Biography

Her real name was Gabrielle Margaret Vere Long, née Campbell, but she's best known under one of her most prolific pen names, Marjorie Bowen. She became a writer to support her family after the death of her alcoholic father, and published over 150 books under various pen names. She began writing in 1906 and published steadily until her death. As "Marjorie Bowen," she wrote many stories of ghosts and the supernatural, and various novels, including "Black Magic," a horror novel about female Satanist who disguises herself as a man and manages to be elected Pope. As "George Preedy," she wrote a number of historical novels. As "Joseph Shearing," she wrote a number of novels, mostly fictionalized versions of real-life murders, and sometimes offering her own solutions (her Shearing novels were the most popular with filmmakers). She also wrote as "John Winch," "Robert Paye," and "Margaret Campbell." In the 21st century her ghost stories (as Marjorie Bowen) are occasionally reprinted, but the rest of her writings have gone out of print and are ripe for rediscovery.
- IMDb mini biography by: mcornett (qv's & corrections by A. Nonymous)

Her first marriage, to a Sicilian, ended with his death, after a long illness, in 1916. They had two children, a daughter (who died in infancy of meningitis) and a son. Her second marriage, to an Englishman in 1917, produced another son.