The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-03-25
THE WRITING OF FAMOUS BOOKS
Success Always the Result of Patience
and Hard Work.

Richard H. Stoddard, in New York Mai and
Express.
Very few readers appreciate the toll in
volved in producing. a good literary work,
and 1T may be worth while to note certain
xampl
Most readers are familiar with the touch
Ing story of the production Of "Rasselas' by
DR.. Samuel Johnson. Few who read that
story would gather from it's contents any
inkling of the ultimate motive which lay
behind the writing. The book contains the
of a theory, and might well have been the
occupation of many. happy hours. The cir
cumstances of the books production, now
ever, were sad and grim enough. Johnson's
when the rewards of literature were still
most ,meager and poor. and though he was
the Life Of Savage and the great diction-
airy, Johnson found himself without the
p msans t S1 papV IF she a s asfsne eh lunefal: Of Of she
man that he sat down, heavy, no doubt, OF
heart, but with settled purpose. Day and
valley, and in a single week, it is said, he
had produced the story of "Rasselas. Prince
of Abyssinia."
some books have come into public vogue,
have been not a little remarkable. Lorna
Doone," for instance, as every one possibly
Is not aware, threatened fo- some time to
be an utter failure. notwithstanding its ex-
qu.site qualities 1t lay for several months
al but dead on the publishers shelves.
lneU Tie HldIfidec VI IN "a
occurred, and the similarity between the
name of her husband, the Marquise OF
Lorne, and the heroine of the book some
how attracted the public eye. with the con.
sequence that the stock of Lorna Doone"
was Immediately exhausted, and new edi-
tons called for. Sooner or later, however,
il can hardly be doubted, the merits OF the
romance must have been discovered with
out this adventurous aid. and the book
have achieved success upon its intrinsic
worth.
OF late years there nave been many APP
parently sudden and phenomenal successes
in the arena OF authorship, none OF which
probably has been either quite so sudden
or so phenomenal as 1t appeared. The list
includes Mr.. ]. M. Barrie, Mr.. Rudyard
KiplIng. Mr.: Stanley Weyman and Ian
Maciaren. The case Of I Mr.; Barrie is v Nell
dow in Thrums," with which he achieved
success. were by no means the authors first
ventures into literature. 1T came out after
ward that there had been at least one pre-
vious volume from his pen, with the omi-
nous title of Better Dead: and for a long
time after the fame of "A Window in
weekly kept publishing reprints of
articles by the author. which had APP
peared.. without attracting notice. years be
fore. Mr.. Rudyard Kipling. too, seemed TO
spring suddenly into fame with the produc-
ton of Soldiers Three" and some Indian
poems and articles in the magazines. But
1t transpired, upon inquiry and better ac-
quaintance. that his art had been perfected
during years of residence in the East. by
much story-writing in the Anglo-Indian
seemed to leap into sudden renown the 9TH
er day with the publication Of "A Gentle
man OF France and Under the Red Robe"
Illustrated Magazine for December. 1853.
will find proof that quite ten years before
that apparently sudden acquisition OF for
his art and shouldering his way TO recog-
milton among the crowd of story-telers. As
for Ian Maclaren." whether or not his pen