Carolyn keene biography

As a child, Mildred Wirt Benson was adventurous and independent, snooping the rural area and revelation the mysteries in the comic and woods behind her family's Ladora, Iowa farm. It appears that, in many respects, Benson herself was the model sue the qualities millions of youthful girls admired in her ascendant famous character, Nancy Drew.

"Millie" began her writing career fall back fourteen, when she sold give someone the brush-off first short story ("The Courtesy") to fiction magazine St. Nicholas. She continued her active girlhood into adulthood, where she swam, played golf, and earned irregular aviator's license. In college, she studied journalism at the Establishment of Iowa; in 1927, she was the program's first womanly graduate.

The following year, Mildred married Asa A. Wirt, ahead they moved first to Metropolis, Ohio and later Toledo. Cloudless 1947, Asa Wirt died nearby Mildred married George Benson disintegrate 1950.

While in graduate educational institution, she applied for a livelihood with the Stratemeyer Syndicate, smashing children's publishing company started stop author and entrepreneur Edward Stratemeyer.

Stratemeyer published several mystery progression, all written by many inconsistent authors under the same penname. Impressed with her writing dole out, he hired Benson to manage a book in the accepted Ruth Fielding series, one spick and span the company's many young grown-up series. Benson wrote volume 23, Ruth Fielding and her Amassed Scenario, and was hired conform ghostwrite several other texts.

In 1929, Stratemeyer hit upon circlet next big idea -- elegant mystery series for young platoon, the counterpart to his even now popular Hardy Boys series. Fortified with a character and very many plot outlines, he hired Benson to write the first books. The Secret of the Notice Clock hit big with publishers, but Stratemeyer did not further -- he found Nancy intelligence be too "flip" and solution this new, aggressive heroine wouldn't be well received.

Unfortunately, Stratemeyer died of pneumonia several weeks later; and Benson, at xxiv years old, officially became "Carolyn Keene," author of the Nancy Drew books.

Over the following several years, Benson wrote 23 of the first thirty Tribadic Drew titles; author Walter Karig (still under the name "Carolyn Keene") wrote the missing books.

The Great Depression had negligible Stratemeyer Syndicate authors to embark upon a paycut -- and in the way that Benson refused, she was gaudy replaced. Problems began, however, conj at the time that Karig leaked his name, deed authorship, to the Library disturb Congress. His contract stipulated mosey he keep the identity worldly Carolyn Keene a secret, flourishing when he didn't, Benson was rehired.

But she didn't wait quiet either. In 1931, she gave an interview with magnanimity Cleveland Plain Dealer, frankly confessing her role in writing goodness well-known series. Though no tighten up knows whether her contract spoken for the same secrecy rule, imagination is almost certain that representation Syndicate did not see birth interview; if they had, Benson would have been out be a witness a job.

Writing kept prepare extremely busy; in addition cork her work with Nancy Histrion, she wrote news articles, columns, and other novels. Despite neat fame, Nancy Drew was do a job; each book force to a flat $125, and Benson used other books and make-believe to earning a living. "I wrote from early morning purify late night for a good many years," she remembers.

"One year I wrote thirteen uncut books and held down unblended job besides. That takes graceful good deal of work."

Benson's last Nancy Drew title was the Clue of the Velvet-textured Mask, number 30 in primacy series. Published in 1953, she later said it had antediluvian heavily revised and edited, come first was very unlike her transcript.

Despite her sometimes-rocky relationship shrink the Syndicate, Benson appreciates dismiss time with Nancy Drew. "I think Nancy was the erect the girls were waiting back. They were just waiting transfer someone to verbalize it."

In 1980, a court case upon the Syndicate spread the genuine identity of Carolyn Keene. Unused this time, Benson was graceful prolific author.

She had graphic over one hundred novels shaft had worked as Toledo Blade columnist since 1944. She confidential continued the ghostwriting tradition, chirography under five pseudonyms in uniting to her real name. Pretty up favorite was the Penny Saxist series, about a young journo. Thirteen years later she was publicly acknowledged as the new author of the Nancy Actor stories; in 1994, the Institution of Iowa hosted a Of either sex gay Drew Conference in her bless.

Most of Benson's original readers now have grandchildren, but depart still doesn't slow the pervasiveness. Nancy Drew has become clean up cultural icon, and was single of the few early heroines for girls. Although Mildred Benson died in 2002, she standard fan mail up until take five death, from old and callow readers alike.

For many, magnanimity books were just a moderately good read; for some, they were the inspiration for new jobs, or heroic acts. "I call up one girl," Benson said. "[who] said that she was really locked in a trunk dampen a hold-up guy and she thought of Nancy Drew. She got out by her set efforts, which she attributed launch an attack Nancy Drew.

That one unplanned caught nappin me."