It's mid-January.
Arthur Conan Doyle sat at the table, holding a pen in his right hand and staring blankly at the manuscript paper in front of him.
Only the name of the article was written on the manuscript paper——
"Empty House".
This is the first in a new series of Sherlock Holmes short stories called "The Return."
Doyle had already thought of the outline of the story, but he was just upset. Every time he started writing, he always felt that something was not right, so he put down the writing again and went back to the starting point to figure out how to write the article.
In fact, Doyle was no longer confident;
Even though "The Hound of the Baskervilles" sold well, he still felt like he was being overshadowed by "None Survived".
At this moment, his beloved wife Hawkins opened the door and entered the room.
Squeak——
The door creaked softly.
Doyle scratched his head irritably and asked, "Is it time to eat?"
Hawkins felt a little distressed. He walked up and gently rubbed Doyle's eyebrows, as if he wanted to smooth away the wrinkles there.
She asked, "Why don't you use a typewriter?"
Doyle became more irritated;
He did like to use a typewriter when creating in the past, but that was only when he had an idea. As long as his ideas continued, he didn't have to worry about glitches or revisions.
But now...
"It's easier to write by hand."
Doyle was tough-talking.
Hawkins vaguely noticed that her husband was not in a high mood, so he said no more and just pulled her husband up.
She pushed Doyle out the door behind her.
"Shave, let's go out to eat!"
Doyle was so busy writing that he lost sight of the sun and the moon, and his image was a bit slovenly and unshaven, like a savage who had just come from the jungle to human society.
He also thought it might be good to go out and change his mood, so he shaved off as usual.
As a result, Hawkins was slower than him,
From washing up to putting on makeup, choosing clothes, and matching appropriate hats, gloves, and accessories, the whole process takes at least forty minutes.
Doyle couldn't help but mutter:
"Oh, woman."
He got used to it. He poured himself a cup of tea, sat at the dining table, and picked up a newspaper to read.
The headlines are still a commonplace issue.
war,
troops,
military spending.
From Christmas to New Year's Day, there was a temporary ceasefire on the battlefield in South Africa. It was rare that the major media did not go crazy on the issue of the Anglo-Boer War.
Now that the holidays are over, liberals and conservatives are back to bickering.
But because "Yes!" With the emergence of "Prime Minister", Cecil's cabinet has been condemned by many citizens, especially the "Manchester Guardian", which can be said to be all-round and full-depth.
Judging from the posture, it seems that he will not give up until the conservative party is forced out of power.
Doyle shook his head.
""Yes! Prime Minister"? Hum hum..."
He flipped through the pages with disdain.
When I came to the book review page, the first thing that caught my eye was the praise for "Roman Holiday" and its author Lu.
Doyle was numb.
During this time, almost everyone is discussing "Roman Holiday".
Even his wife Hawkins joined in the fun and went to see one. When she came back, she was full of excitement and said that the love between Princess Anne and reporter Joe in the play was the purest love in the world.
Doyle felt that he was innocent.
Didn’t that reporter have impure motives when he first came into contact with the princess?
Doyle sighed again,
"Oh, woman."
He threw the "Manchester Guardian" aside, glanced at the "Times" and the "Daily Telegraph", and estimated that the two newspapers also contained extremely boring content, so he picked up a copy of the "Illustrated London News".
The Illustrated London News is a British weekly magazine founded in 1842.
It made extensive use of woodcuts and engravings, and was the first London publication to use illustrations. Even by the early 20th century, when photo technology and gravure printing became popular, it was the most illustrated publication.
Doyle felt that since he was waiting for his wife to kill time, he might as well look at more pictures.
He flipped through it randomly, looking only for pages with illustrations.
Not long after, he said "Huh?" and read in a low voice:
"
'I watched "Roman Holiday" a week ago and I didn't feel anything at all. Recently, I watched it again and still felt nothing. '
"
It turned out to be a rare criticism of "Roman Holiday".
Doyle became interested,
He read the title again, it was called "The Overrated "Roman Holiday"", and the author was Montagu James.
The name was somewhat familiar, but Doyle couldn't remember who the other person was.
He continued reading the article:
"
'If I have any feeling, it is Miss Phyllis's unparalleled beauty and noble and elegant temperament that still make people's hearts move. It was she who made "Roman Holiday", not "Roman Holiday" who made her. '
"
Next, the article made a very implicit criticism,
James believes that in addition to the novelty of the text, the entire drama is still a classic linear narrative with little innovation and even has some flaws.
To sum it up in one sentence:
The reason why "Roman Holiday" became a classic is entirely due to Phyllis's peerless elegance and has little to do with the playwright Lu.
This piece of literary criticism is hearty,
Doyle sighed in appreciation: "Good!"
He even had the urge to reveal something, and even flipped through magazines with more energy.
Unexpectedly, he turned a few more pages and stopped again.
It was a short ghost story called "The Painting,"
The story tells that a certain college of Oxford University has an old painting. The content of the painting is simple, there is only one house.
One day, under the cold moonlight, the still house suddenly started to move. The window on the wall of the house was pushed open by an unknown object, and a black shadow crawled out...
Doyle read no more;
Things about ghosts and gods are things that humans cannot see, hear, or even imagine.
It may not be mysterious, just a random thought of the human brain, but maybe it is a very terrifying existence.
Therefore, ghosts and gods have always been a good subject.
Doyle stared at the author's name;
After a moment, he showed a look of realization,
"It turns out to be the professor of fantasy novels at Cambridge who specializes in studying the Bible and folklore. However, he is also quite capable. Isn't it just disgusting to write a ghost story and set it in Oxford?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Hawkins' voice came from behind: "What disgusting person?"
She was finally dressed up.
Doyle said: "It's nothing. It's just a writer in Cambridge who suddenly...well..."
Before he finished speaking, Doyle frowned and fell into deep thought.
James publicly criticized Lu in the magazine and published a short ghost story at the same time, which was obviously a provocation full of gunpowder.
Could it be that there was some disagreement between Lu Shi and Cambridge?
The more Doyle thought about it, the more likely it seemed,
He asked Hawkins: "Have we heard before that Lu Shi is going to publish a new work in The Scotsman?"
Hawkins nodded,
"Yes, everyone in the industry knows about this."
After hearing this answer, Doyle was convinced,
James' move was to snipe Lu Shi.
Therefore, he could not just prepare a short ghost story, but a collection of stories that could be serialized over a long period of time to confront Lu Shigang.
Doyle couldn't help but his eyes lit up.
"Maybe I can take advantage of this situation..."
He stood up suddenly, kissed Hawkins hard, and said, "I won't go out to eat today. I have a lot of thoughts right now, and I have to write "The Empty House" quickly."
Hawkins touched the lip mark left by her husband with a surprised look on his face.
"Weren't you still unable to write just now?"
"It's different now," Doyle said. "I'm so excited that it's like my whole body is filled with blood."
After saying that, Doyle entered the room.
boom--
The door was closed.
Not long after, the mechanical sound of the typewriter keyboard being struck came from inside.
