in 1949, young bought a house in omemee, ontario, near peterborough. the family's finances would vary with young's success in selling his stories and he began taking assignments from "sports illustrated." his first novel "the flood" was published in 1956. young moved to pickering, ontario and spent a year working in public relations for a jet engine company before joining "the globe and mail" as a daily columnist in 1957 and moving back to toronto. in 1959, young met astrid mead while on assignment in british columbia and, soon after, he and his wife separated. following young's divorce in 1961, he and mead were married. they had a daughter, astrid young, in 1962.