Harper Lee one of many authors that became famous with their work. Born Nelle Harper Lee, she was to become famous for her contribution to literature.  Her famous novel titled “To Kill A Mockingbird” became an instant hit among readers around the world and earned the author the very prestigious Pulitzer Prize.  The following are some facts about this author and her work:

Fact 1:  “To Kill A Mockingbird” was the only novel written by Harper Lee.  This lone novel was obviously enough for her to become famous and successful by winning the Pulitzer Prize in literature. There were reports that she was working on other material, but this book was the only one that got published back in 1960.

Fact 2:  “To Kill A Mockingbird” was not the original title of Harper Lee’s award-winning book.  At some point it was supposed to have “Go Set A Watchman” as title and then later changed to “Atticus” which is a reference to the main character.

Fact 3: Harper Lee is a tomboy.  The author grew up being comfortable around boys and doing rugged stuff rather than be into gossip and fashion.

Fact 4:  Harper Lee can also sing.  Besides write the famous novel, Harper Lee also became part of her high school glee club.  Aside from her interest in literature, the young Lee was also into music and singing when she was a teenager.

Fact 5:  The famous author also wanted to become a lawyer.  Harper Lee studied law for about 4 years in University of Alabama before she pursued her true passion in writing.

Fact 6:  Harper Lee started her career in writing by being part of her school magazine.  As editor of Rammer Jammer, a humor-based school paper, Harper honed her skills in the field of writing and literature.

Fact 7:  Lee became an airline ticket agent before she became famous for her literary work.  After dropping out of law school and moving to New York to pursue her writing career and passion, Harper Lee had to work as an airline reservations agent to support her stay in the big city.  She had experience with this position for both Eastern Airlines or BOAC or the British Overseas Air Corporation.

Fact 8:  “To Kill A Mockingbird” gathered other awards and accolades even before earning Lee her Pulitzer Prize.  The novel was also published in prestigious magazines and literary posts like Readers’ Digest and The Literary Guild.

Fact 9:  Harper Lee was given the Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush.  On November of 2007, Lee received this honor as part of her services to literature.

Fact 10:  After becoming famous and award-winning for her lone novel, Harper Lee served the US government.  During the time of President Lyndon B. Johnson, Lee served in the National Council of the Arts.

Fact 11:  The popularity of Lee’s novel made it into an Oscar-winning movie.  The movie version garnered 8 Academy Award nominations and won 4 of them including Best Actor for Gregory Peck.

Fact 12:  The character of “Atticus” in “To Kill A Mockingbird” was said to be based on Harper Lee’s father.  The other parts of the book are also said to have been based on Lee’s own life experiences.