Anning's life story was seen as inspirational by a number of writers in the 20th century. Most of this material was intended as inspirational literature for children, and tended to focus on her childhood and early career, neglecting her later accomplishments. Much of it was also romanticized and not always historically accurate. She appeared as a character in historical novels, perhaps most notably in "The French Lieutenant's Woman" (1969) by John Fowles, which was made into a feature film in 1981. Fowles observed critically that no British scientist had named a species after Anning in her lifetime.