Ernest Vincent Wright

Ernest Vincent Wright (1872 – October 7, 1939)[1] was an American writer known for his book Gadsby, a 50,000-word novel which, except for four instances, did not use the letter E. The biographical details of his life are unclear.

[2] In October 1930, Wright approached the Evening Independent newspaper and proposed it sponsor a blue lipogram writing competition, with $250 for the winner.

[3] A 2007 post on the Bookride blog about rare books says Wright spent five and a half months writing Gadsby on a typewriter with the "e" key tied down.

The blog post says the book was never reviewed "and only kept alive by the efforts of a few avant-garde French intellos and assorted connoisseurs of the odd, weird and zany".

[4] Wright completed a draft of Gadsby in 1936, during a nearly six-month stint at the National Military Home in California.