“I’m not a spy who writes novels, I am a writer who briefly worked in the secret world.” This was said by the famous author John le Carré, who is finally getting recognised here in the University of Oxford, with the Bodleian Libraries hosting the first ever major exhibition of his works. Titled Tradecraft, the exhibition explores the legacy of ‘David Cornwell’, Mr. John’s real name, along with evidence from his archives, seeing the daylight for the first time in a while.
If you didn’t know, John le Carré is known for writing spy novels. His novels, though fiction, were influenced by his life before becoming a book writer. David Cornwell was initially an officer in Sectors 5 and 6 of Military Intelligence, more commonly known as MI5 and MI6. To protect his identity, he began using the pseudonym John Le Carré, until the year 1964, when The Spy Who Came in from the Cold became an international sensation and journalists set about investigating the truth. The British Press won the race and revealed the identity behind the author. This forced David Cornwell to resign, and John Le Carré took over as a full-time novelist. But the question arises, is Cornwell’s case unique in literary history?
There have been numerous occasions of authors having unconventional careers alongside their writing. A notable example is Agatha Christie, who was a pharmacist’s assistant during World War I. This helped her concoct much more realistic murder methods than some of the more clichéd devices deployed in other novels, which definitely gave her the edge she is so famous for today.
Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mockingbird, was a ticketing and reservation agent, which exposed her to all the various types of people there are in the world. She learnt how people behaved when they were nervous, feeling boastful, trying to hide a fear. Her characters felt real because they were inspired from the everyday people she met. The small gestures were recognised, captured, and exposed. Thus, To Kill a Mockingbird became a huge success and is still remembered today.
Lawyers would most probably recognise the name of John Grisham, a law thriller writer known for writing books like The Firm. Your guess is correct: he was a lawyer himself before becoming a full-time writer. He practiced criminal law and spent countless hours in the courthouse. He first started writing when he witnessed the testimony of a young girl, the victim of a violent crime, and began asking himself: “What if the victim’s father took justice into his own hands?” This became the starting point for his book A Time to Kill.
There are countless other authors who have had a different background before, or maintained a career alongside, their writing. Personal experience plays a role whenever a person writes anything, whether it be as huge as a book, or as small as this article. It just makes reading more natural. But having first hand experience is one of the many factors which differentiate a normal author from a great one. It is not always about who has the better grasp on grammar, or who has a better imagination, but often just simply how familiar you are with the experiences you’re drawing on. To end, again, with John le Carré: “I was a secret agent and a novelist. It was the perfect combination. You were inventing your cover story and living it out at the same time.”
