Carlyle had difficulty finding a publisher for the novel, and he began composing it as an article in October 1831 at Craigenputtock. "Fraser's Magazine" serialised it in 1833–1834. The text would first appear in volume form in Boston in 1836, its publication arranged by Ralph Waldo Emerson, who much admired the book and Carlyle. Emerson's savvy dealing with the overseas publishers would ensure Carlyle received high compensation, which the novel did not attain in Britain. The first British edition would be published in London in 1838.