Truman Capote House shortly afterwards. For Capote, "Breakfast at Tiffany's" was a turning point, as he explained to Roy Newquist ("Counterpoint", 1964): The "new book", "In Cold Blood: A True Account of a Multiple Murder and Its Consequences" (1965), was inspired by a 300 word article that ran in the November 16, 1959 "The New York Times". The story described the unexplained murder of the Clutter family in rural Holcomb, Kansas, and quoted the local sheriff as saying, "This is apparently the case of a psychopathic killer." Fascinated by this brief news item, Capote traveled with Harper Lee to Holcomb and visited
Truman Capote was sorting cartoons and clipping newspapers. Still, I was fortunate to have it, especially since I was determined never to set a studious foot inside a college classroom. I felt that either one was or wasn't a writer, and no combination of professors could influence the outcome. I still think I was correct, at least in my own case." He left his job to live with relatives in Alabama and began writing his first novel, "Summer Crossing". Capote based the character of Idabel in "Other Voices, Other Rooms" on his Monroeville neighbor and best friend, Harper Lee. Capote once acknowledged