Roth's Life

Basic Facts:

Veronica Roth, an established author in dystopian books and short stories was born on August 19th, 1988. She was born in Mount Kisco, New York, but as a child she moved around frequently. She moved to Hong Kong and Germany prior to settling down permanently in Barring ton, Illinois. She is the daughter of Barbara Ross and Edgar Gustave Roth. Her mother found a career in painting while her father was a photographer. She grew up in a very creative household and this caused for such an interest in literature and the arts in general. Roth looked up to inspirational authors like J.K Rowling and C.S. Lewis which assisted in her development of storytelling. Roth’s appreciation for these authors comes from their themes, their ability to build the fantasy genre, and their impact on their readers. She is the youngest of 3 children. Her older siblings are Kyle and Ingrid Roth. Veronica Roth is of both Polish and German descent, and in fact her grandparents were holocaust survivors. When Roth was about five years old her parents split. Later on, her mother remarried Frank Ross. Frank Ross is a financial consultant for a landscaping company. Since her father was busy with work Frank Ross stepped into that position, and she grew rather close with her stepfather. In 2011, Roth married a photographer, Nelson Finch.

Works and Awards:

Roth started off her career as a highly successful author. She released the book Divergent in 2011 while being a senior at Northwestern University. The Divergent Trilogy sold 6.7 million copies in 2013 alone. Following the success of the book she got the opportunity to make these stories come to life. She sold Divergent to Summit Entertainment and Insurgent to Lionsgate to be made into movies. In the production of the movies she acted as an executive producer alongside Neil Burger. Divergent received several awards such as: 2011 Good Reads Choice Award for Favorite Book, Publishers Weekly’s Best Book of 2011, and was the winner of the YALSA 2012 Teens’ Top Ten. The Divergent book also received a nomination for the Kids Choice Awards, USA in 2015. Other books she has written include: When Among Crows, Arch-Conspirator, Chosen Ones, The End and Other Beginnings, The Fates Divide, Carve the Mark, Allegiant, Four, and her most recent Poster Girl.

Education:

Her education and upbringing played a crucial role in Veronica Roth’s success. Her love for reading and writing started at an early age. By living in such an innovative and creative household it was all Roth ever knew. Roth declares that her first time ever writing on her own was when her mom bought her a ‘make your own book kit’ as a gift. Ever since that day her ambition for reading and creative writing has flourished. At Barring ton High School, Roth participated in several writing and theater programs. During this time, Roth started seeking a higher power, and reconnected with God. She began practicing Christianity and it is said that it is prominent in a lot of her writings. Before attending Northwestern University she studied for a year at Carleton College. When she made the transfer to Northwestern University it made her capabilities grow exponentially. She studied English Literature and Creative Writing while at Northwestern. Being surrounded by so many insightful, creative, and young points of views it helped Roth view storytelling in a different light. In fact, when she began writing her first book, Divergent, she actually refused to show her classmates or professor due to feeling vulnerable about it being a personal first piece for her. After breaking through that barrier she obtained a lot of constructive criticism that helped her modify the book.