I’ve seen people talk about actors and artists that had a terrible time.
My own would be Anne Rice. She wrote Interview with the Vampire after her young daughter died of Leukemia. Then her husband suddenly died of a brain hemorrhage. I suspect her Christian, anti-fanfic phase was a result of mental illness and manipulation from the publishers, although I don’t think she ever apologized.
Was he really!? It’s so utterly accomplished. I had no idea!
Yes! Once you know he was young, it becomes more obvious on a re-read, since he really went ham on the prose, which is what younger/newer writers tend to do until they internalize the old adage “less is more.” But he was so good with his prose in The Last Unicorn, I don’t mind. :)