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COELHO Paulo
COELHO Paulo
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COELHO Paulo

COELHO
Paulo

Brazilian lyricist and novelist

  • Date of Birth: 24 August 1947
  • Age: 78 years old
  • In the rating: #2 Novelist

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Biography

Paulo Coelho de Souza is a Brazilian lyricist and novelist and a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters since 2002. His 1988 novel The Alchemist became an international best-seller.

Career

Songwriting

Upon his return to Brazil, Coelho worked as a songwriter, composing lyrics for Elis Regina, Rita Lee, and Brazilian icon Raul Seixas. Composing with Raul led to Coelho being associated with magic and occultism, due to the content of some songs. He is often accused that these songs were rip-offs of foreign songs not well known in Brazil at the time. In 1974, by his account, he was arrested for "subversive" activities and tortured by the ruling military government, who had taken power ten years earlier and viewed his lyrics as left-wing and dangerous. Coelho also worked as an actor, journalist and theatre director before pursuing his writing career.

In 1986 Coelho walked the 500-plus mile Road of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. On the path, he had a spiritual awakening, which he described autobiographically in The Pilgrimage. In an interview, Coelho stated "In 1986, I was very happy in the things I was doing. I was doing something that gave me food and water – to use the metaphor in The Alchemist, I was working, I had a person whom I loved, I had money, but I was not fulfilling my dream. My dream was, and still is, to be a writer." Coelho would leave his lucrative career as a songwriter and pursue writing full-time.

Writing

In 1982, Coelho published his first book, Hell Archives, which failed to make a substantial impact. In 1986 he contributed to the Practical Manual of Vampirism, although he later tried to take it off the shelves since he considered it "of bad quality." After making the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in 1986, Coelho wrote The Pilgrimage, published in 1987.

While trying to overcome his procrastination about launching his writing career, Coelho decided, "If I see a white feather today, that is a sign that God is giving me that I have to write a new book." Seeing one in the window of a shop, he began writing that day. The following year, Coelho wrote The Alchemist and published it through a small Brazilian publishing house that made an initial print run of 900 copies and decided not to reprint it. He subsequently found a bigger publishing house, and with the publication of his next book Brida, The Alchemist took off. HarperCollins decided to publish the book in 1994. Later it became an international bestseller. In a 2009 interview with the Syrian Forward Magazine, Coelho stated that the Sufi tradition had been an influence on him, particularly when writing The Alchemist and later The Zahir.

Since the publication of The Alchemist, Coelho has generally written at least one novel every two years. Four of them – The Pilgrimage, Hippie, The Valkyries and Aleph – are autobiographical, while the majority of the rest are broadly fictional. Other books, like Maktub, The Manual of the Warrior of Light and Like the Flowing River, are collections of essays, newspaper columns, or selected teachings. His work has been published in more than 170 countries and translated into eighty-three languages. Together, his books have sold 320 million copies. On 22 December 2016, Coelho was listed by UK-based company Richtopia at number 2 in the list of 200 most influential contemporary authors.

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Astrological profile CALCULATE

Date of Birth 24 August 1947
Age 78 years old
Virgo Zodiac sign Virgo Virgo - intelligence and hard work Virgo is referred to as passive signs, which are primarily characterized by a subtle perception of the surrounding space, rather than active activity aimed at changing it. This does not mean at all that Virgos are…
Pig Chinese horoscope Pig Pig - courage and loyalty People born in the Pig years are distinguished by courage and the ability to sacrifice themselves. They are honest and conscientious, attentive to those they love, respect, value. The character and disposition of the Pig is…
Lynx Slavic horoscope Lynx Born under the Lynx sign of the Slavic horoscope, people often combine mythic memory with practical steadiness — reading cycles early and standing firm for those they call their own.
Geb Egyptian horoscope Geb Geb in the Egyptian horoscope marks a period ruled by a distinct god — shaping temperament, luck in affairs, and the way a person protects what they value.
Delphinium Flower horoscope Delphinium The flower talisman Delphinium reflects character through nature’s calendar — sensitivity, aesthetic sense, and seasonal rhythm shape daily choices.
Virgo — 1st decan Decan horoscope Virgo — 1st decan Born in the Virgo — 1st decan period, people often show a sharper flavor of their sign: faster or slower, bolder or more reflective, yet always recognizable by birth date.
Hazel Druid horoscope Hazel Hazel is the tree of knowledge and inspiration. Born 5 August to 1 September, Hazel people see patterns and turn information into usable wisdom.
Simha Indian horoscope Simha The Vedic rashi Simha carries a sidereal rhythm of Jyotish — temperament, dharma leanings, and the ruling graha color how a person acts and chooses.

This day is celebrated: Waffle Day

Horoscope Virgo: horoscope for today, horoscope for tomorrow, horoscope for week, horoscope for month, horoscope for year, 处女座 星座运势, tử vi xử nữ, ดูดวง กันย์

Days left until next birthday: 35 Days.

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