10 Famous Writers Who Disappeared Mysteriously

People are reported missing every time. They leave memories, authorities, and loved ones to come up with theories and piece together clues. Sometimes, some explanations are logical. However, at other times, there are no clear theories and it remains an enigma forever. All these disappearances were not of the forever kind. However, they are odd and thought-provoking. Here is a list of 10 famous writers who disappeared mysteriously.

Agatha Christie

If you are aware of the detective genre, you know who Agatha Christie is. She was popular for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections. Agatha Christie is listed in the Guinness World Records as the best-selling fiction writer. Her novels have sold over two billion copies. After a quarrel with her husband Archie regarding separation on December 3, 1926, Agatha disappeared from their home in Sunningdale. The following morning car was discovered at Newlands Corner and it was feared that she may have drowned herself in the Silent Pool. Her disappearance made international headlines. It was on the front page of The New York Times. She was nowhere to be found for the next 10 days. Christie was in Swan Hydropathic Hotel under the name of Mrs. Tressa Neele. Neele, the surname of Nancy, her husband’s lover.

Ambrose Bierce

American short story writer, poet, journalist, and American Civil War veteran Ambrose Bierce was born in Meigs County, Ohio on June 24, 1842. He was considered the most influential journalist in the U.S. His war stories inspired writers like Ernest Hemingway and Stephen Crane. ”As to me, I leave here tomorrow for an unknown destination”, he closed the letter with this line, he wrote for his friend Blanche Partington. This later dated December 26, 1913, was Ambrose Bierce’s last communication with the world.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

French writer, poet, journalist, and aristocrat Antoine de Saint-Exupéry was born in Lyron, France on June 29, 1900. He is best remembered for The Little Prince. He was a successful commercial pilot before the Second World War. Antoine joined the French Air Force at the beginning of the war. When French general Charles de Gaulle publicly implied that the writer was supporting Germany, Antoine became depressed. He even started drinking heavily. On July 31, 1944, Antoine took off in an unarmed P-38 on his ninth reconnaissance mission from the airbase on Corsica, and he vanished. He disappeared completely without a trace.

Barbara Newhall Follett

American child prodigy writer Barbara Newhall Follett was born in Hanover, New Hampshire on March 4, 1914. The House Without Windows, her first novel was published when she was just twelve years old. Her next novel, The Voyage of the Norman D gained critical acclaim when she was just 14 years old. In December 1939, when she was just 25, she reportedly became depressed with her marriage and left her apartment, never to be seen again.

Edgar Allan Poe

American poet, writer, and critic, Edgar Allan Poe were born in Boston, U.S. on January 19, 1809. Poe is considered to be the inventor of detective fiction. He was also regarded as a central figure of Romanticism in the United States, and American literature. His 1845 published poem “The Raven” was an instant success. He planned to produce his journal The Penn but it didn’t happen because of his sudden death. On October 3, 1849, he was found semiconscious in Baltimore. He was taken to the Washington Medical College and he died there on October 7, 1849. No one knows how he got into that state, or why was he wearing clothes that were not his, and there are several speculations. Some of the speculations are syphilis, epilepsy, heart disease, rabies, cholera, carbon monoxide poisoning, rabies, and more.

Ian Mackintosh

Ham Ian Macintosh was born on July 26, 1940, in Inverness, Scotland. He was a British Navy officer, a thriller novel writer, and a screenwriter for British television. A Slaying in September, his first novel was published in 1967. Between 1967 and 1970, he wrote four other novels. On the evening of July 7, 1979, Mackintosh was flying with two other people. One of them was experienced British Airways captain Graham Baber and the other one was his girlfriend, Susan Insole. The distress signal of the plane was picked up by the United States Coast Guard. No wreckage of the plane was ever found and the passengers have not been heard from since.

Irmgard Keun

German novelist Irmgard Keun was born in Charlottenburg on February 6, 1905. She is noted for her portrayals of the life of women. Her books were banned by Nazi authorities. However, she gained recognition during the last years of her life. The greatest trick that Keun managed to play with everyone is that she convinced the world she is no more. 31-year-old Keun was living the exile in France or Netherlands. Three years before Nazis had condemned her for her recent novel which dealt with anti-German themes. When the fascists began their occupation of the Netherlands, a British newspaper reported that she is dead. However, the news was false. She died of lung cancer in 1982, at the age of 77.

Oscar Zeta Acosta

Mexican-American politician, activist, and novelist Oscar Acosta Fierro was born on April 8, 1935, in El Paso, Texas. He was popular for his novels Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo and The Revolt of the Cockroach People. Zeta was friends with American author Hunter S. Thompson. He disappeared while traveling in Mazaltan, Mexico in May 1974. His son, Marco Acosta believes he is the last person to talk to his father. Hunter Thompson believed that either Zeta was murdered by drug dealers as he was an addict, or he was a victim of political assassination.

Solomon Northup

American abolitionist and author of Twelve Years a Slave, Solomon Northup was born on July 10, 1807, or 1808 in Minerva, New York. Solomon was the son of a freed slave and a free woman of color. Northup was a farmer and professional violinist. In later years he was quite active in the abolitionist movement. He also lectured about the movement before the American Civil War. After 1857, Northup was not residing with his family. His family and friends speculated that he was enslaved. 21st-century^st century historians Carol Wilson and Clifford Brown believe that he died of natural causes. According to them, he was too old to be of interest to slave catchers.

Weldon Kees

Kees remained creative throughout his life from studying, and painting, to playing jazz music, until he disappeared in 1955. Weldon was born on February 24, 1914, in Beatrice, Nebraska. He graduated college in 1935 and soon after started publishing poems. The writer started painting in the mid-forties. His paintings were often compared to abstract expressionists like William de Kooning. During the mid-1950s, he became increasingly depressed and got separated from his wife in 1954. He even confessed to having tried jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. On July 19, 1955, his car was found abandoned on the Marin County side of the Golden Gate Bridge.

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