Raymond Chandler

Chandler rose through the California oil business before losing his job in 1932. His first Black Mask story appeared in 1933, and The Big Sleep introduced Philip Marlowe in novel form in 1939. There is a clear break here, followed by an apprenticeship in pulp fiction rather than instant literary arrival. His career is a particularly good counterweight to cheerful reinvention stories because the change involved dismissal, uncertain earnings and hard learning.