Kathryn Stockett

Stockett worked in magazine publishing while living in New York City before publishing her first novel,[1] which she began writing after the September 11th attacks.[2] The Help took her five years to complete, and the book was rejected by 60 literary agents before agent Susan Ramer agreed to represent Stockett.[1][3] The Help has since been published in 42 languages.[4] As of August 2012, it has sold ten million copies and spent more than 100 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list.[5][6] The Help climbed best seller charts a few months after it was released.[7][8]

Stockett grew up in Jackson, Mississippi.[9] After graduating from the University of Alabama with a degree in English and Creative Writing, she moved to New York City. She lived there for 16 years and worked in magazine publishing and marketing. She is divorced and has a daughter.[8][10]

Reflective of her first novel, Stockett was very close to an African American domestic worker.[11]

A lawsuit was filed in a Mississippi court by Ablene Cooper, a maid who used to work for Stockett's brother. It claimed that Stockett used her likeness in the book.[12] A Hinds County, Mississippi judge threw the case out of court, citing the statute of limitations.[13] Stockett denies her claim of stealing her likeness and says she only met her briefly.[13]