David Gemmell

David Gemmell is my favorite author. Being introduced to Legend at the tender age of 13, greatly contributed to my love of reading, and that reading has become a large part of my recreation time over the last decade.

David first got the idea for Legend in 1976. He was being tested for cancer, and to take his mind off it he tried writing a book, which he called The Siege of Dros Delnoch. The fortress and its attackers, the Nadir, were metaphors for him and the cancer. In the end, he was found not to have cancer after all and he forgot about the book, which he claims wasn't very good anyway. However, in 1980, a friend of Gemmell's read the manuscript and told him that the story had potential. Encouraged, Gemmell set to work rewriting the book that would become known as Legend. It was accepted by Century Hutchinson late in 1982.

I have read, thoroughly enjoyed and re-read all of David Gemmell's books except for White Knight, Black Swan which he wrote under the psudonim, Ross Harding.

I own 22 of his 31 (1 yet to be released) novels, and plan to continue collecting.

I was told today that David Gemmell is no longer writing. He died of coronary artery disease, on Friday 28th July, 2006, two weeks after undergoing heart bypass surgery. In his words "I tried to quit smoking and found that the years of polluting my brain with nicotine meant that I couldn't string a reasonable sentence together without filling my lungs with smoke. I went three months without a drag, took a good look at the #### I was writing and lit up."

If I may take liberty with some of David's words from the mouths of Regnak and Druss the Legend:

"And you, David. I never met a better author."
"Sure you did, boy. Hundreds! But it's nice of you to say it. However I didn't come here to exchange compliments..."

Many of the themes and ideals of some of the characters in his work leads me to believe that David either knew a lot about Christianity or had experienced saving Grace. I pray it was the latter.

Either way I will miss receiving a new Gemmell novel for my birthday each year. My wife will probably miss having such an easy choice of gift.