A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name.
75-614: Hector Hugh Munro (18 December 1870 – 14 November 1916), popularly known by his pen name Saki and also frequently as H. H. Munro , was a British writer whose witty, mischievous and sometimes macabre stories satirize Edwardian society and culture. He is considered by English teachers and scholars a master of the short story and is often compared to O. Henry and Dorothy Parker . Influenced by Oscar Wilde , Lewis Carroll and Rudyard Kipling , Munro himself influenced A. A. Milne , Noël Coward and P. G. Wodehouse . Besides his short stories (which were first published in newspapers, as
150-496: A haigō (俳号). The haiku poet Matsuo Bashō had used two other haigō before he became fond of a banana plant ( bashō ) that had been given to him by a disciple and started using it as his pen name at the age of 36. Similar to a pen name, Japanese artists usually have a gō or art-name , which might change a number of times during their career. In some cases, artists adopted different gō at different stages of their career, usually to mark significant changes in their life. One of
225-908: A blue plaque . After his death, his sister Ethel destroyed most of his papers and wrote her own account of their childhood, which appeared at the beginning of The Square Egg and Other Sketches (1924). Rothay Reynolds , a close friend, wrote a relatively lengthy memoir in The Toys of Peace (1919), but aside from this, the only other biographies of Munro are Saki: A Life of Hector Hugh Munro (1982) by A. J. Langguth , and The Unbearable Saki (2007) by Sandie Byrne. All later biographies have had to draw heavily upon Ethel's account of her brother's life. In late 2020 two Saki stories, "The Optimist" (1912) and "Mrs. Pendercoet's Lost Identity" (1911), which had never been republished, collected, or noted in any academic publication on Saki, were rediscovered; they are now available online. In 2021, Lora Sifurova, looking through
300-537: A "back-translation" from English. The French usage is nom de guerre (a more generalised term for 'pseudonym'). Since guerre means 'war' in French, nom de guerre confused some English speakers, who "corrected" the French metaphor. This phrase precedes "pen name", being attested to The Knickerbocker , in 1841. An author may use a pen name if their real name is likely to be confused with that of another author or other significant individual. For instance, in 1899
375-542: A Swedish author of the 19th century, wrote under the name Ernst Ahlgren. The science fiction author Alice B. Sheldon for many years published under the masculine name of James Tiptree, Jr. , the discovery of which led to a deep discussion of gender in the genre. More recently, women who write in genres commonly written by men sometimes choose to use initials, such as K. A. Applegate , C. J. Cherryh , P. N. Elrod , D. C. Fontana , S. E. Hinton , G. A. Riplinger , J. D. Robb , and J. K. Rowling . Alternatively, they may use
450-403: A bog three years before, will come back one day. When Mrs. Sappleton comes down she talks about her husband and her brothers, and how they are going to come back from shooting soon; Framton, believing that she is deranged, tries to distract her by explaining his health condition. Then, to his horror, Mrs. Sappleton points out that her husband and her brothers are coming, whom he sees walking towards
525-402: A country-house party, one guest, Cornelius Appin, announces to the others that he has perfected a procedure for teaching animals human speech. He demonstrates this on his host's cat, Tobermory. Soon it is clear that animals are permitted to view and listen to many private things on the assumption that they will remain silent, such as the host Sir Wilfred's commentary on one guest's intelligence and
600-449: A duty which she did not find particularly irksome". Conradin rebels against his aunt and her choking authority. He invents a religion in which his polecat ferret is imagined as a vengeful deity, and Conradin prays that "Sredni Vashtar" will deliver retribution upon De Ropp. When De Ropp attempts to dispose of the animal, it attacks and kills her. The entire household is shocked and alarmed; Conradin calmly butters another piece of toast. At
675-715: A false start. While writing The Rise of the Russian Empire , he made his first foray into short story writing and published a piece called "Dogged" in St Paul's on February 18, 1899. (Munro's sketch "The Achievement of the Cat" appeared the day before in The Westminster Budget .) He then moved into the world of political satire in 1900 with a collaboration with Francis Carruthers Gould entitled "Alice in Westminster". Gould produced
750-552: A hill. The story ends with Ulrich's realization that the approaching figures on the hill are actually hungry wolves. The wolves who hunt in packs as opposed to rivalries, it seems, are the true owners of the forest, while both humans are interlopers. "Gabriel-Ernest" starts with a warning: "There is a wild beast in your woods …" Gabriel, a naked boy sunbathing by the river, is "adopted" by well-meaning townspeople. Lovely and charming, but also rather vague and distant, he seems bemused by his "benefactors." Asked how he managed by himself in
825-599: A living as a writer. Munro started his writing career as a journalist for newspapers such as The Westminster Gazette , the Daily Express , The Morning Post , and magazines such as the Bystander and Outlook . His first book, The Rise of the Russian Empire , a historical study modelled upon Edward Gibbon 's The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire , appeared in 1900, under his real name, but proved to be something of
SECTION 10
#1732852480083900-470: A lurid and violent play-story about the invasion of Britain and the storming of the Young Women's Christian Association . The end of the story has Harvey reporting failure to Eleanor, explaining "We have begun too late," not realising he was doomed to failure whenever he had begun. Framton Nuttel, a nervous man, has come to stay in the country for his health. His sister, who thinks he should socialise while he
975-578: A novelist under the name Dornford Yates . In 1872, on a home visit to England, Mary Munro was charged by a cow, and the shock caused her to miscarry. She never recovered and soon died. After his wife's death Charles Munro sent his three children, Ethel Mary (born April 1868), Charles Arthur (born July 1869) and two-year-old Hector, home to England. The children were sent to Broadgate Villa, in Pilton near Barnstaple , North Devon, to be raised by their grandmother and paternal maiden aunts, Charlotte and Augusta, in
1050-427: A painter of animals. Tom shows Laurence his prize bull and expects him to be impressed, but Laurence nonchalantly tells Tom that he has sold a painting of a different bull, which Tom has seen and does not like, for three hundred pounds. Tom is angry that a mere picture of a bull should be worth more than his real bull. This and Laurence's condescending attitude give him the urge to strike him. Laurence, running away across
1125-487: A pen name is used because an author believes that their name does not suit the genre they are writing in. Western novelist Pearl Gray dropped his first name and changed the spelling of his last name to Zane Grey because he believed that his real name did not suit the Western genre. Romance novelist Angela Knight writes under that name instead of her actual name (Julie Woodcock) because of the double entendre of her surname in
1200-534: A pen name may preserve an author's long-term anonymity . Pen name is formed by joining pen with name . Its earliest use in English is in the 1860s, in the writings of Bayard Taylor . The French-language phrase nom de plume is used as a synonym for "pen name" ( plume means 'pen'). However, it is not the French usage, according to H. W. Fowler and F. G. Fowler in The King's English , but instead
1275-545: A railway station an arrogant and overbearing woman, Mrs Quabarl, mistakes the mischievous Lady Carlotta, who has been inadvertently left behind by a train, for the governess , Miss Hope, whom she has been expecting, Miss Hope having erred about the date of her arrival. Lady Carlotta decides not to correct the mistake, acknowledges herself as Miss Hope, a proponent of "the Schartz-Metterklume method" of making children understand history by acting it out themselves, and chooses
1350-410: A strict and puritanical household. It is said that his aunts were most likely models for some of his characters, notably the aunt in "The Lumber Room" and the guardian in "Sredni Vashtar": Munro's sister Ethel said that the aunt in "The Lumber Room" was an almost perfect portrait of Aunt Augusta. Munro and his siblings led slightly insular lives during their early years and were educated by governesses. At
1425-456: A unisex pen name, such as Robin Hobb (the second pen name of novelist Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden ). A collective name , also known as a house name , is published under one pen name even though more than one author may have contributed to the series. In some cases, the first books in the series were written by one writer, but subsequent books were written by ghostwriters . For instance, many of
1500-474: Is a story about two men, Georg Znaeym and Ulrich von Gradwitz, whose families have fought over a forest in the eastern Carpathian Mountains for generations. Ulrich's family legally owns the land and so considers Georg an interloper when he hunts in the forest. But Georg, believing that the forest rightfully belongs to his family, hunts there often and believes that Ulrich is the real interloper for trying to stop him. One winter night, Ulrich catches Georg hunting in
1575-664: Is difficult to trace the authorship of many earlier literary works from India. Later writers adopted the practice of using the name of their deity of worship or Guru's name as their pen name. In this case, typically the pen name would be included at the end of the prose or poetry. Composers of Indian classical music used pen names in compositions to assert authorship, including Sadarang , Gunarang ( Fayyaz Ahmed Khan ), Ada Rang (court musician of Muhammad Shah ), Sabrang ( Bade Ghulam Ali Khan ), and Ramrang ( Ramashreya Jha ). Other compositions are apocryphally ascribed to composers with their pen names. Japanese poets who write haiku often use
SECTION 20
#17328524800831650-498: Is more beautiful," a sentiment endorsed by the Major. As the two men disappear into the blaze, Mrs Gramplain recollects that she "sent Eva to Exeter to be cleaned". The two men have lost their lives for nothing. The 5th broadcast of Orson Welles ' series for CBS Radio , The Mercury Theatre on the Air , from 8 August 1938, dramatizes three short stories rather than one long story. The second of
1725-415: Is there, has given him letters of introduction to families in the neighbourhood whom she got to know during her stay. Framton goes to visit Mrs. Sappleton and, while waiting for her to come down, is entertained by her witty, fifteen-year-old niece. The niece tells him that the French window is kept open, even though it is October, because Mrs. Sappleton believes that her husband and her brothers, who drowned in
1800-455: The Bessie Bunter series of English boarding school stories, initially written by the prolific Charles Hamilton under the name Hilda Richards, was taken on by other authors who continued to use the same pen name. In some forms of fiction, the pen name adopted is the name of the lead character, to suggest to the reader that the book is an autobiography of a real person. Daniel Handler used
1875-601: The Hohenzollerns , a fantasy about a future German invasion and occupation of Britain. Hector Hugh Munro was born in Akyab (now Sittwe) , British Burma , which was then part of British India . Saki was the son of Charles Augustus Munro, an Inspector General for the Indian Imperial Police , and his wife, Mary Frances Mercer (1843–1872), the daughter of Rear Admiral Samuel Mercer. Her nephew Cecil William Mercer became
1950-606: The Morning Post and other London periodicals in Russian archives, rediscovered seven sketches and stories attributed to Munro or Saki. In 2023, Bruce Gaston rediscovered a Clovis sketch, "The Romance of Business", published as part of an advertisement for Selfridge's in a 1914 issue of the Daily News and Leader . Munro was homosexual at a time when in Britain sexual activity between men
2025-588: The Rape of the Sabine Women (exemplified by a washerwoman's two girls) as the first lesson. After creating chaos for two days, she departs, explaining that her delayed luggage will include a leopard cub. Preferring not to give her young sons toy soldiers or guns, and having taken away their toy depicting the Siege of Adrianople , Eleanor instructs her brother Harvey to give them innovative "peace toys" as an Easter present. When
2100-550: The "organs of intransigence" by Stephen Koss , to work as a foreign correspondent, first in the Balkans, and then in Russia, where he was witness to the 1905 revolution in St. Petersburg. He then went on to Paris, before returning to London in 1908, where "the agreeable life of a man of letters with a brilliant reputation awaited him". In the intervening period Reginald had been published in 1904,
2175-519: The British politician Winston Churchill wrote under the name Winston S. Churchill to distinguish his writings from those of the American novelist of the same name . An author may use a pen name implying a rank or title which they have never actually held. William Earl Johns wrote under the name "Capt. W. E. Johns" although the highest army rank he held was acting lieutenant and his highest air force rank
2250-668: The Zoo (1900), two volumes of Froissart 's Modern Chronicles (1902 and 1903), and Picture Politics — a periodical reprint of his Westminster Gazette cartoons, one of the most noteworthy implements of political warfare in the armoury of the Liberal Party . With Sir Wilfrid Lawson he published Cartoons in Rhyme and Line (1905). Frequently grafting his ideas onto subjects taken freely from Uncle Remus , Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , and
2325-602: The age of 12 the young Hector Munro was educated at Pencarwick School in Exmouth and then as a boarder at Bedford School . In 1887, after his retirement, his father returned from Burma and embarked upon a series of European travels with Hector and his siblings. Hector followed his father in 1893 into the Indian Imperial Police and was posted to Burma, but successive bouts of fever caused his return home after only fifteen months. In 1896 he decided to move to London to make
Saki - Misplaced Pages Continue
2400-421: The aliases Mark Twain and Sieur Louis de Conte for different works. Similarly, an author who writes both fiction and non-fiction (such as the mathematician and fantasy writer Charles Dodgson, who wrote as Lewis Carroll ) may use a pseudonym for fiction writing. Science fiction author Harry Turtledove has used the name H. N. Turtletaub for some historical novels he has written because he and his publisher felt that
2475-449: The author of the Warriors novel series, is a collective pen name used by authors Kate Cary , Cherith Baldry , Tui T. Sutherland , and the editor Victoria Holmes . Collaborative authors may also have their works published under a single pen name. Frederic Dannay and Manfred B. Lee published their mystery novels and stories under the pen name Ellery Queen , which was also used to publish
2550-495: The author's name more distinctive, to disguise the author's gender, to distance the author from their other works, to protect the author from retribution for their writings, to merge multiple persons into a single identifiable author, or for any of several reasons related to the marketing or aesthetic presentation of the work. The author's real identity may be known only to the publisher or may become common knowledge. In some cases, such as those of Elena Ferrante and Torsten Krol ,
2625-428: The banality of polite society, the attraction of the sinister, and the allure of the wild and the forbidden. There is also a recognition of basic decency, upheld when the story's protagonist 'flatly refuses' to subscribe to a Gabriel-Ernest memorial, for his supposedly gallant attempt to save a drowning child, and drowning himself, as well. Gabriel-Ernest was actually a werewolf who had eaten the child, then run off. At
2700-548: The context of that genre. Romain Gary , who was a well-known French writer, decided in 1973 to write novels in a different style under the name Émile Ajar and even asked his cousin's son to impersonate Ajar; thus he received the most prestigious French literary prize twice, which is forbidden by the prize rules. He revealed the affair in a book he sent his editor just before committing suicide in 1980. A pen name may be shared by different writers to suggest continuity of authorship. Thus
2775-463: The conventions and hypocrisies of Edwardian England with the ruthless but straightforward life-and-death struggles of nature. Writing in The Guardian to mark the centenary of Saki's death, Stephen Moss noted, "In many of his stories, stuffy authority figures are set against forces of nature—polecats, hyenas, tigers. Even if they are not eaten, the humans rarely have the best of it". "The Interlopers"
2850-400: The corpse as her beloved dog Esmé, and the guilty owner of the car gets his chauffeur to bury the animal and later sends her an emerald brooch to make up for her loss. A sickly child named Conradin is raised by his aunt and guardian, Mrs De Ropp, who "would never... have confessed to herself that she disliked Conradin, though she might have been dimly aware that thwarting him 'for his good' was
2925-551: The end of the name (often marked by a graphical sign ـؔ placed above it) when referring to the poet by his full name. For example, Hafez is a pen-name for Shams al-Din , and thus the usual way to refer to him would be Shams al-Din Hafez or just Hafez . Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan (his official name and title) is referred to as Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib , or just Mirza Ghalib . Francis Carruthers Gould Sir Francis Carruthers Gould (2 December 1844 – 1925)
3000-401: The ending of "The Story Teller") was an eight-part series produced by Philip Mackie for Granada Television in 1962. Actors involved included Mark Burns as Clovis, Fenella Fielding as Mary Drakmanton, Heather Chasen as Agnes Huddle, Richard Vernon as the Major, Rosamund Greenwood as Veronique and Martita Hunt as Lady Bastable. A dramatisation of "The Open Window" was an episode in
3075-480: The enigmatic twentieth-century novelist B. Traven has never been conclusively revealed, despite thorough research. A multiple-use name or anonymity pseudonym is a pseudonym open for anyone to use and these have been adopted by various groups, often as a protest against the cult of individual creators. In Italy, two anonymous groups of writers have gained some popularity with the collective names of Luther Blissett and Wu Ming . Wuxia novelist Louis Cha uses
Saki - Misplaced Pages Continue
3150-414: The field, is attacked by the bull, but is saved by Tom from serious injury. Tom, looking after Laurence as he recovers, feels no more rancour because he knows that, however valuable Laurence's painting might be, only a real bull like his can attack someone. This is a "rediscovered" short story that was previously cited as a play. A house party is beset by a fire in the middle of the night in the east wing of
3225-459: The forest. Neither man can shoot the other without warning, as they would soil their family's honour, so they hesitate to acknowledge one another. In an "act of God", a tree branch suddenly falls on each of them, trapping them both under a log. Gradually they realize the futility of their quarrel, become friends and end the feud. They then call out for their men's assistance and, after a brief period, Ulrich makes out nine or ten figures approaching over
3300-434: The home. Clovis takes it upon himself to "help" the man and his sister by involving them in an invented outrage that will be a "blot on the twentieth century". A baroness tells Clovis a story about a hyena that she and her friend Constance encountered while out fox hunting. Later, the hyena follows them, stopping briefly to eat a gypsy child. Shortly after this, the hyena is killed by a motorcar. The baroness immediately claims
3375-537: The hope that she will buy his car, or the implied sexual activities of some of the other guests. The guests are angered, especially when Tobermory runs away to pursue a rival cat, but plans to poison him fail when Tobermory is instead killed by the rival cat. "An archangel ecstatically proclaiming the Millennium, and then finding that it clashed unpardonably with Henley and would have to be indefinitely postponed, could hardly have felt more crestfallen than Cornelius Appin at
3450-450: The house. Begged by their hostess to save "my poor darling Eva—Eva of the golden hair," Lucien demurs, on the grounds that he has never even met her. It is only on discovering that Eva is not a flesh-and-blood daughter but Mrs Gramplain's painting of the daughter she wished that she had had, and which she has faithfully updated with the passing years, that Lucien declares a willingness to forfeit his life to rescue her, since "death in this case
3525-532: The later books in The Saint adventure series were not written by Leslie Charteris , the series' originator. Similarly, Nancy Drew mystery books are published as though they were written by Carolyn Keene , The Hardy Boys books are published as the work of Franklin W. Dixon , and The Bobbsey Twins series are credited to Laura Lee Hope , although numerous authors have been involved in each series. Erin Hunter ,
3600-693: The members and illustrated important events in the financial world; many of these drawings were reproduced by lithography and published for private circulation. In 1879 he began the regular illustration of the Christmas numbers of Truth , and in 1887 he became a contributor to the Pall Mall Gazette , transferring his allegiance to the Westminster Gazette on its foundation and subsequently acting as assistant editor. Among his independent publications are Who killed Cock Robin? (1897), Tales told in
3675-514: The most extreme examples of this is Hokusai , who in the period 1798 to 1806 alone used no fewer than six. Manga artist Ogure Ito uses the pen name Oh! great because his real name Ogure Ito is roughly how the Japanese pronounce "oh great". A shâ'er ( Persian from Arabic, for poet) (a poet who writes she'rs in Urdu or Persian ) almost always has a "takhallus", a pen name, traditionally placed at
3750-510: The name "Publius" because it recalled the founder of the Roman Republic and using it implied a positive intention. In pure mathematics , Nicolas Bourbaki is the pseudonym of a group of mostly French-connected mathematicians attempting to expose the field in an axiomatic and self-contained, encyclopedic form. A pseudonym may be used to protect the writer of exposé books about espionage or crime. Former SAS soldier Steven Billy Mitchell used
3825-440: The packages are opened young Bertie shouts "It's a fort!" and is disappointed when his uncle replies "It's a municipal dustbin." The boys are initially baffled as to how to obtain any enjoyment from models of a school of art and a public library, or from little figures of John Stuart Mill , Felicia Hemans and Sir John Herschel . Youthful inventiveness finds a way, however, as the boys combine their history lessons on Louis XIV with
SECTION 50
#17328524800833900-484: The pen name Gum Yoong (金庸) by taking apart the components of the Chinese character in his given name (鏞) from his birth name Cha Leung-yung (查良鏞). In Indian languages, writers may put a pen name at the end of their names, like Ramdhari Singh Dinkar . Some writers, like Firaq Gorakhpuri , wrote only under a pen name. In early Indian literature, authors considered the use of names egotistical. Because names were avoided, it
3975-419: The presumed lower sales of those novels might hurt bookstore orders for the novels he writes under his name. Occasionally, a pen name is employed to avoid overexposure. Prolific authors for pulp magazines often had two and sometimes three short stories appearing in one issue of a magazine; the editor would create several fictitious author names to hide this from readers. Robert A. Heinlein wrote stories under
4050-442: The pseudonym Andy McNab for his book about a failed SAS mission titled Bravo Two Zero . The name Ibn Warraq ("son of a papermaker") has been used by dissident Muslim authors. Author Brian O'Nolan used the pen names Flann O'Brien and Myles na gCopaleen for his novels and journalistic writing from the 1940s to the 1960s because Irish civil servants were not permitted at that time to publish political writings. The identity of
4125-419: The pseudonym George Sand . Charlotte , Emily , and Anne Brontë published under the names Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell, respectively. French-Savoyard writer and poet Amélie Gex chose to publish as Dian de Jeânna ("John, son of Jane") during the first half of her career. Karen Blixen 's very successful Out of Africa (1937) was originally published under the pen name Isak Dinesen. Victoria Benedictsson ,
4200-723: The pseudonym Lemony Snicket to present his A Series of Unfortunate Events books as memoirs by an acquaintance of the main characters. Some, however, do this to fit a certain theme. One example, Pseudonymous Bosch , used his pen name just to expand the theme of secrecy in The Secret Series . Authors also may occasionally choose pen names to appear in more favorable positions in bookshops or libraries , to maximize visibility when placed on shelves that are conventionally arranged alphabetically moving horizontally, then upwards vertically. Some female authors have used pen names to ensure that their works were accepted by publishers and/or
4275-486: The pseudonyms of Anson MacDonald (a combination of his middle name and his then-wife's maiden name) and Caleb Strong so that more of his works could be published in a single magazine. Stephen King published four novels under the name Richard Bachman because publishers did not feel the public would buy more than one novel per year from a single author. Eventually, after critics found a large number of style similarities, publishers revealed Bachman's true identity. Sometimes
4350-460: The public. Such is the case of Peru's Clarinda , whose work was published in the early 17th century. More often, women have adopted masculine pen names. This was common in the 19th century when women were beginning to make inroads into literature but, it was felt they would not be taken as seriously by readers as male authors. For example, Mary Ann Evans wrote under the pen name George Eliot ; and Amandine Aurore Lucile Dupin, and Baronne Dudevant, used
4425-515: The reception of his wonderful achievement." Appin is killed shortly afterwards when attempting to teach an elephant in a zoo in Dresden to speak German. His fellow house party guest, Clovis Sangrail (Saki's recurring hero), remarks that if he was teaching "the poor beast" irregular German verbs, he deserved no pity. Tom Yorkfield, a farmer, receives a visit from his half-brother Laurence. Tom has no great liking for Laurence or respect for his profession as
4500-412: The same pseudonym; examples include T. H. Lain in fiction. The Australian fiction collaborators who write under the pen name Alice Campion are a group of women who have so far written The Painted Sky (2015) and The Shifting Light (2017). In the 1780s, The Federalist Papers were written under the pseudonym "Publius" by Alexander Hamilton , James Madison , and John Jay . The three men chose
4575-606: The series Tales of the Unexpected in 1984. The same story was also adapted as "Ek Khula Hua Darwaza" by Shyam Benegal as an episode in the 1986 Indian anthology television series Katha Sagar , which also included the episode "Saboon Ki Tikiya" an adaptation of Munro's "Dusk" by Benegal. Who Killed Mrs De Ropp? , a BBC TV production in 2007, starring Ben Daniels and Gemma Jones , showcased three of Saki's short stories, "The Storyteller", "The Lumber Room" and " Sredni Vashtar ". Pen name A pen name may be used to make
SECTION 60
#17328524800834650-405: The situation, saying of the niece, "Romance at short notice was her speciality." Saki's recurring hero Clovis Sangrail, a clever, mischievous young man, overhears the complacent middle-aged Huddle complaining of his own addiction to routine and aversion to change. Huddle's friend makes the wry suggestion that he needs an "unrest-cure" (the opposite of a rest cure ), to be performed, if possible, in
4725-544: The sketches, and Munro wrote the text accompanying them, using the pen name "Saki" for the first time. The series lampooned political figures of the day ( Alice in Downing Street begins with the memorable line, "'Have you ever seen an Ineptitude?'" – referring to a zoomorphised Arthur Balfour ), and was published in the Liberal Westminster Gazette . In 1902 he moved to The Morning Post , described as one of
4800-475: The start of the First World War Munro was 43 and officially over-age to enlist, but he refused a commission and joined the 2nd King Edward's Horse as an ordinary trooper . He later transferred to the 22nd (Service) Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (Kensington) , in which he was promoted to lance sergeant . More than once he returned to the battlefield when officially too sick or injured. In November 1916 he
4875-845: The stories having first appeared in The Westminster Gazette , and all this time he was writing sketches for The Morning Post , the Bystander and The Westminster Gazette . He kept a place in Mortimer Street, wrote, played bridge at the Cocoa Tree Club, and lived simply. Reginald in Russia appeared in 1910, The Chronicles of Clovis was published in 1911, and Beasts and Super-Beasts in 1914, along with other short stories that appeared in newspapers not published in collections in his lifetime. He also produced two novels, The Unbearable Bassington (1912) and When William Came (1913). At
4950-425: The three stories is "The Open Window." "The Open Window" is also adapted (by John Allen) in the 1962 Golden Records release Alfred Hitchcock Presents : Ghost Stories for Young People , a record album of six ghost stories for children. A dramatisation of "The Schartz-Metterklume Method" was an episode in the series Alfred Hitchcock Presents in 1960. Saki: The Improper Stories of H. H. Munro (a reference to
5025-526: The window with their dog. He thinks he is seeing ghosts and flees. Mrs. Sappleton cannot understand why he has run away and, at her husband and brothers' arrival, tells them about the odd man who has just left. The niece explains that Framton ran away because of the spaniel: he is afraid of dogs ever since he was hunted by a pack of stray dogs in India and had to spend a night in a newly dug grave with creatures grinning and foaming just above him. The last line summarizes
5100-412: The woods, he replies that he hunts "on four legs," which they take to mean that he has a dog. The climax comes when a small child disappears while walking home from Sunday school. A pursuit ensues, but Gabriel and the child disappear near a river. The only items found are Gabriel's clothes, and the two are never seen again. The story includes many of the author's favourite themes: good intentions gone awry,
5175-491: The work of several ghostwriters they commissioned. The writers of Atlanta Nights , a deliberately bad book intended to embarrass the publishing firm PublishAmerica , used the pen name Travis Tea. Additionally, the credited author of The Expanse , James S. A. Corey , is an amalgam of the middle names of collaborating writers Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck respectively, while S. A. is the initials of Abraham's daughter. Sometimes multiple authors will write related books under
5250-531: The works of Dickens and Shakespeare , Gould used these literary vehicles with extraordinary dexterity and satire . He was knighted in 1906. Unpublished manuscripts and biographical material are in the House of Commons Library historical collections, kept in the House of Lords Record Office . Carruthers Gould was responsible for designing eleven (11) Toby jugs of World War I political and military figures between 1915 and 1920. His eldest son, Alexander , became
5325-608: Was flying officer . Authors who regularly write in more than one genre may use different pen names for each, either in an attempt to conceal their true identity or even after their identity is known. Romance writer Nora Roberts writes erotic thrillers under the pen name J. D. Robb (such books were originally listed as by "J. D. Robb" and are now titled "Nora Roberts writing as J. D. Robb"); Scots writer Iain Banks wrote mainstream or literary fiction under his own name and science fiction under Iain M. Banks; Samuel Langhorne Clemens used
5400-552: Was a British caricaturist and political cartoonist , born in Barnstaple , Devon . He published as F. Carruthers Gould and signed his cartoons FCG . Gould was the son of Richard Davie Gould (c. 1816-1900), a Barnstaple architect, and his wife Judith Carruthers (née Ford). Although in early youth he showed great love of drawing, he began life in a bank and then joined the London Stock Exchange , where he constantly sketched
5475-469: Was a crime. The Cleveland Street scandal (1889), followed by the downfall of Oscar Wilde (1895), meant "that side of [Munro's] life had to be secret". The pen name "Saki" is a reference to the cupbearer in the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyam . Both Rothay Reynolds and Ethel Munro confirm this. Emlyn Williams states as much in his introduction to a Saki anthology published in 1978. Much of Saki's work contrasts
5550-480: Was customary at the time, and then collected into several volumes), Munro wrote a full-length play, The Watched Pot , in collaboration with Charles Maude; two one-act plays; a historical study, The Rise of the Russian Empire (the only book published under his own name); a short novel, The Unbearable Bassington ; the episodic The Westminster Alice (a parliamentary parody of Alice in Wonderland ); and When William Came , subtitled A Story of London Under
5625-629: Was sheltering in a shell crater near Beaumont-Hamel , France, during the Battle of the Ancre , when he was killed by a German sniper . According to several sources, his last words were "Put that bloody cigarette out!" Munro has no known grave. He is commemorated on Pier and Face 8C 9A and 16A of the Thiepval Memorial . In 2003 English Heritage marked Munro's flat at 97 Mortimer Street , in Fitzrovia with
#82917