why did harper lee stop writing books?

Question

im in a hurry, and i need to kno why the author of "To Kill A Mockingbird", stopped writing books

i need an actual answer from the internet, but i cant seem to find an exact answer....its for a research project, and if i dont find it soon...im doomed!

Answer 1

"To Kill a Mockingbird" was an instant bestseller and won a Pulitzer Prize. It was also made into the hit film starring Peck, which quickly became a classic. 'The book occupies a revered place in the canon of great American literature,' says Professor Jeffrey Weinstock, an American literature expert at Central Michigan University.

But the instant success terrified Lee. In one of her few detailed interviews, given in 1964 to author Roy Newquist, she offered an insight into the impact of instant fame, for someone who had been seen as a sidekick to the more glamorous Capote. 'I sort of hoped someone would like it enough to give me encouragement ... I hoped for a little but I got rather a whole lot and in some ways this was just about as frightening as the quick, merciful death I'd expected,' she said.

Yet Lee did disappear and never wrote another novel. She contributed a handful of magazine articles and essays in the early 1960s and then almost nothing else for the rest of her life. Some believe she simply had said everything she had to say about the subject that mattered most to her: her childhood in the South.

'Sometimes a great author has just one singular idea and when they have expressed that idea, they are done. They have nothing else to put out there,' Weinstock said.

Answer 2

I have often wondered the same thing--especially because I would love to see what else she might come up with. To better answer your question, I am not sure anyone knows for sure, as Ms. Lee is a very private woman. I think somewhere I read (do a Google search?) that she was astounded and overwhelmed with the success of her very first novel, and may have feared she couldn't ever match that success again. She may also have said something about that was the story she needed to write and there wasn't another--but don't quote me! I believe she did write some shorter pieces either before or after "To Kill a Mockingbird," such as non-fiction magazine articles. Again, a Google search should help you find out.

This past summer, an edition of Oprah Winfrey's magazine carried the first published words from Ms. Lee in many, many years. She didn't talk about her work, if I recall. I think she was responding to something Oprah had asked about reading or the enjoyment of reading. Again, use a good search engine and see what else you can find out.

Answer 3

Perhaps she felt she had expressed all that she wanted to share with the world.
On a deeper level, why does anyone stop doing anything?
1. They fall out of habit.
2. They no longer gain satisfaction.

That's all I can think of.

Answer 4

I'm in a hurry to, kid, and I don't know. Learn to ask a question with a little more grace than this.