--- description: The book is a "dark fable set in contemporary Manhattan" title: 'Mad Men' Creator Matthew Weiner Is Writing His First Novel image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ea7ce01f99c1c13/6988a5f8196cf43ec203d312/matthew-weiner.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Ideas](/section/ideas/) ## Ideas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Books](/tag/books/) ## Books Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # _Mad Men_ Creator Matthew Weiner Is Writing His First Novel by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 14, 2016 2:57 PM CUT  Writer Matthew Weiner attends the premiere "Norman Lear: Just Another Version Of You" at The WGA Theater on July 14, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California. Writer Matthew Weiner attends the premiere "Norman Lear: Just Another Version Of You" at The WGA Theater on July 14, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California.Paul Archuleta—FilmMagic/Getty Images by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 14, 2016 2:57 PM CUT [_Mad Men_](http://time.com/4412823/mad-men-cast-first-episode-then-now/ "undefined") was celebrated by book-lovers for its [literary references](https://www.nypl.org/blog/2012/02/27/mad-men-reading-list "undefined") and novelistic sensibility, and now, creator [Matthew Weiner](http://time.com/3859193/my-favorite-book/ "undefined") is publishing a novel of his own. Little, Brown and Company announced on Wednesday that it will publish Weiner’s first novel, _Heather, the Totality_. A press release described the book as “a dark fable set in contemporary Manhattan” in which “three people from two worlds who are on a collision course in pursuit of a beautiful child.” Editor Judith Clain said the novel “brings to mind Edgar Allan Poe and Henry James and yet is utterly modern.” _Heather, the Totality_ is expected to be published in the fall of 2017. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4493035/mad-men-matthew-weiner-first-novel/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4493035/mad-men-matthew-weiner-first-novel/"},"headline":"Mad Men Creator Matthew Weiner Is Writing His First Novel","datePublished":"2016-09-14T14:57:02.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T00:35:22.241Z","description":"The book is a \"dark fable set in contemporary Manhattan\"","url":"https://time.com/4493035/mad-men-matthew-weiner-first-novel/","keywords":["Books"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ea7ce01f99c1c13/6988a5f8196cf43ec203d312/matthew-weiner.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Begley","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ea7ce01f99c1c13/6988a5f8196cf43ec203d312/matthew-weiner.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Premiere Of Music Box Films' \"Norman Lear: Just Another Version Of You\" - Arrivals","caption":"Premiere Of Music Box Films' \"Norman Lear: Just Another Version Of You\" - Arrivals","creditText":"Paul Archuleta—FilmMagic/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/books/","name":"Books"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4493035/mad-men-matthew-weiner-first-novel/","name":"Mad Men Creator Matthew Weiner Is Writing His First Novel"}}]}] ```