Paula Hawkins: From struggling author to literary sensation

Paula Hawkins has much to smile about, having gone from ‘financial difficulty’ to earning a reportedly six-figure deal for The Girl On The Train. Photo: paulahawkinsbooks.com/Kate Neil

Two years ago, Paula Hawkins was in “financial difficulty”. She had spent two years writing her fourth novel under the pen name Amy Silver. The Reunion, a slice of commercial fiction aimed at women, was published in September 2013.

“And it just died,” she says. “It was very stressful, so I was in a bit of a panic.”