On this day...

Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter', was published in 1850. The book was originally intended to be a novelette as part of the collection 'Old Time Legends', yet on the advice of his publisher, Hawthorne expanded the work. Many of Hawthorne's more puritan ancestors presided over the Salem witch trials, and indeed the guilt of this association appears to influence the novel's overwhelming theme of sin.

The book is thought to be one of America's first mass-produced books, and the 2,500 copies from its first print sold out within ten days.Although the book was a instant bestseller, it only made its author $1,500 during the course of fourteen years. Hawthorne's 'magnus opus' was described by Henry James as  'beautiful, admirable, extraordinary; it has in the highest degree that merit'.

On this day...

Victorian novelist Anthony Trollope, died in 1882 at the age of 67. A Post Office worker for thirty three years, Trollope's life ambition was to become a member of the House of Commons. Unfortunately, this aspiration was left unrealised, and his biggest social improvement was the invention of the red, street-corner letter box. Following a strict schedule of starting at 5:30, and writing 250 words every quarter of an hour, Trollope was one of the most prolific writers of the era, publishing 47 novels; more than double the output of Charles Dickens. Although criticised, Trollope had many admirers; Nathaniel Hawthorne saying of his novels, ' They precisely suit my taste; solid, substantial, written on strength of beef and through inspiration of ale'. George Eliot was also noted as saying she would not have written 'Middlemarch', were it not for Trollope. His best known work, is 'The Chronicles of Barsetshire'.

On this day...

American author and historian, Washington Irving, died in 1859 at the age of 76. He made his literary debut in 1802, writing letters to the 'Morning Chronicle' under pseudonym Jonathan Oldstyle. Having moved to England in 1815 to help the family business, Irving furthered his budding enthusiasm for writing, and by 1819 he had published his best known work, 'The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon. The collection of short stories were published in seven installments, and included 'Rip Van Winkle' and 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow'. Also a historian, Irving wrote numerous biographies of figures such as George Washington, Oliver Goldsmith and Christopher Columbus. He is among the first American authors to gain acclaim in Europe and preceeding other trans-Atlantic successes Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville and Edgar Allan Poe. Irving is the reason behind two slightly more obscure pieces of trivia; he popularised the name 'Gotham' for New York city, as used in the Batman comics, and also introduced the dubious belief that the people of the Middle Ages thought the Earth to be flat.