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The Writer’s Almanac for Friday, April 25, 2025

Posted on April 25, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the anniversary of the 1719 publication of Daniel Defoe’s novel The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe. It is the story of a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote island before he is rescued, and it is considered one of the first English novels. When it was published, Defoe was 59 years old, and it was his first novel.

The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, April 24, 2025

Posted on April 24, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

On this date in 1895, Joshua Slocum set sail on a trip around the world. Growing up in Nova Scotia, Slocum longed for a life at sea, but his father disapproved. After several attempts to run away from home, the boy finally left home for good when he was 16, signing on as a seaman on a merchant ship bound for Dublin. A few years later, he settled in San Francisco and began a career as a sea captain.

The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, April 23, 2025

Posted on April 23, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare, who is traditionally believed to have been born on this date in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. He left behind no personal papers, so our knowledge of his life comes to us from public and court documents. His father, John, was a glove-maker and alderman, and his mother, Mary Arden, was a landed heiress.

The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Posted on April 22, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

The first Oklahoma Land Rush began on this date in 1889. In the early 1800s, white settlers began eyeing the lands of the Cherokee and other tribes for farming and mining. The U.S. government had a dusty tract of land to the west that was uninhabited and not much good for farming, so it began relocating the Native Americans to these western lands starting in 1817.

The Writer’s Almanac for Monday, April 21, 2025

Posted on April 21, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of novelist Charlotte Brontë, born in Thornton, England (1816). A fellow writer described her as “a tiny, delicate, serious, little lady, with fair straight hair and steady eyes.” Her father was an Anglican clergyman, and she grew up in the small village of Haworth in the moors of West Yorkshire, a place she later described to her publisher as “a strange uncivilized little place.”

The Writer’s Almanac for Sunday, April 20, 2025

Posted on April 20, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It was on this day in 1841 that the first “detective story” was published: “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” by Edgar Allan Poe. In the story, C. August Dupin reads about the murder of a mother and daughter in a Paris street. The police are baffled, and Dupin decides to offer up his services.

The Writer’s Almanac for Saturday, April 19, 2025

Posted on April 19, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It was on this day in 1927 that actress Mae West was sentenced to 10 days in prison for her starring role in the play Sex, which she also wrote and directed. It was her first Broadway show. Sex got terrible reviews but attracted huge audiences. It had been running for 41 weeks when the police showed up and arrested the cast and crew — although only West was sent to jail.

The Writer’s Almanac for Friday, April 18, 2025

Posted on April 18, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It was on this day in 1958 that the U.S. Government dropped its treason charges against the poet Ezra Pound. Pound had been arrested in 1945 because of speeches he had been delivering on Italian radio, in which he praised Mussolini and fascism, and criticized American policy. He was extremely anti-Semitic, blaming the world’s problems on the Jews.

The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, April 17, 2025

Posted on April 17, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of the writer who said, “My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither but just enjoy your ice cream while it’s on your plate.” Thornton Wilder, born in Madison, Wisconsin (1897). His father was a diplomat, so Wilder and his four brothers and sisters moved back and forth between Asia and the United States. His parents were supportive, but sometimes overbearing.

The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Posted on April 16, 2025 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of novelist Anatole France, born Jacques Anatole Thibault in Paris (1844). His father ran a bookstore called Librairie de France, so when Thibault started publishing, he signed his works “Anatole France” in tribute to his father’s store.

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