Jane Helen Findlater (4 November 1866 – 20 May 1946) was a Scottish novelist whose first book, The Green Graves of Balgowrie, started a successful literary career: for her sister Mary as well as for herself. They are known for their collaborative works of fiction as well as their own individual writing. Sometimes they are referred to as the Findlater sisters.
Life
Jane Findlater was born in Edinburgh but the first twenty years of her life were spent in Lochearnhead where her father was minister of the Free Church of Scotland. The family were not well-off, life at the manse was conservative, and the sisters' life was rather restricted. Their close relationship was of great importance to them, and continued for their entire lives. They were taught by governesses, including Annie Lorrain Smith before she trained as a botanist, listened to stories told by family, friends and servants, and started writing from an early age, both together and individually.
They moved to Prestonpans with their mother after their father died in 1886, and Jane and Mary tried to help the family finances by writing, while their older sister Sarah (Mora) worked as a nurse. It was ten years before Jane's book The Green Graves of Balgowrie, inspired by her mother's family history, struck a chord with both the general reader and the critics. It had been written on grocer's paper; its success brought both freedom from financial worry and also literary acclaim. After a few years they moved south in search of a warmer climate for their mother's health.
