Steel was born Danielle Fernandes Dominique Schuelein-Steel in New York City to a German father and a Portuguese mother. Steel started writing stories as a child, and by her late teens had begun writing poetry. Raised Catholic, she thought of becoming a nun during her early years. A 1965 graduate of the Lycée Français de New York, she studied literature design and fashion design, first at Parsons School of Design and then at New York University.
While still attending New York University, Steel began writing, completing her first manuscript at 19. Steel worked for a public-relations agency in New York called Supergirls. Her first novel, Going Home, was published in 1973. The novel contained many of the themes that her writing would become well known for, including a focus on family issues and human relationships. Beginning in 1981, Steel had become a near-permanent fixture on The New York Times hardcover and paperback bestsellers lists.
Steel has produced several books a year, often juggling up to five projects at once. All of her novels have been bestsellers, including those issued in hardback, despite “a resounding lack of critical acclaim” (Publishers Weekly). Her books often involve rich families facing a crisis, threatened by dark elements such as prison, fraud, blackmail and suicide. Steel has also published children’s fiction and poetry, as well as created a foundation that funds mental illness-related organizations. Her books have been translated into 43 languages, with 22 adapted for television, including two that have received Golden Globe nominations.
According to en.wikipedia.org. Source of photos: internet
