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Churchill's first published novel, he started writing the book in the latter half of 1895. His plan to finish the book before an April 1896 trip to Europe did not work out, but Macmillan approved the unfinished manuscript while he was traveling, and asked him to finish it. One attempt to complete it met with some suggestions for revision from the publisher, and the rewritten version finished in France apparently got lost in the mail to New York. Churchill meanwhile began working on his next novel, Richard Carvel, and did not turn back to completing The Celebrity manuscript—which he substantially rewrote—for the final time in mid-1897.
The Celebrity' was published in November 1897, and gained in popularity through 1898. Speculation that the "celebrity" of the book was based on popular journalist Richard Harding Davis helped propel the success of the book, but Churchill denied any such intent. The reviewers were not especially enamored of the merits of the book, but already the future promise of his next book was being speculated about.
The book is dedicated to Albert Shaw Ph.D.
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