Who wrote the first 23 mysteries in the Nancy Drew series under the pseudonym Carolyn Keene?

mk2norwich

According to various sources, 'Carolyn Keene' was not one person, but 'a number of ghost writers'. http://collectbooks.about.com/cs/nancydrew/ Apr 20 03, 11:17 PM

McGruff

Mildred Wirt Benson, here are some pertinent excerpts from her obituary. 05/29/2002 - Updated 02:11 PM ET Nancy Drew's first author dies Toledo Blade Benson TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Mildred Wirt Benson, a newspaperwoman who originated the popular children's mystery series about a young sleuth named Nancy Drew, has died. She was 96. *Benson was a journalist for 58 years and wrote more than 130 books, including the Penny Parker mystery series. She also penned countless short stories, but is best known for creating Nancy Drew, who captivated generations of girls. *The series is still in print and has sold over 200 million books in 17 languages. Dozens of ghost writers followed Benson, also writing under the name Carolyn Keene. *Benson, known as Millie to friends and fans, wrote 23 of the 30 original Nancy Drew stories using the Keene pseudonym. She was paid $125 per book and never collected royalties from the books, movies and board games. *She was bound by an agreement with the publisher not to publicly reveal her identity as the series author, but it became known in 1980 when she testified in a court case involving Nancy Drew's publisher. www.usatoday.com/life/books/2002/ 2002-05-29-nancy-drew-author-obit.htm Jul 05 03, 2:34 PM