About Marlowe Reed
Novelist, night-train enthusiast, and firm believer that the best stories are the ones you can smell.
Stories found me before I found them
I grew up above my grandmother’s bookshop in Lexington, shelving returns before I could reach the top shelf. At nine I started rewriting the endings of library books in pencil — lightly, so they could be erased. At twenty-six I published my first novel, and I have been chasing better endings ever since.
Eighteen books later, my work spans fantasy, historical fiction and adventure, translated into fourteen languages. What hasn’t changed is the method: long walks, strong tea, and a notebook that goes everywhere, even — especially — onto night trains.
Marlowe Reed
18
Novels Published
18+
Won Awards
14
Languages in Print
12
Years of Mentoring Writers
Milestones along the way
The first manuscript
Written at a bookshop counter between customers, revised eleven times, and shelved with love. It taught me everything the published books get credit for.
Debut novel published
My first book found its readers slowly, then all at once — book clubs carried it further than any campaign could have.
The Saltwater Ledger breaks through
A bestseller in nine countries and my first major literary prize. I celebrated by taking the night train home instead of flying.
Mentorship & the Marlowe Reed Grant
An annual grant funding debut novelists’ writing time — because someone once gave me a quiet room and six months.
Emberfall, the latest novel
Four drafts, three years, one burning country. My most ambitious book — and, readers tell me, my most personal.
Events & appearances
Readings, signings and festival stages — come say hello. Every event ends with a signing line, and nobody is ever rushed.
Emberfall launch reading — Lexington
Chapter One Books, 7pm. Reading, Q&A and first-edition signings. Free entry, booking advised.
Winter Words Festival — Chicago
Main-stage panel on worldbuilding with three fellow novelists, followed by a joint signing.
An evening with Marlowe Reed — New York
The Lantern Room, 8pm. An hour of stories about stories, with music from the Atlas playlist.
Rights & licensing
Translation, audio, film and serial rights for all Marlowe Reed titles are handled by Marlowe Reed Editions in partnership with representation worldwide. For permissions — including book-club photocopying, classroom extracts and quotation requests — please write via the contact page with “Rights” in the subject line. Short extracts (under 400 words) for review and study need no prior permission, provided the book is credited.
Let’s bring stories to your stage
School visits, festival panels, keynote readings and writing workshops — Marlowe tours twice a year and replies to every invitation personally.