He left school at the age of sixteen, took a series of dead-end jobs, and eventually received a Master of Business Studies degree. While traveling across the United States in a Greyhound Bus, he began to jot down notes on a pad. That was the beginning of his writing career. His first novel, Trainspotting , published in Britain in 1993, was shortlisted for the distinguished Booker Prize, and achieved stunning popularity and critical attention. Norton published Trainspotting in July, 1996.
Welsh lives in London.