Today is the birthday of Sir Walter Scott
He started writing to pay off his debts. His first book was Waverley, published anonymously, which was a huge best-seller. He went on to write many popular historical novels such as Rob Roy and Ivanhoe.
A number of lines from his books are common phrases today - such as “blood is thicker than water.” Many people mistakenly credit Shakespeare for Scott’s lines “O, what a tangled web we weave, / When first we practise to deceive!”
