What do you do when you've read every book in the library? Write your own of course!
I love reading about my favorite authors and what inspired them to write my favorite books. One that really comes to mind is Margaret Mitchell and the strange twists of fate that made her create Gone with the Wind.
Margaret Mitchell grew up on stories of the Civil War. Sitting on the porch, her grandmother told her about the war, the fall of the south, and the dark days of reconstruction. She carried these stories with her as she married, became a reporter for The Atlanta Journal, divorced, and married again.
I love reading about my favorite authors and what inspired them to write my favorite books. One that really comes to mind is Margaret Mitchell and the strange twists of fate that made her create Gone with the Wind.
Margaret Mitchell grew up on stories of the Civil War. Sitting on the porch, her grandmother told her about the war, the fall of the south, and the dark days of reconstruction. She carried these stories with her as she married, became a reporter for The Atlanta Journal, divorced, and married again.
Stuck in bed with an ankle injury in May 1926, Mitchell read books until one day (one version of the story goes), her husband came in and announced that she had read everything in the library and would just have to write her own book. So for the next three years, Mitchell wrote Gone with the Wind on a portable typewriter. She wrote in no particular order (sound like someone you know?) and when she would finish a chapter or section, she would put it in a large envelope and seal it shut.
Gone with the Wind was finally published in 1936, ten years after she first began writing it. The main character's name was changed from Pansy O'Hara to Scarlett and history was made.
Gone with the Wind was finally published in 1936, ten years after she first began writing it. The main character's name was changed from Pansy O'Hara to Scarlett and history was made.
Her work of course went on to inspire the movie featuring Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh which is celebrating its 75th anniversary. Gone with the Wind is still the most successful film in box-office history, it launched the Hollywood career of Leigh, helped Gable negotiate a divorce so that he could marry Carol Lumbard, and created the role for which Hattie McDaniel would become the first African American to win an academy award. All because of a broken ankle...
RSS Feed
