Taylor Caldwell was born in Manchester, England, into a family of Scottish background. Her family descended from the Scottish clan of MacGregor of which the Taylors are a subsidiary clan. At the age of six, she won a medal for an essay on Charles Dickens. In 1907 she emigrated to the United States with her parents, Arthur F. and Anna Caldwell, and her younger brother. Her father died shortly after the move, and the family struggled. At the age of eight she started to write stories, and in fact wrote her first novel, "The Romance of Atlantis", at the age of twelve (although it remained unpublished until 1975). She continued to write prolifically, however, despite ill health.