Harry Whittington

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"Professional Writer" is a term that I've bandied about this site a lot, but what do I really mean by that? I mean a writer who makes his living writing, who writes whatever's necessary in order to sell books, who stays true to his unique vision even though he must change genres at a whim. It's no mark of disrespect; Lawrence Block was a professional writer for twenty years before the Matt Scudder and Bernie Rhodenbarr series enabled him to write only what he wanted.

Harry Whittington was the ultimate professional writer. He earned his title as "King of the Paperbacks", writing 85 novels in twelve years, mostly crime and suspense. Despite the speed at which he wrote (or perhaps because of it) his novels crackle with energy. His characters were thoughtfully drawn and his plotting was always first rate. He stopped writing for several years in the late 60s to edit various publications at the Department of Agriculture. Maybe he was just tired. In any event, seven of his novels are back in print - in paperback, of course.