Hired Pens: Professional Writers in America's Golden Age of Print

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The evolution of the writing profession in the United States is explored through the lives of independent writers from the 1880s to the 1960s. The narrative highlights how these writers, including figures like Jack London and Sylvia Plath, contributed to the development of a broad-based print culture that shaped high-culture literature. By documenting various forms of writing, such as travel accounts and genre fiction, the book reveals the significant role these craftsmen played in influencing American identity and literary strategies.