The Beginning: Getting To Know The Author

           After spending many of my years in school learning about the lives of authors outside of their works, I started to notice patterns among them. But that being said, I am still surprised whenever I read of an author having different ambitions previous to becoming a writer or finding out that they weren't an immediate success. William Faulkner, now regarded as one of the best American writers, is no exception to these patterns.

           William Faulkner grew up in a small southern town in Mississippi. He was the oldest of four children and showed an interest for the arts early on. As a child, Faulkner was fascinated by planes and hoped to join the air force when he was older. His dream of becoming a pilot was put on hold when he was told he was too short to be a pilot in the U.S. Air Force. However, Faulkner found his opportunity by enlisting in the Canadian air force. World War I had ended before he could fly, but that didn't stop him from telling exaggerated stories from his time in the army. After having many failed jobs, Faulkner was able to get a book of his poems published. It sold relatively well as did his first novel. Faulkner experienced a rough point where the book he was trying to get published wasn't being picked up, but other than that, every book he published after was in some form, a commercial success. Faulkner's signature was writing stories that revolved around his environment growing up in a small southern town. Faulkner won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950 which skyrocketed his fame as a writer. Faulkner died at the age of 64 of a heart attack.
           Now that you have a brief explanation of his life, let me show you things I found interesting. I thought it was interesting how his stories he would tell from the army are almost like his first forms of a novel, because isn't a novel just a made up story? This introduction into writing was an interesting fact about Faulkner. I was also surprised at the rapid growth of his popularity. He really only had one major flop of a novel and that occurred at the beginning of his career, which is expected of most new writers. Faulkner was also a smart business man because he utilized his talents in a growing field: movies. Faulkner started writing screen plays in Hollywood which was different for most novel writers at the time. By branching off into this still developing form of entertainment, Faulkner was establishing himself as an individual.
         While many authors tend to share similar backgrounds, Faulkner is one of a kind. He knew how to use his past to his advantage when it came to writing stories. He had the intelligence to realize what he was could at, which wasn't flying, and was able to transition into something he was extremely good at. While his novels tended to have a stream of conscience flow to them, everything Faulkner did in his writing and in his career was strategic, which is what I believe, makes him one of the greatest writers of all time.