William Keepers Maxwell

Who was William Keepers Maxwell?

William Keepers Maxwell, Jr. was an American editor, novelist, short story writer, essayist, children's author, and memoirist. He served as fiction editor for The New Yorker from 1936 to 1975. An editor devoted to his writers, Maxwell became a legendary mentor and confidant to many of the most prominent authors of his day. Although best known as an editor, Maxwell was a highly respected and award winning novelist and short story writer. His stature as a celebrated author has grown in the years following his death.