Guy de Maupassant mentions Le Horla, Mont-Oriol, and Mirbeau. 

Guy de Maupassant (1850.1893)

Autographed letter signed to the publisher Georges Charpentier.

Two pages in 12mo bearing his initials and the crossed-out address of his Yacht Bel-Ami

Antibes. Chalet des Alpes. [circa December 1886]

"I finish my novel and I live like a savage in a kind of lighthouse from which I can see fifteen to twenty leagues of sea and coastline."

Entrenched in his solitude, Maupassant evokes Le Horla, Mont-Oriol , and Mirbeau.

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"My dear friend, I couldn't reply to your telegram immediately because the rumor that's been circulating is unfounded , as they say in the newspapers. I haven't considered leaving Havard; it wasn't even a question. This rumor could only have stemmed from some criticism I made of his way of organizing his provincial sales. That's all."

Thank you most sincerely for your initiative; and as soon as I return to Paris, I will come and talk with you about the volume of short stories you asked me for last year [in reality, Maupassant would publish Le Horla with Ollendorff in May 1887]. At the moment, I am finishing my novel and I am living like a savage in a sort of lighthouse from which I can see fifteen to twenty leagues of sea and coastline.

Please convey my warmest regards to Madame Charpentier and accept my heartfelt affection. Guy de Maupassant. Is it with you that Mirbeau's book, *Le Calvaire*, is published ? Is it for sale? If so, I would very much like a copy. I read an issue of *La Nouvelle Revue* which greatly impressed me.

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Maupassant always paid close attention to the launch and sales of his works, sometimes with a ruthlessness that reflects his financial needs. Thus, he often complained about Victor Havard, particularly from 1884 onwards, and simultaneously turned to other publishers, such as Paul Ollendorff (who published the legendary Horla ), from 1887.

He stayed at the Chalet des Alpes in Antibes from autumn 1886 to April 1887, and it was there that he completed the writing of Mont-Oriol , which was initially published in Gil-Blas , then as a book by Havard on February 6, 1887.

Mirbeau, for his part, had just published Le Calvaire in several installments in La Nouvelle Revue (between September 15 and November 15, 1886).

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Guy de Maupassant. Marlo Johnston. Fayard Publishers.