Elin Hilderbrand's 'Five-Star Weekend' Hits Peacock; Iowa Writers' Workshop Roots Revealed

Bestselling author Elin Hilderbrand, whose latest novel adaptation The Five-Star Weekend premieres on Peacock this week, credits a dark period at the University of Iowa's Writers' Workshop with launching her career. The 56-year-old writer, known as the 'Queen of the Beach Read,' told USA TODAY that her time in Iowa City was miserable but ultimately set her on a path to success.

After three summers living on Nantucket, Hilderbrand arrived at the Iowa Writers' Workshop surrounded by 'cornfields and pig farms and silos and not a body of water in sight.' She was newly married but her husband remained on Nantucket, leaving her isolated and depressed.

'I was miserable, m