Frances Little

Born Fannie Caldwell in Shelbyville, Kentucky, Frances Little was the pen name of an American writer whose work grew out of real experience abroad. Before publishing books, she taught kindergarten in Louisville and later worked in Hiroshima, Japan, from 1902 to 1907.

Her breakthrough came with The Lady of the Decoration (1906), a novel based on letters she wrote during her time in Japan. The book became a major success in the United States, and she continued writing fiction and related works shaped by Japanese settings and themes.

The pen name “Frances Little” was created from her nickname, “Little Fan,” turned around by her niece, the writer Alice Hegan Rice. After returning to Kentucky, she lectured on Japan and kept writing for years before her death in Louisville in 1941.