Barbara Taylor Bradford was only 10 when she sold her first story – for seven shillings and six pence.

Encouraged by her parents to pursue her dream of becoming a writer, Barbara’s mother published her story in a magazine and eagerly awaited a response.

A month passed before his father gave him a letter of acceptance upon his return from school; it was the first of his many signings, which sparked his interest in journalism.

Barbara told the Yorkshire Evening Post: “I was thrilled – not for the money, but for the fact that my signature was going to appear in their magazine.

“I never lost sight of the idea of ​​being a journalist and maybe one day writing books. I got paid 10, imagine that.

Barbara was born and raised in Upper Armley and fondly remembers Sunday walks with her parents in Gotts Park and Armley Park.

Now one of Britain’s most famous writers – over 90 million copies of her books have been sold to date – Barbara began her career in the Yorkshire Evening Post typing pool while she was only 15 years old.

She landed a job as a journalist at the newspaper a year later, becoming one of the first women to work in a UK newsroom, and was promoted to Editor-in-Chief of Women’s Pages at the age of 18.

Barbara attributed her early successes to the support of her parents, who supported her when she chose a career in journalism over studying at Leeds University.

“I just did my job and did as I was told, put my head down and didn’t flirt,” said the 88-year-old.

“My mother said to me ‘you’re going over there to learn to be a journalist and that’s what you will do. And if one of the other journalists invites you out, make sure he isn’t. married! ‘

“At first I thought the sub-editors and other journalists didn’t like me. But they said no, Barbara, it has nothing to do with loving – it’s just that they don’t like having a girl in the newsroom, because they can’t swear in front of you.”

Barbara realized her dream of working on Fleet Street at the age of 20 when she moved to London and became a fashion editor and columnist for Woman’s Own magazine.

She added: “My mother came to London with me and we found an apartment in Belsize Park Gardens, she stayed with me for a week or two and often came to see me.

“After a year on Women’s Own, I went to work for the London Evening News. I was a press woman, I wanted to come back to a newspaper. I loved being on Fleet Street.”

Barbara moved to New York City in the 1960s with her late husband, American film producer Robert Bradford, who sadly passed away in 2019.

Her first novel, A Woman of Substance, was published in 1979 and was the first of many super-sellers – it remained on the New York Times list for 43 weeks.

Barbara has since published 38 books, ten of which have been adapted for the screen, has been named OBE by the Queen for her services to literature, as well as numerous awards for her writing achievements and philanthropy.

Leeds and Yorkshire were the backdrop for many of her novels and although she said she enjoyed her childhood in the city very much, she admits that she does not fail to live in England – New York has been her home for over 50 years.

But while many may have visions of a glamorous lifestyle in the Big Apple, it is far from the reality of being a successful novelist.

“The glitz and glamor of New York is all that comes to mind, but I don’t lead a very glitzy or glamorous life,” Barbara said.

“I write books, I go out to beautiful places and great restaurants. I have a lot of friends that I have known all my life and who have become famous – we were all kids together in London and now in America.

“But it’s not very glamorous, I work very hard. Writing a novel a year or every year and a half is hard work.”

An ordinary woman who enjoys extraordinary success

Barbara’s novels center on ordinary women who experience extraordinary success, now a fitting reflection of her own accomplishments.

Barbara said, “All of my books are about strong, independent women who went out and took their world.

“In some of my historical novels, like the Cavendon series, not all of them have jobs. They are successful women who run a stately home, or a large house, or are a good mother.

“I like to write about women who are active and who do things because I think they are more interesting than ordinary women who do nothing.”

Barbara is celebrating the release of her 39th book, A Man of Honor, which is a prequel to her first novel released over 40 years ago.

Opened five years before the start of A Woman of Substance, it tells the story of Blackie O’Neill, an unforgettable character to the book’s millions of readers.

Orphaned and lonely, a 13-year-old Blackie has just buried his sister, Bronagh, and must leave his home to embark for England, in search of a better life with his mother’s brother in Leeds.

Barbara said: “I realized I didn’t know anything about Blackie – he didn’t have a life in this book because he was still with Emma.

“When he left and said goodbye to her, he was her best friend for life, even though they never married. She would stay with the reader and he would disappear.

“I really understood, as I flipped through the book, that he hadn’t had a life that the reader knew.

“I had a new plate to write. I had to reflect on his life in Ireland when he was 13 and how he got to Leeds.

“I think the book works really well, it tells the reader all about this young man they all loved – who of course was played by Liam Neeson in the movie.”

A Man of Honor, by Barbara Taylor Bradford, is available now on HarperCollins – priced at £ 16.99.

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