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Celebrities You Didn’t Know Wrote Fiction Novels

Telisa Carter

March 20, 2018

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Celebrities are not shy about attempting their hand at other talents and over the years fans have seen many popular actors and actresses embark on music careers and, on the other side of that, many musicians break into acting. Lesser known, however, are the many celebrities who have turned to fiction writing. Countless stars have released best-selling autobiographies and memoirs, but writing a novel is a much different undertaking and many stars have released their books to varying reviews and receptions. Despite being marketed and written as fiction, many of the stars drew on their personal experiences to create the plots for their books. Here are 17 celebrities you didn’t know wrote fiction novels:

17. Isla Fisher

Actress Isla Fisher is well known for her roles in films such as Wedding Crashers, I Heart Huckabees, Confessions of a Shopaholic, Now You See Me and so many more, but in her rare downtime she has written a few books. Back in 1995 she released both Bewitched and Seduced By Fame. At the time, Fisher was only 19 and was starring on the Australian soap opera Home and Away. She wrote Seduced by Fame about a young girl named Jade Silver who is plucked from obscurity to become a star, and it certainly seemed like she was pulling from personal experience. Although most haven’t heard of the book, it has a surprising 3.3/5 rating on Goodreads.

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16. Gene Hackman

Given his notable career, it is quite surprising that Gene Hackman would have any time at all to write a novel, let alone several. The talented actor wrote his first novel Wake of the Perdido Star in the late ’90s with co-writer Daniel Lenihan and went on to write two more novels with Lenihan: 2004’s Justice for None and 2008’s Escape from Andersonville: A Note on the Civil War. Additionally, Hackman has written two novels individually, 2011’s Payback at Morning Peak and 2013’s Pursuit.

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15. Sharon Osbourne

Sharon Osbourne is hilarious and creative and fans are well aware that her interesting life has already garnered three autobiographies, Survivor, Extreme and Unbreakable, and it seems writing about her own life inspired the star to take on some fiction writing as well. In 2010 Osbourne released her novel entitled Revenge via Sphere publishing about the tale of revenge between two sisters. Revenge was well received by readers and has a 4.6 star review on Amazon and a 3.5/5 star review on Goodreads.

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14. Sylvester Stallone

After writing the screenplay and story for Rocky, it isn’t surprising that Sylvester Stallone took pride in his writing work and assumed he would have continued success both on paper and on screen. After the massive success of Rocky, in 1977 Stallone published Paradise Valley, a family drama about three brothers entering the world of wrestling. In 1978, the novel was made into a film by the same name and seeing as how it is long forgotten even by the biggest Stallone fans, the actor decided not to venture any further into the world of fiction writing.

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13. Tyra Banks

Tyra Banks has accomplished a lot in the entertainment industry. She was one of the world’s most iconic supermodels and then transitioned into acting, hosting and a lot of behind the scenes work as a businesswoman in the industry. In addition to all of that, she also wrote a young adult novel. In 2011, Banks published Modelland about a character named Tookie De La Creme, obviously modeled after Tyra herself, who gets invited to a secret and prestigious world despite her wild hair and big forehead. The novel reads as America’s Next Top Model meets The Hunger Games those who make it through Modelland’s many trials become famous and revered, but we don’t talk about what happens to the losers. Modelland was supposed to the first of a trilogy series but the reception, sales, and reviews were so bad it seems Banks never moved forward with the other two books.

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12. Chris Harrison

Actors, actresses, and supermodels aren’t the only ones who have taken on the challenge of fiction writing! None other than longtime Bachelor nation host Chris Harrison has also published a novel. Published in 2015, Harrison wrote a romance, The Perfect Letter, which was about a talented young book editor named Leigh who returns to her small hometown where she ponders her engagement to who is supposed to be the man of her dreams but ends up falling for her first love again. The novel has received mixed reviews and holds a rating of 3.5/5 on Goodreads.

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11. Shay Mitchell

Pretty Little Liars actress Shay Mitchell is best known for her role in the popular series, but she added author to her list of occupations in 2015 when she co-authored the young adult novel, Bliss, with Michaela Blaney. Bliss tells the story of 21-year-old Sophia Marcus who dreams of making it big in Hollywood but in the meantime is living in Toronto, attending auditions, and working at a club. Shay Mitchell’s stardom helped promote the book, but it didn’t become a bestseller by any means.

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10. Steve Martin

Steve Martin is one of Hollywood’s most talented and inconspicuous men. When he isn’t lighting up the big screen, he leads a low-key life which has included quite an impressive list of published works. From screenplays to memoirs to novels and more, Martin has 20 published works to his name including the novels Shopgirl (2000), The Pleasure of My Company (2003), and An Object of Beauty (2010). His books are known to make it to the best-sellers lists and in 2005 Shopgirl was adapted into a film of the same name starring Steve Martin, Claire Danes, and Jason Schwartzman.

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9. Carrie Fischer

Over the course of her illustrious career, beloved Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher wrote three plays, four screenplays, four non-fiction books and four novels. Her first was 1987’s Postcards from the Edge which became a bestseller as it told the story of a recovering addict who goes to live with her alcoholic mother. After its release, Fisher was awarded the Los Angeles PEN Award for Best First Novel and in 1990 it was turned into a full-length film starring Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Dennis Quaid and Gene Hackman. Fisher’s other fiction novels include 1990’s Surrender the Pink, 1993’s Delusions of Grandma, and 2004’s The Best Awful There Is.

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8. Macauley Culkin

Seventeen years after Home Alone‘s release, Macauley Culkin had mostly disappeared from the spotlight and was trying his talents elsewhere. Although it is not technically a novel, Culkin’s book Junior is a work of fiction about a child star with father issues who abandons his stardom at the height of his career. The book reads as a collection of stream-of-conscious thoughts surrounded by cartoons and drawings. Due to its obscure nature, Junior did not really resonate with readers and is a long forgotten moment in Culkin’s own strange rise and fall in Hollywood.

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7. Lauren Graham

When Lauren Graham released her memoir and collection of personal essays Talking as Fast as I Can: from Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (and Everything in Between) in 2016, it instantly became a bestseller, but what many fans didn’t know was that it wasn’t the actress’s first published work. In 2013, Graham’s debut novel Someday, Someday, Maybe was released and also found itself on the New York Times bestseller list. Shortly after, Graham signed a deal with Warner Bros. and Ellen DeGeneres’ production comapny to adapt her novel into a TV series and although she wrote a screenplay for the pilot episode, it was never picked up for filming.

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6. Ethan Hawke

Ethan Hawke’s career has taken him through acting on the big screen, small screen, off-Broadway and directing, but even with so much going on, he is also credited as an author. From 1996 to 2006, Hawke has written and published four novels including The Hottest State and Ash Wednesday. His debut novel The Hottest State was even adapted into a film, and many readers and critics have praised Hawke’s writing style, making him one celebrity author to definitely check out.

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5. Naomi Campbell

Tyra Banks is not the only iconic supermodel to add author to her resume. In 1996, model Naomi Campbell released her debut novel entitled Swan, which was co-written with a ghostwriter. Swan told the story of models competing to replace the retiring models of a cosmetics company and Campbell admitted she wrote the novel to get back at dishonest journalists, like the one who blackmails the titular character, because of her own bad experience with the press and journalists. Unfortunately, critics and the press gave the book horrible reviews, so it didn’t necessarily stop what she was complaining about in the book.

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4. Hugh Laurie

It is hard to keep up with all of the titles Hugh Laurie has had. While most know him as a talented actor he is also director, comedian, singer, and an author to top it all off. In 1996, his debut novel The Gun Seller was published and the comedic thriller went on to become a bestseller. Since its publication, there was word of Laurie working on a screenplay for a film adaptation but nothing has come to fruition. Similarly, his second novel The Paper Soldier was supposed to be released in 2009, but is yet to be seen.

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3. Pete Wentz

Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz has always been creative and an important writer of many of Fall Out Boy’s songs, and as it turns out he has been able to form longer works as well. He published The Boy With the Thorn In His Side about his childhood nightmares in 2005, but his biggest work was his 2013 novel Gray which he penned with MTV News writer James Montgomery. The novel — which explores loss, depression and self-discovery — was very well-received by readers and many are hoping it is not his last novel.

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2. Hilary Duff

Although Hilary Duff took quite the break from the spotlight while she focused on raising her son Luca, she found the time to write a young adult fantasy trilogy called The Elixir Series. The first book, Elixir, was published in 2010 and was followed by Devoted and True in 2011 and 2013. Many were pleasantly surprised by Duff’s series and while it never gained the recognition other young adult fantasy series, critics and readers were happy with the star’s entries as an author.

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1. Chad Michael Murray

One Tree Hill‘s Chad Michael Murray had a case of life imitating art when he took a page from Lucas Scott’s book and became a fiction writer in his real life as well. Although he released a 2011 novel called Everlast, his biggest work was American Drifter which was co-written by Heather Graham and released in 2017. Murray revealed the inspiration for the book came from a dream he had, and has been promoting his new novel through social media and book tours.

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Telisa Carter

Telisa enjoys learning and writing about all things entertainment in the world of Hollywood. When she isn't catching up on her favorite TV shows, she likes to read, and obsess over all things football.