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The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, October 9, 2024

Posted on October 9, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of composer Camille Saint-Saens, born in Paris (1835). He was a child prodigy, with perfect pitch and a fantastic memory. He learned the piano and organ, and played the music of Beethoven, Bach and Mozart in recitals. He composed nice waltzes and gallops by the age of five, and wrote his first symphony at sixteen. His first famous opera was Samson and Dalila (1877).

The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, October 8, 2024

Posted on October 8, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of Frank Herbert, born in Tacoma, Washington, in 1920. He’s best known for his science fiction masterpiece Dune, which was rejected by 20 publishers before it was finally accepted by Chilton — a publisher who was best known for producing auto repair manuals — in 1965. He lied about his age to get his first newspaper job in 1939, and he worked as a photographer for the U.S. Navy during World War II.

The Writer’s Almanac for Monday, October 7, 2024

Posted on October 7, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of poet and essayist Diane Ackerman (1948), born Diane Fink in Waukegan, Illinois. She has a knack for blending science and literary art; she wrote her first book of poetry entirely about astronomy. It was called The Planets: A Cosmic Pastoral, and it was published in 1976, while she was working on her doctorate at Cornell.

The Writer’s Almanac for Sunday, October 6, 2024

Posted on October 6, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It was on this day in 1847 that Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre was published (some sources say October 16). The public reception was divided. William Thackeray, who wrote Vanity Fair, called it “the masterwork of a great genius.” One reviewer said: “This is not merely a work of great promise; it is one of absolute performance. It is one of the most powerful domestic romances which have been published for many years.”

The Writer’s Almanac for Saturday, October 5, 2024

Posted on October 5, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of one of the few writers ever to become the leader of a country, Czech dramatist and president Václav Havel, born in Prague (1936). He was born into an affluent family, and as a teenager, he watched as his family’s property was seized by the government when Communists took control of the country.

The Writer’s Almanac for Friday, October 4, 2024

Posted on October 4, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of the novelist Anne Rice, born in New Orleans, Louisiana, (1941). Her father was a postal worker who wrote fiction in his spare time, and her mother was a failed Hollywood actress who was interested in the occult. Rice’s mother would take her for long walks in old New Orleans neighborhoods, and she would tell Anne Rice stories about which of the various old mansions was haunted and which had been used by covens of witches.

The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, October 3, 2024

Posted on October 3, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of novelist Graham Greene, born in Berkhamsted, England (1904). He came from a well-off family, but he had an unhappy childhood — he was frequently depressed and even went to psychoanalysis when he was 16, a rare thing at the time. He graduated from Oxford, then began his career writing essays and reviews. Greene was an avowed atheist, but he had been questioning his faith since his days at boarding school.

The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, October 2, 2024

Posted on October 2, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, October 1, 2024

Posted on October 1, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of author Tim O’Brien, born in Worthington, Minnesota. He graduated from Macalester College in St. Paul and went to Harvard for graduate school. He was drafted to go to the Vietnam War, and he went, even though he was opposed to it. Before he went off to Vietnam, he was spending the day in northern Minnesota and had the chance to cross the border into Canada, but he decided not to. He said later: “I did not want people to think badly of me. My conscience told me to run, but I was ashamed of my conscience, ashamed to be doing the right thing.”

The Writer’s Almanac for Monday, September 30, 2024

Posted on September 30, 2024 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of American writer Truman Capote, born in New Orleans (1924). Even as a child, Capote wanted to become famous. He moved with his mother to New York City and applied to the prestigious Trinity School. He was given an IQ test as an entrance exam, and he scored 215, the highest in the school’s history.

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