Author Profile:  Charlie Lovett

Charlie Lovett is a playwright, novelist, podcaster, book collector, and public speaker.  His 2004 play Twinderella won the Shubert Fendrich Playwriting contest and since then his many Pioneer plays have been seen in over 5000 productions worldwide, proving perennial favorites among teachers, students, and community groups.  Charlie’s plays reflect his philosophy of children’s theatre — “children’s performances will rise to meet the level of the material they are given,” he says, “and at the elementary level, all children should be given equal opportunities on stage.  My plays for elementary students, therefore, tend to have an even distribution of parts and are filled with humor and cultural allusions that provide learning opportunities for the students and fun for the parents and teachers.”

Charlie is the New York Times bestselling author of five novels, including The Bookman’s Tale, Escaping Dreamland, and his latest, the thriller The Enigma Affair.  His books have been featured in People Magazine, Parade, USA Today and other media outlets and have been translated into many languages.  Library Journal has called his work “compulsively readable,” Publisher’s Weekly “thoroughly enjoyable,” and Women’s Day “thrilling.” 

After years of writing plays for the school market, Charlie has more recently written a middle grade novel, The Book of the Seven Spells (the first of a planned trilogy).  This fast-paced magical adventure features a diverse quartet of children who must work together to keep a powerful spell book from falling into the wrong hands.  Early readers have called the book “captivating from page one,” and “smart, clever, and fun.” 

Charlie frequently visits schools (both in person and virtually) to discuss his plays and novels and is constantly inspired by the students who read his work and perform in his plays.

Charlie’s non-fiction books include several works on Lewis Carroll, author of Alice in Wonderland.  Charlie has collected Carroll materials for over 40 years and is the proud owner of everything from one of 22 surviving copies of the first edition of Alice in Wonderland to Lewis Carroll’s 1888 typewriter.  His most recent book on Carroll, Lewis Carroll:  Formed by Faith, is a biography that examines Dodgson’s religious life.  Scholar Edward Guiliano called it, “an astounding work that will stand the test of time.”

On his podcast, Inside the Writer’s Studio, Charlie interviews other authors from debut novelists to established talents like John Grisham, Louise Penny, Henry Winkler, Dave Pilkey, and Ian McEwan. 

Charlie lives in Winston-Salem with his wife, Janice, who is an actress and director, and their dog Rosie whose dream is someday to play Sandy in a production of Annie.  You can learn more about Charlie and his work at CharlieLovett.com.