I guest blogged over at www.Shaynagier.com the other day (5/12/12) about how Alex Haley, author of “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” and “Roots:  The Saga of An American Family,” came to be a writer.  It all started for Haley with his writing of love letters to his shipmates’ girlfriends!

Alex Haley enlisted in the United States Coast Guard in 1939 at age 17 and served in the Pacific Theater during World War II.  Haley passed many of his long shipboard deployments writing letters back home to his family.  He also began helping friends write letters home and became known for his ability to craft love letters to waiting girlfriends.  He was so good at it that his shipmates began paying him to write their letters.  From this experience of being paid to write Haley thought he might be a good enough writer to make it his career.

Haley tried for many years to get published.  He attempted romance and adventure writing.  He amassed years and years of rejection letters.  During that time his writing ability within the Coast Guard was recognized when he was allowed to become a Coast Guard journalist.  He eventually edited and wrote for the Coast Guard Magazines “The Helmsman,” “The Outpost,” and “The United States Coast Guard Magazine.”  He was made the first Chief Journalist in the Coast Guard.

Haley was finally successful in 1950 about seven years after he began writing love letters for other sailors.  He sold a story about the Coast Guard to “This Week” magazine.  Haley worked nine more years in the Coast Guard until his retirement in 1959 and sold several more sea stories while he was still serving.

After leaving the Coast Guard Haley became a full time writer, barely eking out a living doing freelance work.  He was so poor during these years that at one point he looked at his kitchen cupboard and he only had a couple of cans of sardines to eat and 18 cents in his pocket.

Slowly, Haley began to build a career.  He wrote articles and did interviews for “Playboy,” “Readers Digest” and the “New York Times Magazine.”  His book, “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” started out as a Playboy interview.  When it came time to write his autobiography Malcolm X asked Haley to work on the project.  Haley finally achieved fame and fortune with “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” in 1965 and again with “Roots:  The Saga of an American Family” in 1976.  Haley became a writer sideways through the Coast Guard and after many years of rejection and perseverance.