Author Jackie Collins Is Remembered for Her Tenacity

Credit: Flickr user lylejk

British author Jackie Collins died this week after a six-year battle with breast cancer, yet there were few people who even knew she was ill.

That’s because the famed writer didn’t want her life to be defined by her illness. She told her close friends and family, but she kept her personal life out of the press.

Collins is an example of someone who found strength, even in the face of a looming diagnosis. Not only did she author five books after she was diagnosed with breast cancer, she was actively working on a memoir when she died. Despite her privacy in her personal life, she wanted to open up to readers in the yet-unreleased final work.

Her death came as a shock to many of her fans, as the author was just shy of 78 years old. By all appearances she was healthy, even spry. In fact, less than two weeks ago, she expressed how enthused she was about her upcoming work. She told a British publication, “I couldn’t care less about my age. I’m still here, I love what I do, and I have a passion for it … it’s better than the alternative.”

It’s nearly impossible to keep your personal life personal when you’re as big a personality as Jackie Collins was. She was known for her wry sense of humor and fascinating insights into the world, especially in her catering to the scandalous side of fame. While her subjects were revealed in full detail, scars and all, no one could ever figure out what lay behind the author’s inspiration.

In the rare moments when she would discuss her life, it would be in positive terms, or in relation to her work. For some authors, it’s impossible to separate their personal lives from the work they have done.

In the rare moments when she would discuss her life, it would be in positive terms, or in relation to her work. For some authors, it’s impossible to separate their personal lives from the work they have done. Ernest Hemingway is the perfect example of an author who is forever remembered for his alcoholism and depression, and his work will likely always be linked to the romanticized version of his personal struggles. Yet Collins was different. She kept a veil over her life, allowing her work to speak for itself.

It’s fitting that the last thing she was working on when she died was a tell-all memoir about her life. For a woman who spent nearly her entire career refusing to pander to the press’ need to know every detail of her daily routine, it’s only natural that the first tell-all book about her life should be written by Collins herself.

No one is sure yet when or if her memoir will be released. In the meantime, her close friends and family will hold a private memorial for her, asking that guests donate to two breast cancer organizations in the US and the UK.