Background
Sullivan was born in the small town of Valois on Lac Saint-Louis, which is located just outside Montreal, Quebec.
Sullivan was born in the small town of Valois on Lac Saint-Louis, which is located just outside Montreal, Quebec.
After graduating from Saint Thomas high school, she attended McGill University on a scholarship, and earned her Bachelor"s degree in 1968. After she was married in 1968, she then attended the University of Connecticut where she earned her Master of Arts Finally Sullivan attended the University of Sussex earning her Philosophy Doctor for her thesis The Garden Master: The Poetry of Theodore Roethke in 1972.
In 1969. After completing her post secondary education, Sullivan moved to France to teach at the university of Dijon, and later at the University of Bordeaux. Two years later she was hired at the University of Victoria, and then in 1977 at the University of Toronto, where she has taught ever since. In 1978 Sullivan decided to dedicate herself to her writing, while still teaching at the University of Toronto
Rosemary Sullivan is a celebrated critic, editor, poet, and biographer.
In 1987 Sullivan began writing a biography on Elizabeth Smart, titled By Heart, which was later published in 1991 by Penguin Books.
Sullivan soon realized she had a passion for biographies, and in 1995 Shadow Maker: The Life of Gwendolyn MacEwen was published. Then in 1998, The Red Shoes: Margaret Atwood Starting Out was published.
Aside from her writing career, Sullivan has been working with Amnesty International since 1979, and in 1980 founded a congress to aid Amnesty International. Sullivan has also traveled all over the world including Russia, Czechoslovakia, Cuba, Chile, and Nicaragua.
Sullivan teaches at the University of Toronto.