James M. Cain

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James M. Cain


Born
in Annapolis, Maryland, The United States
July 01, 1892

Died
October 27, 1977

Genre


James Mallahan Cain (July 1, 1892–October 27, 1977) was an American journalist and novelist. Although Cain himself vehemently opposed labeling, he is usually associated with the hard-boiled school of American crime fiction and seen as one of the creators of the "roman noir."

He was born into an Irish Catholic family in Annapolis, Maryland, the son of a prominent educator and an opera singer. He inherited his love for music from his mother, but his high hopes of starting a career as a singer himself were thwarted when she told him that his voice was not good enough.

After graduating from Washington College where his father, James W. Cain served as president, in 1910, he began working as a journalist for The Baltimore Sun.

He was drafted into th
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More books by James M. Cain…
Quotes by James M. Cain  (?)
Quotes are added by the Goodreads community and are not verified by Goodreads. (Learn more)

“If your writing doesn't keep you up at night, it won't keep anyone else up either”
James M. Cain

“Love, when you get fear in it, it's not love any more. It's hate.”
James M. Cain, The Postman Always Rings Twice

“You have to wait for your mind to catch up with whatever it is it’s working on; then you can write a novel.”
James M. Cain

Polls

February 2016 Monthly Short Story Poll

1942, The Stranger by Albert Camus, 123 pages
 
  27 votes, 18.9%

1915, The Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka, 98 pages
 
  21 votes, 14.7%

1945, Animal Farm by George Orwell, 102 pages
 
  20 votes, 14.0%

1952, Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett, 109 pages
 
  17 votes, 11.9%

1937, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, 103 pages
 
  16 votes, 11.2%

 
  9 votes, 6.3%

1871, Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, 108 pages
 
  7 votes, 4.9%

1936, Double Indemnity by James M. Cain, 115 pages
 
  7 votes, 4.9%

1894, A Respectable Woman by Kate Chopin, 26 pages
 
  6 votes, 4.2%

1960, Dreamtigers by Jorge Luis Borges, 96 pages
 
  6 votes, 4.2%

1912, Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw, 96 pages
 
  5 votes, 3.5%

 
  2 votes, 1.4%

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