She was discreet, but very popular. The writer with 15 million copies sold has died at the age of 70.
The novelist Françoise Bourdin died on Monday December 26. The writer is one of the most successful authors in France, with 15 million books sold, translated into 12 languages. “I send my most sincere condolences to the family of Françoise Bourdin, to her two daughters, Fabienne and Frédérique, to her grandchildren, I am thinking of all the teams, from Belfond, from Plon and from Pocket, who have worked with her for so many years, as well as to her millions of loyal readers”, said the general manager of the Editis group, Michèle Benbunan.
Françoise Bourdin started early. At 20, she signed her first contract with Julliard for Wet Suns. Followed by a second novel, Waves of yellow grass, very quickly adapted to the cinema by Josée Dayan with, in the main role, Laurent Terzieff. And then she stops everything. “I got married, I had children that I wanted to take care of. Everything else suddenly mattered less. An understandable decision: Françoise Bourdin’s childhood was marked forever by the departure of her mother. She will be present for her two daughters.
Faithful to Belfond Editions
Fortunately for us, twenty years later, “a very strong desire to tell stories” tickles her and she tackles it with passion. Until you end up with two manuscripts on your arms. They will be published simultaneously by Denoël and La Table Ronde. But it was his meeting with Tony Cartano, from Éditions Belfond, that would be decisive: “He will publish “July Harvest”. I realized that the book was starting to do well when he asked me to write the sequel…» The success will not stop and Françoise will remain forever faithful to Belfond. “I feel good. Confidence is there, it is essential for me.”
Born in Paris to lyrical singer parents, Françoise Bourdin was immersed from a young age in an artistic and magical universe. Passionate about riding since adolescence, she spends more time on horseback than on the benches of the Lycée Victor-Duruy. Her other passion is literature, and she devours the classics for summers. His novels have won over more and more readers and many have been adapted for television.
Alongside her work as a novelist, Françoise Bourdin is also a screenwriter for television. In 2012, she published Autumn Oath, then of water and fire the next year. In 2014, she published no less than 4 novels, including The promise of the ocean and A new beginning to change lives. In 2015, she released In the name of the father, and in 2016 A marriage of love and Facing the sea. His latest novel, Such a beautiful horizonwas released by Plon editions in early 2022.
Shunned by the media
Writing is indeed the great business of his life. Each year a new opus appears, the novelist spares no effort. However, and despite its immense success, it is discreet. An adjective that annoys him: “Discreet against my will! It has almost become a label when people talk about me. I never refused an interview, it was the media that shunned me for a long time! Popular literature, as we know, does not get a good press, but things are changing little by little. Today we talk about “feel good” novels and the image has changed. Today, people are more interested in me and I am delighted. But in reality, I don’t care about all that. I suffered from it, I no longer suffer from it. What I don’t like is the idea that my audience is sometimes made fun of, because to despise popular novels is to despise its readership. This one does not necessarily have bad taste, pleasing is not necessarily suspect.she told our colleague Laurence Caracalla in June 2021.