WilkieCollinsWilliamWilkieCollins,theoldestsonofafashionablepainter,wasborninLondonon8January,1824
CollinswasnamedafterSirDavidWilkie,afriendofthefamily
Hisearlycareerwasinbusiness,buthethenstudiedlawandwasactuallycalledtotheBar,butheapparentlyneverpracticed
Healsotriedhishandatpainting,andwrotemanyarticlesandstoriesthatwerepublishedanonymously
Hisfirstmajorpublishedworkwasabiographyofhisfather,andthepopularityofthisbookencouragedhimtowriteseriouslyforaliving
Hisfirstnovel,AntoninaorTheFallofRomewaspublishedin1850
Thiswasahistoricalwork,alongthelinesofBulwer-Lytton’sTheLastDaysofPompeii(《庞贝的末日》)
Itwasquitesuccessful,butistodayprettywellunreadable
In1851,CollinswasintroducedtoCharlesDickensbyamutualfriend,AugustusEgg
ThiswasaseminalpointinCollins’career
Thetwoformedalong-lastingfriendship,a