Mary MacLane

Mary MacLane (May 1, 1881 – August 1929) was a controversial Canadian-born American writer. She was quite popular in her time, writing shocking best sellers. Considered to be wild and uncontrolled, she was bisexual and held very vocal feminist opinions.

Related Topics:
May 1 - 1881 - August - 1929 - Canadian - American - Bisexual - Feminist

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She was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, but her family moved to Butte, Montana when she was four, and she spent the remainder of her life in the United States.

Related Topics:
Winnipeg, Manitoba - Canada - Butte, Montana - United States

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She began writing published material for her school paper in 1898. From the beginning, her writing was characterized by a direct, fiery, and highly individualistic style.

Related Topics:
1898 - Individualistic

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At the age of 19 in 1902, MacLane published her first book, The Story of Mary MacLane. It sold 100,000 copies in the first month and was popular among young girls, but was strongly criticized by conservative readers.

Related Topics:
1902 - Conservative

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She used the money from sales of this book to move from Butte, Montana to Greenwich Village where she continued to write books and newspaper articles.

Related Topics:
Butte, Montana - Greenwich Village

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Even by today's standards, MacLane's writing is raw, honest, unflinching, self-aware, sensual, and extreme. She wrote openly about egoism and her own self-love, about sexual attraction and love for other women, and even about her desire to marry the Devil.

Related Topics:
Egoism - Love for other women - Marry - Devil

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Later, she wrote an autobiographical silent film titled Men Who Have Made Love to Me; the film itself is now lost.

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Mary MacLane died in Chicago sometime in early August, 1929. She quickly became forgotten and remained out of print until 1993, when The Story of Mary MacLane was republished in an anthology titled Tender Darkness.

Related Topics:
Chicago - 1929 - 1993 - Anthology

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