Ian Fleming worked as hard on marketing as today’s authors.
by Ruth Harris.
It’s not just today’s authors who work hard. Consider Ian Fleming.
The Man With The Golden Typewriter: Ian Fleming’s James Bond Letters is a collection by Fleming’s nephew of the author’s letters to his publisher, editors, colleagues, other writers, fans, readers, and friends.
They were written in the 1950s when the British mail service operated at high efficiency. A letter mailed in the morning would be delivered the same day. The letters are organized chronologically and were written contemporaneous to the publication of the James Bond thrillers, beginning with Casino Royale.
Lively, witty, and extremely informative about the inner working of book publishing at the time, the letters reveal Fleming to be a man of charm, lively intellect and wide interests.
He was also a hard-working author concerned with the technical, editorial, and financial details of publishing.
Ian Fleming’s Publisher Wasn’t Impressed.
James Bond, as we think of the suave spy today, was hardly an instant, overnight success.
In fact, his publisher was—shall we say—barely lukewarm about Casino Royale. He had little interest in thrillers, “believing them to be short-run phenomena that rarely covered their costs. Nor did he think much of their authors, and suspected that Fleming was a dilettante. Remarkably, Casino Royale was the only Bond book Fleming’s publisher ever read.”
He Faced the “Dreadful Prospect” of Getting Married
Fleming’s hard work and interest in every aspect of publishing may well have saved James Bond from obscurity.
Fleming was a disciplined writer. Every morning, for three hours, he sat at his desk and typed 2,000 words of a new Bond adventure during January and February. Those were the months he spent in his house, Goldeneye, located on the Caribbean island of Jamaica.
He shored up his discipline by “obstinately closing my mind to self-mockery” and wondering “what will my friends say?” He joked that as “a confirmed bachelor on the eve of marriage, I decided to take my mind off the dreadful prospect by writing a thriller.”
A Steely Eye on the Finances.
Fleming’s nephew comments that “he liked to joke that he was Cape’s hardest working author, and to an extent this was true. He had made a career in journalism, ran a network of foreign correspondents and was, indeed, a publisher himself and a collector of first editions.
There was little Cape [his publisher] could tell him that he didn’t know already. ‘I enjoyed his enthusiastic interest in the technicalities of production,’ wrote Michael Howard with surprise. That soon turned to alarm when “it became clear that Fleming had more in mind than simply delivering a manuscript. He designed the covers, organised reviews, invented sales tactics and cast a steely eye over the finances.”
Blurbs, Covers, and Print Orders.
Fleming also wrote blurbs, concerned himself with the details of covers and size of print orders, and suggested ads and promotions, Also, he drummed up reviews, contacted magazine editors about feature stories, and concerned himself with the size of print orders, advertising budgets as well as the ads themselves.
Nor did he overlook the details of his contracts—royalties, foreign editions, option, serial, movies, and tv. He worked closely with cover designers, making suggestions about images, and commenting on title fonts.
Guns, Perfume, and Typos.
Determined to make his books as good as possible, Fleming was an avid reseacher intent on tracking down the “perfect” kind of gun or the exact perfume a heroine might wear. He explored Harlem’s nightlife on a trip to America in December 1952, tracked down information on gold doubloons and Spanish treasure by consulting Spink, London’s premier coin dealers. And scenes taking place in Florida were based on his visit to that state at the beginning of 1953.
He welcomed input from his editors, readers, and friends and was constantly working to make the books as good as possible. He even alerted his publisher to typos to correct in future editions.
Advice from Readers and Other Writers.
Fleming paid attention to advice from other writers like Raymond Chandler, Noel Coward and Somerset Maugham.
The novelist Michael Arlen advised him to “write your second book before you see the reviews of the first. Casino Royale is good but the reviewers may damn it and take the heart out of you.” Heeding Arlen’s words, Fleming completed Live and Let Die before its predecessor had even been published.
He also carried on a lively correspondence with readers. One reader who was an expert in guns (and holsters) made specific recommendations for Bond’s weaponry.
Another who worked in the Yale University library corrected what Fleming referred to as his “Americanese.”
In fact, it seemed that about the only thing he didn’t do was actually drive the trucks that delivered copies to bookstores.
Always polite and often witty—even when pushing back on the royalty rates offered by his publisher or when replying to a dissatisfied reader’s negative comments—he concluded his note to her “with many thanks for the kindly thought behind your letter.”
The Sheer, Ridiculous Delight!
And, about that golden typewriter: yes indeed, Ian Fleming did have a real—as well as a metaphorical—golden typewriter. According to his nephew, “Fleming had always longed for success, but failing that would settle for the trappings.
So, in anticipation, he ordered a gold-plated typewriter from New York to congratulate himself on finishing his first novel.
It was a Royal Quiet de Luxe, cost $ 174. It wasn’t a custom-made machine—Royal had produced several of them—and Fleming’s literary acquaintances considered it the height of vulgarity. Fleming did not care. “It was the sheer, ridiculous delight of the thing. He owned a Golden Typewriter!”
Beyond his Wildest Dreams.
Not just literal gold. But, as it would turn out, golden beyond Fleming’s wildest dreams.
Whenever you’re feeling tired, crabby, overwhelmed, remember that it’s not just you and it’s not just now. Authors work hard. Always did. Always will.
Ruth Harris (@RuthHarrisBooks) August 26th, 2018BOOK OF THE WEEK
5 New York Times Bestsellers for a Long Weekend
The Park Avenue Series $8.99 ($21 if bought separately)
Strong, savvy women who work hard to succeed and, when sometimes they don’t get what they want, find something even better along the way. Critics have called Ruth Harris’s books “brilliant,” “steamy,” “stylishly written,” “richly plotted,” “first-class entertainment” and “a sure thing.”
Available at for Kindle at Amazon
OPPORTUNITY ALERTS
Glimmer Train Fiction Open. Glimmer Train prizes carry a lot of prestige. Also, they award a $3000 prize for a winning short story. And the second prize is $1000. Entry fee $21. Any subject or theme. From 3000 to 20,000 words Deadline August 31.
WOW-WOMEN ON WRITING FLASH FICTION CONTEST $10 ENTRY FEE They are open to all styles and genres of flash fiction. Between 250 and 750 words. You can write about anything, as long as it’s fiction within the word count. Deadline August 31.
Writers Digest Popular Fiction Award. Up to 4000 words. Fee: $25. 6 Categories: Romance, Thriller, Crime, Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Young Adult. Prize $2500 and publication by Writer’s Digest. Deadline September 14.
TOM HOWARD/MARGARET REID POETRY CONTEST $12 FEE. Prizes: $1,500 for a poem in any style or genre, and a $1,500 prize for a rhyming poem. $100 each for 10 Honorable Mentions. Top 12 entries will be published online. 250 lines per poem. Deadline: September 30.
SERVICESCAPE SHORT STORY AWARD NO ENTRY FEE. They’re looking for any genre of short fiction. Maximum 5,000 words. Prize is $1000 in addition to publication in SERVICESCAPE. Deadline November 30, 2018.
13 Imprints of Big 5 publishers who take unagented submissions. From the good people at Authors Publish Magazine.
48 Small Presses looking for children’s books. Also collated and vetted by Authors Publish magazine.
I never thought much about the writer behind James Bond. I find Bond campy and rather flat, but Fleming certainly made a success of the character. Maybe I should read some of his books.
Thanks, Ruth!
Speaking as a moviegoer, not a reader. I should have made that clear.
Kathy—The books were published in the 1950s-1960s so today seem very dated. But, at the time, were considered sexy, daring and glamorous. Most important, the Bond phenomenon would not exist without the writer!
How fascinating. I loved this. Thanks.
Annie
Annie—Thanks. Glad you enjoyed it. A fascinating bit of publishing history captured in the author’s contemporaneous letters.
Terrific review Ruth! I was very interested to hear about the part that most of us indies waste our time dreaming about- how Fleming handled the transition from paper to film. Was he just as much an expert, or just as tough about it?
You create an image here of someone who worked hard, sure, but also seemed to get the whole ball rolling in his own direction right off the bat. Who today would countenance an author’s advice about cover, publication schedule, or print runs! We certainly have other areas to concern ourselves with, though, and that’s where I guess I need to keep thinking. I’m still holding back on everything outside the writing side.
Will—Thanks! The path from books to movies was long and complicated. Casino Royal (1953) was the first book. The first movie was Dr. No, released in 1962. Fleming hired agents & lawyers as film rights passed from owner to owner and disputes ensued. Messy.
Thanks for this glimpse into Fleming’s world — fascinating stuff.
Thanks, CS. Agree! Everything has changed but, then again, so much hasn’t.
I admit that I do have this outdated idea of what successful writers’ lives are like – and it’s mostly got to do with what I would love mine to be if I were a successful writer…and that would be to be left alone to write all day and be able to pay the bills at the end of the month. And it’s quite refreshing to know that it’s just not like that (unless you’re Stephen King maybe).
It’s also great that he got so much say in the whole process. I wonder, do authors get that much say today, right down to the fonts?
This was a really interesting read. Thank you Ruth.
Louanne—Thanks. He was able to have so much input because he was an editor/publisher himself, publishing was a much smaller business in those days *and* because Fleming was charming, polite, knowledgeable, and assertive. His input was not always welcome. lol
Nope. Unless you’re Stephen King, trad dubbed writers have very little (nothing) to say about the details of covers and print orders much less fonts. Indie publishers come closest today as they control/are responsible for covers/blurbs/ads/promo.
This was such an interesting post. I’ve alway been a little intrigued by Fleming, having heard that he was formerly a spy. (Did I get that right?) I never much thought about him as a writer, although I saw and enjoyed many of his movies, even though I often thought his gadgets unlikely. (Little did I know!) My husband always like the fact that Bond always got out of difficulties by using his brains.
Elizabeth—Thank you. 🙂 Fleming was a naval intelligence office which I imagine is more or less a spy! He certainly knew that world and drew on his experience in it to create Bond.
With the massive world-wide success of the movies, it’s important not to forget that none of the JB zillion-dollar enterprise would exist today without the Fleming sitting at his typewriter writing his 2000 words a day! Really, it’s all about the writer.
Wow, he was dedicated all right. Shame his publisher didn’t appreciate that level of dedication.
Alex—No doubt his publisher *did* appreciate the $$$$. 😉
Hi Ruth,
enjoyable post. Sean Connery, the actor of earlier James Bond from the 60’s to early 80’s use to live down the street from me as a child living in Wimbledon. Every now and then a crowd of us kids would hang out at the gate of his house for ages, hoping he would come out. Sweet memories.
Jacqueline—Thank you. What a sweet memory indeed!
Today the kids in Wimbledon line up to see Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer! 🙂
It’s always fascinating to go behind the scene to learn about the habits of an author who created such an iconic figure as James Bond.
Elaine—Ditto! Always fascinating to get a peek behind the scenes. I wonder if our emails will one day serve the same purpose? 🙂
I think the thing (at least one of them) that really pushed the Bond series into the American public’s consciousness was the news that John Kennedy like to relax by reading the Bond books.
As to Bond’s name, Fleming got permission from James Bond, a friend and ornithographer (studies birds), to use his name for the fictional character.
Now I know how to reward myself when I eventually publish my book — a golden typewriter. Then I will be just as cool as James Bond, or at least Ian Fleming (well, maybe).
Phil—You’re quite right about JFK’s comment impacting American sales. Happened in early 1960s so about ten years after the first Bond book published.
Hope you have your order in already!
Elaine said it well. Isn’t it the dream of every author (and certainly mine) to have their character go down in history, like James Bond or Sherlock Holmes! Forget about my name. I’d love people to remember The Goddaughter. Fun post, Ruth!
Melodie—ooooh! The goddaughter! She *will* go down in history! Why ever not!
I read the books as a child and found them to be lacking in sizzle. But, I also read that Fleming was trying to create a glamorous world for his fellow post-war, bombed-out Britons to enjoy and fantasize about. I think that he at least accomplished that, and the movies were certainly more entertaining to me as a child. Usually it’s the other way ’round for me, with books customarily better. Funny about that…
Netflix is currently screening a four-part series called “Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond.” I found it filled in a lot of questions that I had about Fleming and his sources. Your post about Fleming’s disciplined work ethic and control of his assets is an important lesson to us who are attempting to go indie.
Best,
=rds
Ronald—I also recall reading that he wanted to provide an escape from bleak post war England. He certainly succeeded, didn’t he?
Thanks for the Netflix tip. Now on my list and much appreciated!
What an interesting life and post. It is always nice to learn about the man behind the myth. Ian Fleming was quite a character.
Great post, Ruth!
Ingmarhek—Thank you for the kind words. Much appreciated. He was quite a character—smart, savvy, charming. Would be fun to have a martini with. Shaken not stirred, of course. 🙂
Sounds like Mr. Fleming was indeed a hard working author in every way possible. What I find interesting though is the fact that his publisher didn’t read all of his books! What’s up with that?
I think authors have always worked hard. And now the things that Mr. Fleming did that perhaps he didn’t HAVE to do, are definitely all done by those who want to self-publish, for sure. It’s a hard road.
Patricia—yeah. What’s up with that? Welcome to reality, that’s what’s up. 😉
Definitely lots and lots of work with an uncertain payoff. Over a decade before Bond became “Bond” as we know him. A lot of it is just hanging in. + writing a terrific book at the right time.
Fascinating post. Even Stephen King had his struggles, if you read his wonderful book, On Writing. His wife rescued his first manuscript from the rubbish and pushed him to send it out again after it was repeatedly rejected. I’m tentatively exploring indie options because the control over every aspect of the book has a lot of appeal. Now where can I find a golden typewriter?
valerieparv—Writers. Writing. Published. Publishing. None of it is fast and/or easy. Not for anyone I’ve ever heard of!
As to your question about a golden typewriter: Anne and I don’t do shopping advice, but thanks for asking. 😉
So much great information here to apply to the writing process as well as how we can interact with readers. I love the detail about the gun! There prob won’t be guns on the cover of any of my books, but you never know.
Leigh—Thanks for the kind words and for taking the time to comment. Anne and I appreciate it!
Glad you enjoyed the info and, as you say, “you never know.” Especially if you’re a writer!
I needed to read this post this morning. Thank you! Ian Fleming’s dedication to all aspects of writing and the writing business is definitely an inspiration and a reason to keep going and get back to work (I’m a little behind schedule this morning, and where am I?).
Thanks for all of the wonderful and informative posts on writing!
tyreanmartinson—Thank *you!* So happy to hear the post came at just the right moment for you. 🙂
Fleming’s hard work and persistence are indeed an inspiration to every writer—whether or not we create our own James (or Jane) Bond.
Amazing! Never would have thought so much work. But then, he took it on and once successful how could the publisher refuse. LOL. Today, it is what it is.
John—Thanks! So much of his approach remains amazingly relevant today. His letters make great reading and offer deep insights into the combination of his creativity plus disciplined work habits. The success of James Bond was no accident!
Great post!
I knew (living in Arkansas) that John Grisham sold his first book from the trunk of his car, but also read that the author of The Godfather just handed in a messy ms and the rest was history. So now I suppose it varies, although I prefer my fantasy of what really happens.
We all want our books to sell, but we don’t want to be in sales. We’re nuts. 😉
Katharine—Thanks!
After The Godfather became such a success, Mario Puzo used to say that if he’d known it was going to be so popular, he would have made it better.
Writers! Never satisfied. 😉
Is THAT why I’m never satisfied! Oh, dear. Moving into a different house and driving husband insane with what I thought was “organizing” but might just be editing? There is no hope. 😀
Katherine—Your husband is married to a writer! What else would he expect? 😉
I love Ian Fleming’s books. The idea of a golden typewriter is wonderful.
Roberta—Yes! Literally golden—and metaphorically golden as well. 🙂