Carolyn Keene Quote

Madame Valenska sat down in one of the chairs. Whose fortune shall I tell first? she asked the girls. Nancy stepped forward. Mine. I mean . . . maybe you can tell me about something I lost. Madame invited Nancy to sit in the chair facing her. She waved her hands in front of Nancy’s face. I can see your name begins with a P. Is it . . . Patty? Nancy heard Jessie begin to laugh. It’s Nancy, Nancy said. Nancy, Patty—close enough, Madame said with a shrug. She took Nancy’s hand and traced Nancy’s palm with her index finger. That tickles! Nancy giggled. I can see that what you lost is very valuable, Madame Valenska said. Can you also see where they are? Nancy asked. Madame Valenska’s eyes twinkled. She leaned back in her chair. All I will say is this: Be aware. The clues are there. Be wise. And use your eyes. Nancy wrinkled her nose. That sounds more like a riddle than a fortune. It is a riddle, Madame said. But it also tells your fortune. Thanks, Nancy said. But she felt disappointed. I’ve gotten better fortunes in cookies, Jessie whispered as they headed out of the tent.

Carolyn Keene

Madame Valenska sat down in one of the chairs. Whose fortune shall I tell first? she asked the girls. Nancy stepped forward. Mine. I mean . . . maybe you can tell me about something I lost. Madame invited Nancy to sit in the chair facing her. She waved her hands in front of Nancy’s face. I can see your name begins with a P. Is it . . . Patty? Nancy heard Jessie begin to laugh. It’s Nancy, Nancy said. Nancy, Patty—close enough, Madame said with a shrug. She took Nancy’s hand and traced Nancy’s palm with her index finger. That tickles! Nancy giggled. I can see that what you lost is very valuable, Madame Valenska said. Can you also see where they are? Nancy asked. Madame Valenska’s eyes twinkled. She leaned back in her chair. All I will say is this: Be aware. The clues are there. Be wise. And use your eyes. Nancy wrinkled her nose. That sounds more like a riddle than a fortune. It is a riddle, Madame said. But it also tells your fortune. Thanks, Nancy said. But she felt disappointed. I’ve gotten better fortunes in cookies, Jessie whispered as they headed out of the tent.

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About Carolyn Keene

Carolyn Keene is the pseudonym of the authors of the Nancy Drew mystery stories and The Dana Girls mystery stories, both produced by the Stratemeyer Syndicate. In addition, the Keene pen name is credited with the Nancy Drew spin-off, River Heights, and the Nancy Drew Notebooks.
Edward Stratemeyer, the founder of the Syndicate, hired writers, beginning with Mildred Wirt (later Mildred Benson), to write the manuscripts for the Nancy Drew books. The writers were paid $125 for each book and were required by their contract to give up all rights to the work and to maintain confidentiality.
Benson is credited as the primary writer of Nancy Drew books under the pseudonym Carolyn Keene. Harriet Adams (Stratemeyer's daughter) rewrote the original books and added new titles after the withdrawal of Benson.
Other ghostwriters who used this name to write Nancy Drew mysteries included Leslie McFarlane, James Duncan Lawrence, Walter Karig, Nancy Axelrad, Patricia Doll, Charles S. Strong, Alma Sasse, Wilhelmina Rankin, George Waller Jr., Margaret Fischer, and Susan Wittig Albert. Also involved in the Nancy Drew writing process were Harriet Stratemeyer Adams's daughters, who gave input on the series and sometimes helped to choose book titles;: 158  the Syndicate's secretary, Harriet Otis Smith, who invented the characters of Nancy's friends Bess and George;: 140  and the editors at Grosset & Dunlap.: 228 
In 1979, the Stratemeyer Syndicate changed publishers to Simon & Schuster, a move that the former publishers, Grosset & Dunlap, went to court to prevent, claiming a breach of contract. The decision was made in favor of the Syndicate, stating that they could choose which publisher they would like to use for subsequent entries in the series.
In 1985, the Syndicate was bought by publishers Simon & Schuster; the Drew books are now handled by Mega-Books, a New York book packager.