6 Fascinating Facts About Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird was the first novel Harper Lee had published, but it wasn’t the first one she wrote. That first effort, titled Go Set a Watchman, was submitted to a publisher in 1957. When the book wasn’t accepted, Lee put it aside and ended up writing what would become To Kill a Mockingbird.

After Mockingbird, Lee started on other projects, but, to the disappointment of her many readers, no other books came out. So when a copy of Go Set a Watchman was rediscovered, Lee’s first novel got a second chance when it was published 2015. The book, which is set in the 1950s and features a grown-up Scout and an older Atticus Finch.

Here are six interesting facts about this iconic author:

There are discrepancies if Lee actually wanted ‘Watchman’ published

Lee, who suffered a stroke in 2007, has ongoing health issues that include hearing loss, limited vision and problems with her short-term memory. All this made some wonder whether the author truly wanted to publish Go Set a Watchman, as for years she’d been happy without putting out another book.

In February 2015, Lee issued a statement that said: “I’m alive and kicking and happy as hell with the reactions to Watchman.” But even that message didn’t put an end to questions. In a 2011 letter, Lee’s sister Alice had written that Lee would “sign anything put before her by anyone in whom she has confidence.” In addition, according to a July 2, 2015, article in The New York Times, her manuscript may have been discovered in 2011, not in 2014 as Lee’s lawyer has claimed.

However, others who’ve met with Lee have stated that she’s behind the decision to publish. Alabama officials investigated and found no evidence that she was a victim of coercion. And when Lee first submitted Go Set a Watchman in the 1950s, it was with the hope of seeing it released.

Lee made millions every year from ‘Mockingbird’

When To Kill a Mockingbird was first published in 1960, it quickly won over the public. The novel hit bestseller lists back then, and its sales have remained impressive over the years. Today, more than 40 million copies have been sold, and the book has also been translated into more than 40 languages.

This popularity led to an impressive income for Lee. Court papers from a 2012 lawsuit show that the author still receives about $3 million in royalties from Mockingbird every year (the lawsuit, which alleged that Lee’s former agent had tricked her into assigning him the copyright for Mockingbird, was settled in 2013). With money like that coming in, Lee never had a financial need to publish again.

She led a simple life

Lee may have become a multimillionaire thanks to Mockingbird, but the money didn’t change her lifestyle. She had a modest apartment in New York City and got around by bus while in town. When she returned to her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama (traveling by train), Lee lived in a one-story ranch house with her sister Alice. Clothes shopping there was usually done at Walmart or a Vanity Fair outlet, and Lee traveled to the laundromat in the next town when she needed something clean to wear.

So what did Lee do with her money? She did like to visit casinos — but rather than playing for high stakes, she spent time at the quarter slots. In fact, Lee used much of her wealth for charitable causes, such as funding educational opportunities (true to her publicity-averse nature, this was done anonymously).

Even when Lee had to move into an assisted living facility following her 2007 stroke, her unadorned tastes meant that she still had access to what was important to her. Alice once said about Lee, “Books are the things she cares about.” With the assistance of a magnifying device — necessary due to her macular degeneration — Lee was able to keep reading.

Her real name is Nelle

Harper Lee’s full name is Nelle Harper Lee (she was named in honor of a grandmother called Ellen; Nelle is Ellen spelled backwards) and she grew up using the name Nelle.

So why was To Kill a Mockingbird credited to Harper Lee, instead of Nelle Lee or Nelle Harper Lee? Apparently, Lee didn’t want to take the chance that people might mistake the name Nelle for Nellie. Therefore her debut novel was authored by Harper Lee — and now her follow-up novel is coming out under the same name.

Lee and Truman Capote were childhood friends and there were rumors he wrote ‘Mockingbird’

In the years following To Kill a Mockingbird‘s release, a rumor began that Lee’s longtime friend Truman Capote was the true mind behind the novel. After all, Capote was a successful author who’d written Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1958) and In Cold Blood (1966), while Lee didn’t publish another book after Mockingbird.

To be clear, Capote was not the creator of Mockingbird. For one thing, the novel has a literary voice that’s completely different from his. And in 1959, Capote wrote a letter that mentioned he’d read Lee’s book — but didn’t say anything about having written or edited the work. Lastly, Capote simply wasn’t the kind of person who shied away from taking credit for noteworthy accomplishments.

However, Capote did little to dispel the rumors while he was alive, perhaps because he was envious of his old friend’s success: Lee had been awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Mockingbird, while Capote had hoped to win one for In Cold Blood (a project Lee did significant work for), but wasn’t successful.

READ MORE: Harper Lee and Truman Capote Were Childhood Friends Until Jealously Tore Them Apart

Despite what many thought, Lee was not a recluse

While it’s true that Lee prefers a quiet life outside of the spotlight — her last major interview was given in 1964 — the author never minded being around people. In New York City, she would visit museums, the theater and go to baseball games (she was a Mets fan). In Alabama, she ate out (David’s Catfish House was a regular haunt), joined friends for fishing excursions and attended an exercise class held at Monroeville’s Community House.

Though Lee didn’t read a lot of contemporary fiction, she did enjoy J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series (according to Marja Mills, who wrote a memoir about her friendship with the author). Lee was also happy to join Oprah Winfrey for a lunch at the Four Seasons. Winfrey’s interview request was turned down, but the two still had fun together, with Winfrey noting, “We were like instant girlfriends. It was just wonderful, and I loved being with her.”