About Elinor Lipman

Elinor Lipman was born and raised in Lowell, Massachusetts to a Jewish family. She is the second daughter of Julia M. and Louis S. Lipman. She attended public schools and graduated from Simmons College (now Simmons University) in 1972 with a BA in journalism. While still in college, Lipman worked as an intern for the Lowell Sun.

During the 1970s she was a staff writer and editorial assistant for the Massachusetts Teachers Association monthly newsletter, Massachusetts Teacher. Lipman also worked for a time for Boston's public television station, WGBH, writing press releases. She credits the adult education creative writing class she took at Brandeis University in 1978 for propelling her into writing fiction.