulp confession magazine.
Promise gleamed over the horizon for Virginia when she submitted a 290,000-word novel, The Obsessed, to a publishing company. She was told that the story had potential, but needed to be trimmed and spiced up a bit. She drafted a new outline in a single night and added "unspeakable things my mother didn't want me to write about." The ninety-eight-page revision was re-titled Flowers in the Attic and she was paid a $7,500 advance. Her new-generation Gothic novel reached the best-seller lists a mere two weeks after its 1979 paperback publication by Pocket Books.
Petals on the Wind, her sequel to Flowers, was published the next year, earning Virginia a $35,000 advance. The second book remained on the New York Times best-seller list for an unbelievable nineteen weeks (Flowers also returned to the list). These first two novels alone sold over seven million copies in only two years. The third novel of the Dollanganger series, If There Be Thorns, was released in 1981, bringing Virginia a $75,000 advance. It reached No. 2 on many best-seller lists within its first two weeks.
Taking a break from the chronicles of Chris and Cathy Dollanganger, Virginia published her one, and only, stand-alone novel, My Sweet Audrina, in 1982. The book welcomed an immediate success, topping the sales figures of her previous novels. Two years later, a fourth Dollanganger novel was released, Seeds of Yesterday. According to the New York Times, Seeds was the best-selling fiction paperback novel of 1984. Also in 1984, V.C. Andrews was named "Professional Woman of the Year" by the city of Norfolk, Virginia.
After a disappointing interview with People magazine, Virginia was somewhat reluctant to participate in other publicity activities. However, she granted Douglas E. Winter an exclusive, landmark interview for his book Faces of Fear in 1985.
Virginia's second series began in 1985 with Heaven, the introductory novel of the Casteel series. This series is consistently voted the best by VCA fans. The second novel, Dark Angel, which shot to the No. 1 position on best-seller lists only three days after publication, followed in 1986. That year, V.C. Andrews was named the "Number One Best Selling Author" of popular horror and occult paperbacks (beating out Stephen King) by the American Bookseller's Association.
Virginia C. Andrews died on 19 December 1986 after being diagnosed with breast cancer. She was 62 years old. She was buried in Olive Branch Cemetery in Portsmouth, Virginia, where she spent her most beloved childhood years. At the time of her death, her accomplishments as a writer were great. She had over 24 million books in print and her books were translated into Dutch, German, Hebrew, Spanish, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Swedish, and Turkish. Her estate was estimated at about $8 million. A film version of her cult-classic first novel Flowers in the Attic, was released in 1987 by Fries Entertainment/New World Pictures. This film brought her dreams of being an actress to realization when Virginia appeared in a silent cameo as a window-scrubbing maid.
Two more novels were published after her death: Garden of Shadows, a prequel to Flowers, and Fallen Hearts, the third chapter of the Casteel series. With these novels, the Andrews family declared that more of Virginia's completed stories would be published in the future. Five years before her death, Virginia told the Washington Post that she had created synopses for sixty-three other stories, not including those that were already in print. The Casteel series was brought to a memorable close with Gates of Paradise and Web of Dreams.
A public letter written by the Andrews family (printed in the novels, beginning with Dawn) revealed that the family was "working closely with a carefully selected writer" to expand and continue the story-telling genius of V.C. Andrews. The identity of this writer had been kept a secret from the general public at the request of the Andrews family for years, but it's hard to hold on to a secret that big. The ghostwriter has since been identified as horror novelist Andrew Neiderman. Beginning with the later novels of the Casteel series, this new writer has worked hard to carry the torch that Virginia left burning brightly with a fire that her devoted readers refuse to extinguish.
The third full-length, five-book V.C. Andrews series began with Dawn. The Cutler series follows the story of Dawn Longchamp, a vocally talented girl who begins to uncover a dark family past, one that results in a new complicated life over which she has no control. Secrets of the Morning, Twilight's Child, Midnight Whispers and prequel Darkest Hour finish the series. Published between 1990 and 1993, these books cover nearly 80 years of Cutler family history - a history full of deception and secrets.
The five books of the fourth series ware published between the years 1994 and 1996. The Landry series follows the extraordinary life of Ruby Landry and a family she never knew. This full-length series includes Ruby, Pearl in the Mist, All That Glitters, Hidden Jewel and the prequel Tarnished Gold. Set in the mysterious Louisiana bayou and the fascinating and colorful city of New Orleans, this series immerses readers in a deeply traditional Southern culture that few get to experience.
The Logan series, began with Melody in 1996, and was followed by Heart Song and Unfinished Symphony in 1997. This series captures the intriguing story of Melody Logan and the family she barely knew. The fourth book, Music in the Night, surprised readers in 1998 when the traditional five-book pattern was broken by following the tragic life of Melody's cousin, Laura. The final book in the series, Olivia, is being marketed as more of a "stand-alone" novel and follows the life of Melody's grandmother, Olivia.
The first V.C. Andrews miniseries, The Orphans, was released in the summer of 1998. The first four minibooks, Butterfly, Crystal, Brooke, and Raven, follow the lives of four young women struggling to find their own identities, and to leave their troubled pasts behind. The fifth book, Runaways, brings the girls together for a thrilling and full-length conclusion. In 2000, the four individual minibooks were replaced by combining them into one full-length size paperback, simply titled Orphans.
The Wildflowers miniseries began in the summer of 1999. This series tells the stories of four teenage girls who are experiencing the difficulties which come with the divorce of their parents. These girls' names, and the titles of the first four minibooks, are Misty, Star, Jade, and Cat. The girls are reunited for the series' dramatic final full-length novel, Into the Garden. In 2001, the four individual minibooks were replaced by combining them into one full-length size paperback, simply titled The Wildflowers.
After a long absence, the full-length series format returned with The Hudson series. This series began in 2000 with its debut novel, Rain. This series follows the story of a biracial girl in search of her true heritage. Rain's life unfolds as she moves from a dangerous ghetto in Washington D.C. to a Virginia countryside mansion to a somber London estate. Lightning Strikes, Eye of the Storm, and The End of the Rainbow round out the four-book series. This series put an end to the long-standing five-book series pattern, eliminating the prequel novel.
A third miniseries debuted in the summer of 2001. The Shooting Stars miniseries chronicles four aspiring young women who study at a New York City performing arts school. The lives of Cinnamon, Ice, Rose, and Honey intertwine with the woman who runs the school, a former European diva with a difficult reputation, and her eccentric theatrical agent son. The miniseries concludes with Falling Stars. In 2002, the four individual minibooks were replaced by combining them into one full-length size paperback, simply titled Shooting Stars.
In October 2001, SimonSays.com, much to readers' surprise, quietly released two short story eBooks, "Cage of Love" and "The Little Psychic." We are told that these stories, which are based on the artwork of the late V.C. Andrews, if successful, could lead to a new short story eBook series.
A full-length family series, the De Beers series, debuted in January of 2002 with Willow. The series officially started with an E-book prequel, Dark Seed, a first for V.C. Andrews. Armed with her father's diary, Willow De Beers sets out to find her mother in decadent Palm Beach, Florida. The series continues with Wicked Forest, Twisted Roots (which was released with a new VCA cover design and author logo), Into the Woods, and Hidden Leaves. This series is different, chronologically, in it has three prequels instead of the usual one.
The year 2003 brought us the first two-book V.C. Andrews miniseries, Broken Wings. Like the previous miniseries' format, our three heroines are introduced individually, but unlike the others, the three stories are combined into one traditional full-length novel presentation. No minibooks here. Broken Wings and Midnight Flight tell the story of three trouble-loving girls, Robin, Teal, and Phoebe, and their experiences before and after they are sent to a behavior modification school in the middle of Mojave Desert.
The Gemini series, a new 2004 family trilogy, debuted in late March with Celeste and continued with Black Cat in October. This series tells the story of Celeste, whose mother has the supernatural ability to communicate with the spirits on their family farms in New York state. This is really the first series to tackle some heavier topics, such as homosexuality and the supernatural. The third and final book of the trilogy is Child of Darkness and it was released in late March 2005.
Again, much to fans' surprise and delight, SimonSays.com decided to quietly release an eBook-only version of V.C. Andrew's first, previously unpublished, novel Gods of Green Mountain. It was released in April of 2004.
The stories will continue to come as long as there are devoted fans who will buy them. "V.C. Andrews" has become so much more than just a name, it has become a legacy.
Compiled from many sources, including E.D. Huntley's V.C. Andrews: A Critical Companion (Greenwood Press, 1996).
