Literary Giants Faced Hardship: Newly Uncovered Files Reveal Struggles of Joyce, Plath, and Thomas
Newly unearthed documents from the Royal Literary Fund (RLF) offer a poignant glimpse into the financial struggles of some of the 20th century’s most celebrated writers, revealing a history of precarious livelihoods behind iconic works of literature. From a detailed 1951 grocery bill belonging to Dylan Thomas – listing tobacco, Swiss rolls, Irish whiskey, Guinness, and monkey nuts – to previously unseen letters from Nobel laureate Doris Lessing and Sylvia Plath’s doctor, the files paint a stark picture of the economic realities faced by artists.
The trove of letters and applications, discovered within the RLF’s case files and partially held at the British Library, demonstrates that even literary giants often teetered on the brink of financial ruin. Many documents chronicle writers at their most vulnerable, grappling with everything from poor book sales and illness to marital strife and grief. The RLF, a charity providing hardship grants to writers, has been quietly archiving these stories for decades, and ongoing cataloging efforts are continually revealing new insights.
A particularly striking find is an unpublished note regarding Sylvia Plath’s hospitalization for an appendectomy, included within documents related to a grant application submitted by her husband, Ted Hughes. Elsewhere, a 1915 application from James Joyce details his lack of income from royalties, noting that sales of his books were “below the required number.” Edith Nesbit, author of The Railway Children, wrote in August 1914 that the shock of her husband’s death had left her unable to write, crippling her primary source of income.
The files also shed light on the challenges faced by writers navigating the complexities of artistic integrity versus commercial demands. A letter from Ezra Pound in support of Joyce’s application underscored this tension, stating that Joyce had “lived for 10 years in obscurity and poverty, that he might perfect his writing and be uninfluenced by commercial demands.” Pound described Joyce’s then-unfinished Ulysses as “uneven,” but lauded A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man as having “indubitable value, and permanence,” a crucial endorsement that helped secure Joyce a grant. Edward Kemp, the current director of the RLF, remarked, “If we ever get into cataloguing the books that might not exist without the RLF, I think we start with Ulysses and work down from there.”
The RLF’s records reveal a long history of supporting literary luminaries, including DH Lawrence, Bram Stoker, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Dylan Thomas himself was a recipient of the charity’s support from 1938 until his death in 1953. In his August 1938 application, Thomas confessed to living in poverty for five years, stating, “So far I have had to be content with poverty, and have always been fortunate to have just enough food and to have a room to work and sleep in. But now my wife is going to have a baby, and our position is desperate.”
However, Thomas’s application was initially rejected by Whitehall officials, who bluntly questioned whether a 23-year-old unable to support himself should have married and started a family, suggesting he should focus on “comparatively unremunerative verse” rather than expanding his responsibilities. This rejection highlights a long-standing societal skepticism towards the financial viability of a writing career.
The financial realities for writers haven’t significantly improved. Today, professional authors in the UK earn a median income of just £7,000 annually, according to the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society. The RLF has continued to provide crucial support to contemporary writers like Ali Smith, Monique Roffey, and Anna Burns, as well as offering assistance to Hanif Kureishi following a paralyzing accident.
The archives also reveal the struggles of writers further along in their careers. Gormenghast author Mervyn Peake first sought assistance from the RLF in 1948 while struggling to complete his fantasy series. By the 1960s, his health had deteriorated, and his wife, Maeve Gilmore, applied for a second grant on his behalf, detailing his diagnosis of encephalitis and Parkinson’s disease, ultimately attributed to Lewy body dementia.
The demand for the RLF’s services is increasing, with a 400% surge in hardship grant applications between 2023 and 2024. To qualify, applicants must have had at least two works professionally published. Grants cover basic living expenses, disability-related costs, and unexpected bills. The RLF is largely funded by literary estates, including those of Colin MacInnes, Somerset Maugham, AA Milne, Arthur Ransome, and Ronald Blythe.
These newly accessible archives reveal a complex network of literary connections, such as CS Lewis supporting Peake’s application and Henry James advocating for Joseph Conrad. As Kemp observes, “You look back, and people who you’d have thought are surviving as writers really aren’t.” He adds, “You’d hope we didn’t have to exist,” acknowledging the unfortunate necessity of the RLF’s mission: “Sometimes bad things happen to good writers.”
For more information about the RLF’s hardship grants and legacy-giving, visit rlf.org.uk.
