Editing Nancy Drew (section)

== History ==
=== 1930–1959: Early stories ===
{{Main|Nancy Drew Mystery Stories{{!}}''Nancy Drew Mystery Stories''}}
The earliest Nancy Drew books were published as dark-blue [[hardcover]]s with the titles stamped in orange lettering with dark-blue outlines and no other images on the cover. The [[Cover art|covers]] went through several changes in the early years: leaving the orange lettering with no outline and adding an orange silhouette of Nancy peering through a magnifying glass; then changing to a lighter blue board with dark blue lettering and silhouette; then changing the position of the title and silhouette on the front with black lettering and a more "modern" silhouette.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nancy Drew Mystery Stories |url=http://www.series-books.com/nancydrew/nancydrew.html |access-date=2024-07-13 |website=www.series-books.com}}</ref>

Nancy Drew is depicted as an independent-minded 16-year-old who has already completed her high school education (16 was the minimum age for graduation at the time).{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} While the first four books of the series are noted for their strong continuity and sense of passing seasons and time, it is lost throughout the series with changes like Nancy's hair color being changed to [[Titian hair|titian]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} Her age is changed from 16 to 18 in book 31, ''The Ringmaster's Secret'' (1953), with no in-universe explanation.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} Affluent (her father is a successful lawyer), she maintains an active social, volunteer, and sleuthing schedule, as well as participating in athletics and the arts, but is never shown as working for a living or acquiring job skills.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} Nancy is affected neither by the [[Great Depression]]—although many of the characters in her early cases need assistance as they are poverty-stricken—nor [[World War II]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}

Nancy lives with her lawyer father, Carson Drew, and their [[Housekeeper (domestic worker)|housekeeper]], Hannah Gruen. Some critics prefer the Nancy of these volumes, largely written by Mildred Benson. Benson is credited with "[breathing]… a feisty spirit into Nancy's character."<ref name="Fisher">Fisher, "Nancy Drew, Sleuth."</ref> The original Nancy Drew is sometimes claimed: "to be a lot like [Benson] herself&nbsp;– confident, competent, and totally independent, quite unlike the cardboard character that [Edward] Stratemeyer had outlined."<ref>Kismaric & Heiferman (2007), 24.</ref>

This original Nancy is frequently outspoken and authoritative, so much so that Edward Stratemeyer told Benson that the character was "much too flip, and would never be well received."<ref>Quoted in Plunkett-Powell (1993), 33.</ref><ref>While Benson repeatedly stated in interviews that Stratemeyer used these words to her (Keeline 25), James Keeline states that there is no independent confirmation of this; Stratemeyer's written comments to Benson upon receipt of the manuscript for ''The Secret of the Old Clock'' contain no such criticism (Keeline 26).</ref> The editors at [[Grosset & Dunlap]] disagreed,<ref>Plunkett-Powell (1993), 33.</ref> but Benson also faced criticism from her next Stratemeyer Syndicate editor, [[Harriet Adams]], who felt that Benson should make Nancy's character more "sympathetic, kind-hearted and lovable." In Benson's words, Adams repeatedly asked Benson to "make the sleuth less bold… 'Nancy said' became 'Nancy said sweetly,' 'she said kindly,' and the like, all designed to produce a less abrasive, more caring character."<ref>Quoted in Kismaric and Heiferman (2007), 28.</ref> Many readers and commentators, however, admire Nancy's original outspoken character.<ref>See, for example, Kismaric & Heiferman (2007), Lapin (1986), and Fisher.</ref>

A prominent critic of the Nancy Drew character, at least the Nancy of these early Nancy Drew stories,<ref>. At the same time, Mason's book was originally published in 1975 after the Drew books began to be revised and rewritten; Mason cites the unrevised volumes almost exclusively.</ref> is mystery writer [[Bobbie Ann Mason]]. Mason contends that Nancy owes her popularity largely to "the appeal of her high-class advantages."<ref>Mason (1995), 49.</ref> Mason also criticizes the series for its racism and classism,<ref>Mason (1995), 69–71.</ref> arguing that Nancy is the upper-class [[White Anglo-Saxon Protestant|WASP]] defender of a "fading aristocracy, threatened by the restless lower classes."<ref>Mason (1995), 73.</ref> Mason further contends that the "most appealing elements of these daredevil girl sleuth adventure books are (secretly) of this kind: tea and fancy cakes, romantic settings, food eaten in quaint places (never a [[Howard Johnson's|Ho-Jo's]]), delicious pauses that refresh, old-fashioned picnics in the woods, precious jewels, and heirlooms… The word dainty is a subversive affirmation of a feminized universe."<ref name="mason-60">Mason (1995), 60.</ref> At the bottom, says Mason, the character of Nancy Drew is that of a girl who can be "perfect" because she is "free, white, and sixteen"<ref name="mason-50" /> and whose "stories seem to satisfy two standards&nbsp;– adventure and domesticity. But adventure is the superstructure, domesticity the bedrock."<ref name="mason-60" />

Others argue that "Nancy, despite her traditionally feminine attributes, such as good looks, a variety of clothes for all social occasions, and an awareness of good housekeeping, is often praised for her seemingly masculine traits… she operates best independently, has the freedom and money to do as she pleases, and outside of a telephone call or two home, seems to live for solving mysteries rather than participating in family life."<ref>Parry (1997), 148.</ref>

=== 1959–1985: Continuation of ''Mystery Stories,'' revisions at Grosset & Dunlap ===
At the insistence of publishers [[Grosset & Dunlap]], the Nancy Drew books were revised in 1959 to make them more modern and eliminate [[Ethnic stereotype|racist stereotypes]].<ref>Carpan (2008), 15.</ref> Although Harriet Adams felt that these changes were unnecessary, she oversaw a complete overhaul of the series, as well as writing new volumes in keeping with the new guidelines laid down by Grosset & Dunlap.<ref name="rehak-243" />

The series did not so much eliminate racial stereotypes, however, as eliminate non-white characters.<ref name="rehak-248" /> For example, in the original version of ''[[The Hidden Window Mystery]]'' (1956), Nancy visits friends in the [[Southern United States|South]] whose [[African-American]] servant, "lovable old Beulah… serves squabs, sweet potatoes, corn pudding, piping hot biscuits, and strawberry shortcake."<ref name="mason-70">Mason (1995), 70.</ref> The house mistress waits until Beulah has left the room and then says to Nancy, "I try to make things easier for Beulah, but she insists on cooking and serving everything the old-fashioned way. I must confess, though, that I love it."<ref>Keene (1956), 64. Quoted in Mason (1995), 70.</ref> In the revised 1975 version, Beulah is changed to Anna, a "plump, smiling housekeeper".<ref>Keene (1975), 35.</ref>

Many other changes were relatively minor. The new books were bound in yellow with color illustrations on the front covers. Nancy's age was raised from 16 to 18, her mother was said to have died when Nancy was three, rather than ten, and other small changes were made.<ref name="Fisher" /> Housekeeper Hannah Gruen, sent off to the kitchen in early stories, became less a servant and more a mother surrogate.<ref>Kismaric and Heiferman (2007), 94.</ref>

Critics saw this Nancy of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s as an improvement in some ways, a step back in others: "In these new editions, an array of elements had been modified… and most of the more overt elements of racism had been excised. In an often overlooked alteration, however, the tomboyish nature ature of the text's title character was also tamed."<ref>Abate (2008), 167.</ref> Nancy becomes much more respectful of male authority figures in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, leading some to claim that the revised Nancy becomes too agreeable and less distinctive, writing of her, "In the revised books, Nancy is relentlessly upbeat, puts up with her father's increasingly protective tendencies, and, when asked if she goes to church in the 1969 ''[[The Clue of the Tapping Heels]]'', replies, 'As often as I can."<ref>Kismaric & Heiferman (2007), 113–14.</ref>

Harriet Adams continued to oversee the series until she died in 1982. After her death, Adams' protégés, Nancy Axelrad and Lilo Wuenn, and her three children oversaw the Nancy Drew books and other Stratemeyer Syndicate series production. In 1985, the five sold the Syndicate and all rights to [[Simon & Schuster]]. Simon & Schuster turned to book packager Mega-Books for new writers.<ref name="plunkett-29" /> These books{{Which|date=March 2024}} continued to have the characters solve mysteries in the present day while still containing the same basic formula and style of the books during the Syndicate.{{Original research inline|date=March 2024}}

=== 1986–1997: ''Files'', ''Super Mystery'', and ''On Campus'' ===
{{main|The Nancy Drew Files{{!}}''The Nancy Drew Files''|Super Mystery{{!}}''Super Mystery''|Nancy Drew on Campus{{!}}''Nancy Drew on Campus''}}
[[File:Ndharh.jpg|thumb|''The Nancy Drew Files'' showcased a more mature character version and romance elements, as seen on the cover of ''Hit and Run Holiday'' (1986). Here, Nancy is in swimwear, in proximity to an attractive young man rather than a clue.|upright]]
In 1985, as the sale of the Stratemeyer Syndicate to Simon & Schuster was finalized, Simon & Schuster wanted to launch a spin-off series that focused on more mature mysteries and incorporated [[Romance novel|romance]] into the stories. To test whether this would work, the final two novels before the sale, ''The Bluebeard Room'' and ''The Phantom of Venice'', were used as [[backdoor pilots]] for the new series.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}

The books read are drastically different from the preceding novels of the past 55 years. For example, ''The Phantom of Venice'' (1985) opens with Nancy wondering in italics, "''Am I or am I not in love with Ned Nickerson?''"<ref>Keene (1985), 1.</ref> Nancy begins dating other young men and acknowledges sexual desires: "'I saw [you kissing him]… You don't have to apologize to me if some guy turns you on.' 'Gianni ''doesn't'' turn me on!… Won't you please let me explain.'"<ref>Keene (1985), 111–12. Cited by Shangraw Fox.</ref>

The next year, Simon & Schuster launched the first Nancy Drew spin-off, titled ''The Nancy Drew Files''. However, after the above-mentioned two Mystery Stories books, as implied in ''The Double Horror of Fenley Place'', Nancy appears to be dating Ned again and the series continues without any reference to Nancy dating other guys in ''The Bluebeard Room'' or in ''The Phantom of Venice''.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

The Nancy Drew character in the ''Files'' series has earned mixed reviews among fans. Some, including [[sex-positive feminists]], contend that Nancy's character becomes "more like Mildred Wirt Benson's original heroine than any [version] since 1956."<ref>Caprio (1992), 27.</ref> Others criticize the series for its increasing incorporation of romance and "[dilution] of pre-feminist [[wikt:moxie|moxie]]."<ref>Torrance (2007), D01.</ref>

One reviewer noticed, "Millie [Mildred Wirt Benson] purists tend to look askance upon the ''Files'' series, in which fleeting pecks bestowed on Nancy by her longtime steady, Ned Nickerson, give way to lingering embraces in a Jacuzzi."<ref name="leighbrown-1d" /> Cover art for ''Files'' titles, such as ''Hit and Run Holiday'' (1986), reflects these changes; Nancy is often dressed provocatively, in short skirts, shirts that reveal her stomach or cleavage, or a bathing suit. She is often pictured with an attentive, handsome boy in the background and frequently appears aware of and interested in that boy.{{Original research inline|date=March 2024}}

The books emphasize character relationships, with Nancy Drew and Ned Nickerson becoming more of an on-off couple and having other love interests that span multiple books. However, at the end of the last book in the series, statements imply that Nancy keeps dating Ned. The end of the book ''Murder on Ice'' strongly implies that Nancy and Ned engage in [[sexual intercourse]] (at the very least, they go into a Jacuzzi together).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Keene |first1=Carolyn |title=Murder on Ice |date=21 January 2014 |publisher=Collins |isbn=9781481414470 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nWxvAAAAQBAJ&q=jacuzzi}}</ref> Nancy also becomes more vulnerable, being often [[chloroform]]ed into unconsciousness, or defenseless against [[chokehold]]s.<ref>Foster (1986), 31.</ref>

Furthermore, the minor thefts of the original books are replaced by murders and murder attempts, and Nancy is frequently in mortal danger. In an extreme example, in the book ''Deadly Doubles'', the fate of an entire nation and millions of lives are at stake, a character is tortured and strangled off-screen, and Nancy and her allies are nearly killed on five separate occasions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Keene |first1=Carolyn |title=Deadly Doubles |date=11 February 2014 |publisher=Collins |isbn=9781481414517 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2cBRAQAAQBAJ}}</ref>

The ''Files'' also launched its spin-off. A crossover spin-off series with ''The Hardy Boys'', titled the ''[[Super Mystery]]'' series, began in 1988.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} These books were in continuity with the similar ''Hardy Boys'' spin-off, ''[[List of Hardy Boys books#The Hardy Boys Casefiles (1987–1998)|The Hardy Boys Casefiles]]''.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}

In 1995, Nancy Drew finally goes to college in the ''[[Nancy Drew on Campus]]'' series. These books read more similar to soap opera books, such as the ''[[Sweet Valley High]]'' series.{{Original research inline|date=March 2024}} The ''On Campus'' books focus more on romance plots and also center around other characters; the mysteries are merely used as subplots.{{Original research inline|date=March 2024}}

By reader request, Nancy broke off her long-term relationship with boyfriend Ned Nickerson in the second volume of the series, ''On Her Own'' (1995).<ref name="Fisher" /><ref>Drew (1997), 185.</ref> Similar to the ''Files'' series, reception for the ''On Campus'' series was also mixed, with some critics viewing the inclusion of adult themes such as [[date rape]] as "unsuccessful".<ref>{{cite book|last= Mitchell |first=Claudia|title=Girl Culture: Studying girl culture : a readers' guide|year=2007|publisher= Greenwood |isbn=978-0-31333909-7|page =450|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=arQy0v_PBx4C&pg=PA450}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Nancy Drew is updated – and dated|url= http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=AK&s_site=ohio&p_multi=AK&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EE780A8128CB7B9&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|access-date=3 February 2013 |newspaper=Akron Beacon Journal |date= September 21, 1995}}</ref> Carolyn Carpan commented that the series was "more soap opera romance than mystery" and that Nancy "comes across as dumb, missing easy clues she wouldn't have missed in previous series".<ref>{{cite book |last=Carpan|first= Carolyn|title= Sisters, Schoolgirls, and Sleuths|year= 2009 |publisher= Scarecrow Press|isbn= 978-0-81086395-8 |pages= 135–36|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=8kdbbiIqVbsC&pg=PA136}}</ref> The series was also criticized for focusing more on romance than on grades or studying, with one critic stating that the series resembled collegiate academic studying in the 1950s, where "women were more interested in pursuing… the [[MRS Degree|'MRS' degree]]."<ref>{{cite book |last= Johnson |first= Naomi |title= Consuming Desires: A Feminist Analysis of Bestselling Teen Romance Novels |year= 2008 |publisher= University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |isbn= 978-0-54932477-5 |page= 18 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=DB01qubusloC&pg=PA19 }}{{Dead link|date=February 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In 1997, Simon & Schuster announced a mass cancellation of ''Nancy Drew'' and ''Hardy Boys'' spin-offs, except for younger children.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} The ''Files'' series ran until the end of 1997, while both the ''Super Mystery'' and ''On Campus'' series ran until the beginning of 1998.{{Original research inline|date=March 2024}}

=== 2003–2012: ''Girl Detective'' and graphic novels ===
{{Main|Nancy Drew: Girl Detective{{!}}''Nancy Drew: Girl Detective''}}
In 2003, publishers Simon & Schuster ended the original Nancy Drew series and began featuring Nancy's character in a new mystery series, ''Girl Detective''. The Nancy Drew of the ''Girl Detective'' series drives a [[Hybrid vehicle|hybrid car]], uses a mobile phone, and recounts her mysteries in the [[First-person narrative|first person]]. Since the series is set in the 21st century, several technologies and pop-culture references exist. Many{{Who|date=March 2024}} applaud these changes, arguing that Nancy has not changed at all other than learning to use a cell phone.<ref>Springen and Meadows(2005).</ref> Others{{Who|date=March 2024}} praise the series as more realistic; Nancy, these commentators argue, is now a less perfect and therefore more likable being, one whom girls can more easily relate to&nbsp;– a better role model than the old Nancy because she can be emulated, rather than a "prissy automaton of perfection."<ref>Benfer (2004), A15.</ref>

Some, mostly fans, vociferously lament the changes, seeing Nancy as a silly, air-headed girl whose trivial adventures (such as discovering who squished the zucchini in 2004's ''Without a Trace'') "hold a shallow mirror to a pre-teen's world."<ref>Corrigan (2004).</ref> Leona Fisher argues that the new series portrays an increasingly white River Heights, partially because "the clumsy first-person narrative voice makes it nearly impossible to interlace external authorial attitudes into the discourse," while it continues and worsens "the implicitly xenophobic cultural representations of racial, ethnic, and linguistic others" by introducing gratuitous speculations on characters' national and ethnic origins.<ref>Fisher, Leona (2008), 73.</ref>

The character is also the heroine of a series of graphic novels, begun in 2005 and produced by Papercutz. The graphic novels are written by [[Stefan Petrucha]] and illustrated in [[manga]]-style artwork by Sho Murase. The character's graphic novel incarnation has been described as "a fun, sassy, modern-day teen who is still hot on the heels of criminals."<ref>"Sleuths Go Graphic" (2008).</ref>

When the 2007 film was released, a non-canon novelization of the movie was written to look like the older books. A new book was written for each of the ''Girl Detective'' and ''Clue Crew'' series, which deal with a mystery on a movie set. In 2008, the ''Girl Detective'' series was re-branded into trilogies with a model on the cover. These mysteries became deeper, with the mystery often spread across three books and multiple culprits. These trilogies also met with negative fan reception due to Nancy's constant mistakes, the shortness of the books, and the lack of action.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} With the new trilogy format, sales began slipping.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} In 2010, Simon & Schuster cut back from six to four ''Nancy Drew'' books per year.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} In December 2011, they announced that the series was canceled along with the Hardy Boys ''[[Undercover Brothers]]''.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}

=== 2013–present: ''Diaries'' ===
{{Expand section|date=November 2017}}
With the cancellation of the ''Girl Detective'' series, the ''Diaries'' series began in 2013, following a similar format to its predecessor with first person narration and references to modern pop culture and technology. The books, written under the Carolyn Keene pseudonym, are targeted to readers aged 8–12 and primarily follow Nancy, with her friends Bess and George, solving both violent and nonviolent crimes.<ref>{{Cite book |date=August 15, 2023 |title=Nancy Drew Diaries |url=https://www.simonandschuster.com/series/Nancy-Drew-Diaries |access-date=August 15, 2023 }}</ref> There are 26 books in the series, including one holiday special published in 2018 that also features The Hardy Boys.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/A-Nancy-Drew-Christmas/Carolyn-Keene/Nancy-Drew-Diaries/9781534431638 |title=A Nancy Drew Christmas |date=2020-10-20 |isbn=978-1-5344-3163-8 |language=en |last1=Keene |first1=Carolyn |publisher=Simon and Schuster }}</ref> Like in the ''Girl Detective'' series, ''Diaries'' features themes of environmentalism.

This is the first series to be available in three different formats: paperback, hardcover (with dust jacket), and eBooks.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}}