{"id":171948,"date":"2024-05-27T14:18:28","date_gmt":"2024-05-27T14:18:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/culture.org\/?p=171948"},"modified":"2024-05-27T14:18:28","modified_gmt":"2024-05-27T14:18:28","slug":"mick-herron","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/culture.org\/art-and-culture\/literature\/mick-herron\/","title":{"rendered":"Mick Herron: From Struggling Writer to Literary Superstar"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Mick Herron, the acclaimed author of the <i>Slow Horses<\/i> series, has seen his fortunes change dramatically.<\/p>\n<p>With over three million books sold and multiple seasons of the TV adaptation, Herron reflects on his journey from failure to success.<\/p>\n <!-- <script type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n jQuery(document).ready(function() {\r\n jQuery(\".key-accordion-item .key-menu\").on(\"click\", function() {\r\n if (jQuery(this).parent().hasClass(\"active\")) {\r\n jQuery(this).next().slideUp();\r\n jQuery(this).parent().removeClass(\"active\");\r\n } else {\r\n jQuery(\".key-content\").slideUp();\r\n jQuery(\".key-accordion-item\").removeClass(\"active\");\r\n jQuery(this).parent().addClass(\"active\");\r\n jQuery(this).next().slideDown();\r\n }\r\n });\r\n })\r\n <\/script> -->\r\n\r\n\r\n <!-- start html -->\r\n\r\n <div class=\"news-key-takeaway-wapper\">\r\n <span style=\"background-color:#4db2ee;\">Key Takeaways<\/span>\r\n <ul class=\"news-key-nbox\" style=\"border-color:#4db2ee;background-color:rgba(77, 178, 238, 0.1);\">\r\n <li>After a few initial publishing struggles, Mick Herron had a stroke of fortune that has seen him sell over three million books.<\/li>\r\n <li>The \"Slow Horses\" TV adaptation, featuring Gary Oldman, highlights Herron's unique blend of spy fiction and humor.<\/li>\r\n <li>Despite massive success, Herron remains humble, still identifying more with his earlier failures.<\/li>\r\n <\/ul>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \n<h2>Herron’s Early Publishing Struggles and Eventual Breakthrough<\/h2>\n<p>Mick Herron’s journey as a writer began with <b>numerous rejections<\/b>, a far too familiar scenario for many <a href=\"https:\/\/culture.org\/art-and-culture\/literature\/colleen-hoover-the-bestselling-authors-rise-to-fame\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">aspiring authors<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>His first major series, <i>Slow Horses<\/i>, about a group of failed spies,<b> initially sold poorly and struggled to find a British publisher for its sequel<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these early setbacks, Herron continued to write, drawing inspiration from his experiences of professional failure.<\/p>\n<h2>Turning Point and Sudden Surge in Popularity<\/h2>\n<p>It was not until a fortunate series of events, including an award win and strategic publishing decisions, that <b>Herron’s career took a dramatic turn<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>The third season of the <a href=\"https:\/\/culture.org\/art-and-culture\/film-and-tv\/stephen-king-movies-on-netflix\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">TV adaptation<\/a><i> Slow Horses<\/i> aired with Gary Oldman portraying the disheveled spy Jackson Lamb, marking a significant success in Herron’s career.<\/p>\n<p>By then, his books had gained a <b>massive audience and been translated into 24 languages<\/b>, solidifying his international reputation.<\/p>\n<p>His <b>total sales have surpassed three million copies<\/b>.<\/p>\n<h2>Mick Herron’s Personal Reflections<\/h2>\n<p>Despite his success, Herron maintains a <b>modest lifestyle<\/b>, highlighted by his use of a decade-old Nokia phone and his preference for <b>simple living without Wi-Fi<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>His recent works continue to explore <b>themes of failure and redemption<\/b>, reflecting his own professional journey.<\/p>\n<p>Herron’s personal life, particularly his relationship with his partner Jo Howard, remains a grounding force, keeping him connected to his roots despite his literary fame.<\/p>\n<h2>Literary Style and Influences<\/h2>\n<p><b>Herron’s writing is often compared to John le Carr\u00e9’s for its complex plotting<\/b>, yet it is imbued with a unique sense of humor reminiscent of P.G. Wodehouse.<\/p>\n<p>His latest novel, <i>The Secret Hours<\/i>, delves into historical misdeeds within MI5 and showcases his flair for blending witty commentary with thrilling spy narratives.<\/p>\n<h2>Oldman’s Commitment to Slow Horses<\/h2>\n<p>Gary Oldman, who stars as Jackson Lamb in the <i>Slow Horses<\/i> TV series, <b>expressed his desire to adapt all nine novels by Mick Herron<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>Oldman’s commitment to the role is clear, with the series already renewed for a fifth season.<\/p>\n<p>In an interview, he stated, \u201c<i>If this were to be the last thing I do… I\u2019d be happy to do this and do all eight books.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>The Future of Slow Horses on TV<\/h2>\n<p>The fourth season of <i>Slow Horses<\/i>, based on Spook Street, <b>will debut in 2024<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>Each season has faithfully adapted Herron\u2019s novels, and fans eagerly anticipate the continuation of the series.<\/p>\n<p>The success of the TV adaptation has not only brought Herron\u2019s work to a broader audience but also shone a spotlight on Oldman\u2019s superb portrayal of Jackson Lamb.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":10026,"featured_media":171950,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3840],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-171948","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-literature"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171948"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10026"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=171948"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171948\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/171950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=171948"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=171948"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/culture.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=171948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}