A Night in the Cemetery

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While the plays and novellas by Anton Chekhov are known and loved the world over, it will come as a surprise to many to learn that he actually began his career as a crime and mystery writer. He had always been fond of the genre, and during his mid-twenties, he began writing suspense stories as a hobby while still in medical school at Moscow University. His first story, “What is Met in the Novels,” was published shortly thereafter in Dragonfly magazine. As befitting Chekhov’s exceptional style and sensibilities, the letter he received from the editors at Dragonfly on January 13, 1880, began his writing career in an equally absurdist way: “This isn’t bad at all. We will publish the material you sent us. Best blessings to you and your future work.” He continued to write suspense stories as a young doctor, eventually segueing into the more “literary” forms that cemented his place in literary history, returning to the crime and mystery genre at the end of his life.

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