The Saint and the Fiction Makers
Encyclopedia
The Saint and the Fiction Makers (some editions use the hyphenated form "Fiction-Makers") is the title of a 1968 mystery novel featuring the character of Simon Templar
, alias "The Saint". The novel is credited to Leslie Charteris
, who created the Saint in 1928, but the book was actually authored by Fleming Lee and is adapted from a teleplay by John Kruse written for a two-part episode of The Saint
, "The Fiction Makers", which first aired in December 1968 and was later released as a theatrical film. As with other Saint books released during this period, Charteris served in an editorial capacity.
The book was first published in the United States
by The Crime Club
in 1968 (possibly before the episodes aired), and in the United Kingdom
by Hodder and Stoughton in 1969.
When he arrives at Klein's house in the country, he hears a woman's screams and several gunshots. Rushing to the rescue, he finds a woman tied up and gripping a revolver behind her back. After untying her, he finds out that she is "Amos Klein", a woman who adopted a male nom de plume to increase sales of her novels. She explains that she has to be able to do everything her character in the novels does and that she was just doing some research.
The pair are soon kidnapped by a group of people who claim to be members of S.W.O.R.D.
, the evil organization from Amos Klein's novels. Their leader, "Warlock", the mastermind of the group, believes that Simon Templar must be the Amos Klein he is looking for and that the woman must be his secretary. They then find out what the group of madmen want: for Amos Klein to write the plot of their next grandiose heist.
Simon Templar
Simon Templar is a British fictional character known as The Saint featured in a long-running series of books by Leslie Charteris published between 1928 and 1963. After that date, other authors collaborated with Charteris on books until 1983; two additional works produced without Charteris’s...
, alias "The Saint". The novel is credited to Leslie Charteris
Leslie Charteris
Leslie Charteris , born Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin, was a half-Chinese, half English author of primarily mystery fiction, as well as a screenwriter. He was best known for his many books chronicling the adventures of Simon Templar, alias "The Saint."-Early life:Charteris was born to a Chinese father...
, who created the Saint in 1928, but the book was actually authored by Fleming Lee and is adapted from a teleplay by John Kruse written for a two-part episode of The Saint
The Saint (TV series)
The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character, Simon Templar, a Robin Hood-like adventurer with a penchant for disguise. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the...
, "The Fiction Makers", which first aired in December 1968 and was later released as a theatrical film. As with other Saint books released during this period, Charteris served in an editorial capacity.
The book was first published in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by The Crime Club
The Crime Club
The Crime Club was an imprint of the Doubleday publishing company, which later spawned a 1946-47 anthology radio series.Many classic and popular works of detective and mystery fiction had their first U.S. editions published via the Crime Club, including all 50 books of The Saint by Leslie Charteris...
in 1968 (possibly before the episodes aired), and in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
by Hodder and Stoughton in 1969.
Plot summary
The dashing Simon Templar is hired by a friend in the book publishing trade to protect one of his stars, a secretive recluse named Amos Klein who writes a popular (and lucrative) series of adventure novels about a manly and suave spy.When he arrives at Klein's house in the country, he hears a woman's screams and several gunshots. Rushing to the rescue, he finds a woman tied up and gripping a revolver behind her back. After untying her, he finds out that she is "Amos Klein", a woman who adopted a male nom de plume to increase sales of her novels. She explains that she has to be able to do everything her character in the novels does and that she was just doing some research.
The pair are soon kidnapped by a group of people who claim to be members of S.W.O.R.D.
S.W.O.R.D. (The Saint)
S.W.O.R.D. is a fictional criminal organization that exists as a creation within a creation. The organization appears in the novel The Saint and the Fiction Makers, written by Fleming Lee...
, the evil organization from Amos Klein's novels. Their leader, "Warlock", the mastermind of the group, believes that Simon Templar must be the Amos Klein he is looking for and that the woman must be his secretary. They then find out what the group of madmen want: for Amos Klein to write the plot of their next grandiose heist.