Harriet McDougal

Last updated
Harriet McDougal Rigney
BornHarriet Stoney Popham
(1939-08-04) August 4, 1939 (age 84)
Charleston, South Carolina
OccupationEditor
Alma mater Harvard University
Genre Science fiction and Fantasy
Notable works The Wheel of Time , The Black Company , Ender's Game
Spouses
Ed McDougal
​
(m. 1960⁠–⁠1966)​
​
​
(m. 1981;died 2007)​

Harriet Popham McDougal Rigney (born August 4, 1939) is an American editor. McDougal is most known for her work on several best-selling fantasy and science fiction books and series, including The Wheel of Time (written by her husband Robert Jordan), The Black Company , and Ender's Game .

Contents

Personal life

The carriage house Charleston Carriage House.jpg
The carriage house

Harriet Stoney Popham was born on August 4, 1939, [1] [2] in Charleston, South Carolina, to Louisa McCord (Stoney) Popham and William Sherbrooke Popham. William S. Popham was a member of the St. Cecilia Society and a rear admiral in the U.S. Navy during World War II; before the war he was stationed for a time with his family in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to head the NROTC program there.

Harriet's maternal grandmother died the year she was born, and Harriet's mother Louisa soon inherited the family home in downtown Charleston. The house was rented out, while Louisa and her daughter lived in the backyard carriage house. When William was made acting Commandant of the Charleston Naval Shipyard after the war, the family lived at the Yard briefly; but they soon returned to the downtown home, where Harriet spent the rest of her childhood. [3] [4]

Harriet attended Ashley Hall where she was a distinguished member of the French and Latin clubs and president of the student body. [5] [6] She was honored with the Headmistress' Award upon graduation in 1956, given to "that member of the senior class who has made the greatest contribution to the spirit and general welfare of Ashley Hall and best represents the ideal of the school." [7] She entered college at Wellesley as an International Relations student; after a year she transferred to Harvard-Radcliffe, changing her major to English. She graduated in 1960 and returned to Charleston for a year; she became engaged and un-engaged three times before leaving to find work in New York City. There she married her first husband, Ed McDougal, in 1964; she gave birth to her son in 1968 and left her husband two years later. [8] [9] [5]

In 1977, Harriet returned to Charleston when her father died, following her mother's death the preceding year. She met writer James Rigney and published his first book. They married in 1981. He lived with Harriet in the family home, doing his writing in the carriage house, until his death in 2007.

In Charleston, Harriet participates in local societies and charitable causes. [10] [11] She has served on the Board of Trustees for Ashley Hall, and to this day she meets with a group of schoolmates who call themselves the "First Graders", as they all began first grade together in Charleston. [12] [13]

Career

When McDougal finished college in 1960, she worked for a year as the assistant archivist at the South Carolina Historical Society, making $42.50 a week. There she met a man who gave her a reference letter for John Wiley & Sons, where she began her editing career. [14] After seven years at John Wiley & Sons, she moved to Harcourt Brace where she worked on the first science fiction and fantasy textbook ever published, and then to World Publishing to run the copyeditors for the children's books department. After a brief period of freelancing, she landed a job at Grosset & Dunlap. [15]

By the early 1970s, McDougal had established herself as Tom Doherty's top editor under the Tempo imprint at Grosset & Dunlap. While at Tempo, McDougal edited several science fiction and fantasy books, and she also edited comic strip collections; among other things, she negotiated Tempo's acquisition of the rights for Hägar the Horrible. [16] Doherty's and McDougal's success with Tempo eventually led to the 1976 purchase of Charter Communications and its science fiction imprint Ace Books, by Grosset & Dunlap. When McDougal was editorial director for Ace, Doherty hired Jim Baen to work under her, and when Doherty left Ace to start Tor Books in 1980, Baen followed, working at Tor for a few years before starting his own imprint, Baen Books. [17] [18]

McDougal's father died in 1977, just over a year after the death of her mother. Despite a promotion at Ace to vice president, she decided to resign and return to Charleston to raise her son and assume responsibility for the family home. Through a profit-sharing agreement with Dick Gallen, who had been general counsel for Dell Publishing, she established her own imprint, Popham Press; Gallen was also an early financier of Tor Books, and McDougal also continued to edit for Doherty from Charleston. [19] [20] [17] She met Robert Jordan through a local bookstore, where she learned from the owner that Jordan had sold his first novel, Warriors of the Altaii, to Jim Baen, and that when Baen had left Ace for Tor, Susan Allison had taken over for him at Ace and had reverted the rights for the book to Jordan, leaving him unpublished. McDougal left her contact information for Jordan on an index card. [21] [22]

Jordan contacted McDougal, and she read Warriors of the Altaii. It wasn't what she was interested in, so Jordan pitched a historical fiction series instead, which Jordan originally envisioned as a bodice-ripper. [23] [24] Eventually she edited and published The Fallon Blood , written by Jordan as Reagan O'Neal, for Popham Press in 1980; when they finished touring for the book, they began dating, and soon they became engaged. At that time, Jordan published Cheyenne Raiders (as Jackson O'Reilly) through another editor, "because I thought, 'Hang on...I just asked a woman to marry me, and she is my source of income!' So I very hurriedly sold the book somewhere else so she would not be my sole source of income." [25] However, McDougal edited all of his other books, which were published by the Tor imprint. They married on March 28, 1981, and Jordan began writing the Wheel of Time in 1984. [26] [17] After their marriage, she kept McDougal as her professional name, and she continued to edit for Tor, working on projects such as Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game and The Black Company series by Glen Cook.

Wheel of Time

McDougal edited Robert Jordan's books until his death in 2007, though her role lessened as the years went on. In her words: "By the last of the Wheel of Time books, my role was primarily that of wife: keeping him fed and cared for—because after 20 plus years I had taught him everything I knew about storytelling and prose, and he had really become the wonderful writer that he was." [27] She eventually stopped picking up new authors, going into semi-retirement and limiting her work to her husband's books.

When Jordan was diagnosed with amyloidosis in late 2005, her role began to change; fans of the Wheel of Time books began to depend on McDougal and Jordan's cousin Wilson Grooms for updates about both his condition and the status of the final book of the series. [28] [29] Jordan had always insisted that, in the event of his premature death, his notes would be destroyed, and no one would be allowed to finish the Wheel of Time. [30] [31] [32] [33] But around the time of his diagnosis (before the news was made public), he began to reassure his fans, saying "My comments about arrangements in case of my death (burning the notes, doing triple Guttman wipes on the hard drives, etc.) were mainly a defense against any fans who became so frantic to see the end that they thought knocking me off might result in somebody else finishing the books faster." [34]

Jordan continued to insist until weeks before his death that he would live to finish the story, but when he realized he would not, he asked his wife to find someone to finish what he had begun. [35] She chose up-and-coming author Brandon Sanderson for the task. [36]

I had not heard of Brandon until ... it was the week of my husband's death. A friend was visiting. She put in front of me a print-out, and it was the eulogy for Robert Jordan that Brandon had posted on his web site. [37] Brandon's eulogy was really beautiful, and very loving. And I thought, gosh, this guy. . . he knows what the series is all about. And I got on the phone, called Tom Doherty and said, "Send me one of Sanderson's books." [38] And he's a bit darker than Robert Jordan, but the series, as everyone knows, is heading towards Tarmon Gai'don, which is the battle with the Dark One that will decide the fate of the world. Tom said, "Okay, I'll go for that. We'll go for Brandon."

— Harriet McDougal [39]

Following Jordan's death, McDougal became the owner of the Wheel of Time copyright, the highest authority for decisions concerning its future, and the surrogate 'mother' of the series in the eyes of fans. [40] She continued to play a highly active role in the fandom, attending many conventions and book signings with Sanderson, and edited Sanderson's work on the series along with Jordan's long-time assistants, Maria Livingston Simons and Alan Romanczuk. [41] [42] [43] An encyclopedia for the series had been in the works for many years and, with the contract signed prior to Jordan's death, McDougal continued working with Team Jordan on the project. [44] [45] [46] [47] The encyclopedia, titled The Wheel of Time Companion, was published in 2015. [48] She has also contributed to the editing of The Way of Kings , the first book in Sanderson's The Stormlight Archive series, which was published in 2010. [49] [50] In 2019, it was confirmed that McDougal and Sanderson would both serve as consulting producers on The Wheel Of Time television adaptation. [51]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Jordan</span> American fantasy writer

James Oliver Rigney Jr., better known by his pen name Robert Jordan, was an American author of epic fantasy. He is known best for his series The Wheel of Time which comprises 14 books and a prequel novel. He is one of several writers to have written original Conan the Barbarian novels; his are considered by fans to be some of the best of the non-Robert E. Howard efforts. Jordan also published historical fiction using the pseudonym Reagan O'Neal, a western as Jackson O'Reilly, and dance criticism as Chang Lung. Jordan claimed to have ghostwritten an "international thriller" that is still believed to have been written by someone else.

<i>The Wheel of Time</i> Series of fantasy novels by Robert Jordan

The Wheel of Time is a series of high fantasy novels by American author Robert Jordan, with Brandon Sanderson as a co-author for the final three installments. Originally planned as a six-book series with the publication of The Eye of the World in 1990, The Wheel of Time came to span 14 volumes, in addition to a prequel novel and three companion books. Jordan died in 2007 while working on what was planned to be the twelfth and final volume in the series. He prepared extensive notes, which enabled fellow fantasy author Sanderson to complete the final book, which grew into three volumes: The Gathering Storm (2009), Towers of Midnight (2010), and A Memory of Light (2013).

Ashley Hall is a private school located in Charleston, South Carolina enrolling students in kindergarten through grade 12 with a co-educational pre-k program. It was founded in 1909 by Mary Vardrine McBee, who headed the institution for many years. It is the only all-girls' independent private school in South Carolina.The school motto is Possunt Quae Volunt, or "Girls who have the will have the ability."

<i>Crossroads of Twilight</i> 2003 novel by Robert Jordan

Crossroads of Twilight is a fantasy novel by American author Robert Jordan, the tenth book of his The Wheel of Time series. It was published by Tor Books and released on January 7, 2003. Upon its release, it immediately rose to the #1 position on The New York Times best seller list for hardcover fiction, making it the third Wheel of Time book to reach the #1 position on that list. It remained on the list for the next three months.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tor Books</span> United States book publisher

Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group, a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Baen</span> American science fiction publisher and editor

James Patrick Baen was a U.S. science fiction publisher and editor. In 1983, he founded his own publishing house, Baen Books, specializing in the adventure, fantasy, military science fiction, and space opera genres. Baen also founded the video game publisher, Baen Software. In late 1999, he started an electronic publishing business called Webscriptions, which is considered to be the first profitable e-book vendor.

<i>New Spring</i> 2004 novel by Robert Jordan

New Spring is a fantasy novel by American author Robert Jordan, a prequel in the Wheel of Time series. New Spring consists of 26 chapters and an epilogue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jody Lynn Nye</span> American science fiction writer (born 1957)

Jody Lynn Nye is an American science fiction writer. She is the author or co-author of approximately forty published novels and more than 100 short stories. She has specialized in science fiction or fantasy action novels and humor. Her humorous series range from contemporary fantasy to military science fiction. About one-third of her novels are collaborations, either as a co-author or as the author of a sequel. She has been an instructor of the Fantasy Writing Workshop at Columbia College Chicago (2007) and she teaches the annual Science Fiction Writing Workshop at DragonCon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brandon Sanderson</span> American fantasy and science fiction writer

Brandon Winn Sanderson is an American author of high fantasy and science fiction. He is best known for the Cosmere fictional universe, in which most of his fantasy novels, most notably the Mistborn series and The Stormlight Archive, are set. Outside of the Cosmere, he has written several young adult and juvenile series including The Reckoners, the Skyward series, and the Alcatraz series. He is also known for finishing Robert Jordan's high fantasy series The Wheel of Time. Sanderson has created several graphic novel fantasy series, including White Sand and Dark One.

<i>A Memory of Light</i> 2013 novel by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

A Memory of Light is the 14th and final book of the fantasy series The Wheel of Time, written by American authors Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson, and published by Tor Books. Originally expected to have been published around March 2012, the book was delayed several times, and the hardcover edition was eventually released on January 8, 2013. The book reached No. 1 on several bestsellers lists.

Yoji Kondo was a Japanese-born American astrophysicist who also wrote science fiction under the pseudonym Eric Kotani. He edited Requiem: New Collected Works by Robert A. Heinlein and Tributes to the Grand Master (1992), and contributed to New Destinies, Vol. VI/Winter 1988—Robert A. Heinlein Memorial Issue (1988), after his friend, writer Robert A. Heinlein, died in 1988.

<i>The Gathering Storm</i> (novel) 2009 novel by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

The Gathering Storm is a fantasy novel by American writers Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson, the twelfth book in the series The Wheel of Time. It was incomplete when Jordan died on September 16, 2007, from cardiac amyloidosis. His widow Harriet McDougal and his publisher Tom Doherty chose Sanderson to continue the book.

<i>Towers of Midnight</i> 2010 novel by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

Towers of Midnight is a fantasy novel by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. It is the sequel to the novel The Gathering Storm, and the 13th book in the Wheel of Time series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JordanCon</span> Fan convention dedicated to Robert Jordans The Wheel of Time

JordanCon is a North American convention held annually in Atlanta, Georgia, that celebrates Robert Jordan's fantasy book series The Wheel of Time, as well as other science fiction and fantasy works. The convention is a 501c4 tax exempt charitable organization founded in honor of the late Robert Jordan.

<i>The Stormlight Archive</i> Series of epic fantasy novels by Brandon Sanderson

The Stormlight Archive is a series of epic fantasy novels written by American author Brandon Sanderson, planned to consist of ten novels. As of 2023, the series comprises four published novels and two novellas, set within his broader Cosmere universe. The first novel, The Way of Kings, was published on August 31, 2010. The second novel, Words of Radiance, was published in 2014 and debuted at number one on The New York Times Best Seller List, followed by Oathbringer in 2017 and Rhythm of War in 2020. A fifth novel, tentatively named Wind and Truth, is expected to be released December 7th 2024, while writing for the latter half of the series will begin after Sanderson finishes writing the upcoming Era Three Mistborn trilogy and the two Elantris sequels.

This is the bibliography of American fantasy and science fiction writer Brandon Sanderson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Jordan bibliography</span>

Robert Jordan was an American author known for writing the fantasy novel series The Wheel of Time. His works also include several Conan the Barbarian novels, and non-fantasy fiction such as The Fallon Saga.

<i>The Wheel of Time</i> (TV series) 2021 American fantasy television series

The Wheel of Time is an American high fantasy television series developed by Rafe Judkins for Amazon Prime Video. The series is based on the book series of the same name by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson.

<i>The Wheel of Time Companion</i> Reference book for The Wheel of Time novels by Robert Jordan

The Wheel of Time Companion is a reference book for The Wheel of Time epic fantasy series of novels by Robert Jordan. The book was released by Tor Books in hardback format on 3 November 2015. It was co-written by Harriet McDougal, Alan Romanczuk, and Maria Simons.

References

  1. ↑ "Public Records". Public Records. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  2. ↑ Wilson Grooms (2007-07-23). "Still Kicking". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  3. ↑ "Wanderer Fantasy Convention - Interview with Robert Jordan". Theoryland. 2000-09-20. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  4. ↑ Tim Kington (2003-01-16). "COT Signing Report". ra.sf.w-rj. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  5. 1 2 Matt Hatch (2012-04-21). "An Hour with Harriet McDougal Rigney". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
  6. ↑ "Ashley Hall Pupils Win in Contest". The Post and Courier . 1955-04-24. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
  7. ↑ "46 Get Diplomas at Ashley Hall". The Post and Courier . 1956-06-05. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
  8. ↑ Hilwa Katir (2010-11-11). "Tower Guard Report: Boston". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  9. ↑ Margalit Fox (2007-09-18). "James Oliver Rigney Jr. - Obituary". The New York Times . Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  10. ↑ "Charleston Summer Reader 2010" (PDF). Charleston Library Society. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-09-13. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  11. ↑ Walt Klausemeier (2009-06-12). "Charleston Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony". Planned Parenthood . Retrieved 2013-09-13.
  12. ↑ "MEMOS". The Post and Courier . 2009-08-10. Retrieved 2013-09-13.
  13. ↑ Wilson Grooms (2008-03-21). "Authors Hall of Fame". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2013-09-13.
  14. ↑ Matt Hatch (2012-04-21). "An Hour with Harriet McDougal". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
  15. ↑ Matt Hatch (2012-04-21). "An Hour with Harriet McDougal". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
  16. ↑ Matt Hatch (2012-04-21). "An Hour with Harriet McDougal". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
  17. 1 2 3 Peter Ahlstrom (2008-08-31). "Rolling up the Wheel of Time Panel (WorldCon 2008, Denver)". 仮. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  18. ↑ David Drake (2006-11-22). "Jim Baen (obituary)". david-drake.com. Archived from the original on 2012-04-20. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  19. ↑ Matt Hatch (2012-04-21). "An Hour with Harriet McDougal". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
  20. ↑ Tom Doherty (2007-10-04). "More info and pictures from RJ's funeral". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  21. ↑ Ernest Lilley (2003-01-21). "SFRevu Interview with Robert Jordan". SFRevu. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  22. ↑ Rick Kleffel (2003-01-20). "Fine Print Interview with Robert Jordan". Fine Print Audio. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  23. ↑ Matt Hatch (2012-04-21). "An Hour with Harriet McDougal". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
  24. ↑ Tor Books (2012-12-07). "The Robert Jordan Story". Tor.com. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
  25. ↑ Robert Jordan (1999-08-30). "Sydney Independent Theatre Q&A". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  26. ↑ unknown. "Robert Jordan Bio". freeshell.org. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  27. ↑ James Luckman (2010-06-30). "Interview with Harriet McDougal". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  28. ↑ Harriet McDougal (2006-05-23). "FROM HARRIET". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  29. ↑ Wilson Grooms (2006-05-15). "A Message from Wilson". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  30. ↑ Dean West (1996-08-04). "A Crown of Swords Signing Report". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  31. ↑ Robert Jordan (1998-11-11). "MSN eFriends Interview with Robert Jordan". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  32. ↑ Robert Jordan (1999-08-30). "Sydney Independent Theatre Q&A". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  33. ↑ Robert Jordan (2001-04-06). "Dromen and Demonen Chat". Emma de Laat. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  34. ↑ Robert Jordan (2005-10-07). "AND ONE MORE TIME". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  35. ↑ Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased) (2011-07-16). "PolarisCon Report - herid". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  36. ↑ Tor-Forge (2007-12-07). "Tor announces that the final novel in bestselling Robert Jordan's legendary Wheel of Time fantasy series will be completed by author Brandon Sanderson". Tor.com. Archived from the original on 2007-12-12. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  37. ↑ Brandon Sanderson (2009-07-19). "EUOLogy: Goodbye Mr. Jordan". brandonsanderson.com. Retrieved 2019-08-29.
  38. ↑ The book was Mistborn: The Final Empire . Nick Smith (2010-04-14). "Interview with Harriet McDougal". Charleston City Paper. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  39. ↑ Harriet McDougal (2009-10-01). "Tor-Forge Interview with Harriet McDougal and Brandon Sanderson". Tor-Forge. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  40. ↑ Jason Denzel (2007-12-08). "Dragonmount Interview with Brandon Sanderson". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  41. ↑ James Luckman (2010-03-19). "Interview with Maria Simons". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  42. ↑ Richard Fife (2010-05-12). "Interview with Alan Romanczuk". Tor.com. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  43. ↑ JD and Teresa Nielsen Hayden (2012-02-26). "WoT Production Tidbits". Tor.com. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  44. ↑ Marie Curie (2010-03-19). "JordanCon AMOL Status Report". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  45. ↑ Matt Hatch (2005-09-04). "DragonCon Report". Theoryland. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  46. ↑ Robert Jordan (2005-09-30). "YET ANOTHER POST". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  47. ↑ Robert Jordan (2005-10-02). "ONE MORE TIME". Dragonmount. Retrieved 2012-04-13.
  48. ↑ "The Wheel of Time Companion". Macmillan. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
  49. ↑ Sanderson, Brandon (2010). Feder, Moshe (ed.). The Way of Kings. The Stormlight Archive. Vol. 1. New York: Tor Books. p. 7. ISBN   978-0-7653-2635-5.
  50. ↑ "The Way of Kings". Macmillan. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
  51. ↑ Schwartz, Terri (2019-06-19). "Amazon's Wheel of Time Casts Rosamund Pike as Moiraine, Confirms Brandon Sanderson Involvement". IGN India. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.