Eoin Colfer author page

Eoin Colfer biography

Eoin Colfer is an Irish children’s author from Wexford, on the south-east coast of Ireland. He developed an interest in writing at primary school through Viking stories inspired by history lessons. He gained a degree from Dublin university, qualified as a primary school teacher, and returned to work as a teacher in Wexford.

Colfer’s first book, Benny and Omar, was published in 1998 and was based on his experiences in Tunisia. Artemis Fowl was published in 2001, and Colfer then left teaching to write full time. Artemis Fowl introduced a twelve-year-old criminal mastermind who kidnaps a fairy, Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit.

The Artemis Fowl series grew to eight books, ending with Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian. Colfer also wrote the spin-off series The Fowl Twins, about Artemis Fowl’s younger brothers Myles and Beckett. His other children’s books include Half Moon Investigations, Airman, The Supernaturalist, The Wish List and the WARP series.

Colfer has also written graphic-novel versions connected with Artemis Fowl, including Artemis Fowl: The Graphic Novel with Andrew Donkin and Giovanni Rigano. He has collaborated with illustrator P.J. Lynch on The Dog Who Lost His Bark and Three Tasks for a Dragon. Three Tasks for a Dragon was published on 3 October 2023 and won the KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Award.