A "bird's-eye view" of the Strand (1892)

Founded in January 1891, The Strand Magazine, named after a fashionable London street, was aimed squarely at its target audience's middle-class tastes. A typical issue might feature illustrated articles of scientific and historical interest, a series of humorous cartoons on a theme, pictures of famous people at different ages (from toddler to adult), interviews with celebrities, a treatment of a controversial issue of the day, and one or more pieces of fiction. The factual articles were not too complex, and the fiction tended to feature a mystery or "twist" to keep the reader interested. Nevertheless, the articles were skillfully edited and stylishly presented in a sophisticated format. Whoever bought a copy of The Strand felt like a true Londoner.

A cover of The Strand Magazine from 1907

Conan Doyle wanted fame and success as a writer, and he went about achieving it more systematically and shrewdly than he had approached his medical career. First, he hired a literary agent, A. P. Watt, the very first man to advertise that sort of service. Then, he thought long and hard about what might appeal to his audience. Fearing that serialized stories would be of limited use to a reader who missed an issue, Conan Doyle decided to write stories that could be read independently but whose central character would be the same. Sherlock Holmes, who had already been the hero of Conan Doyle's novels A Study in Scarlet and Sign of the Four, seemed like a good candidate for such a series. Conan Doyle's agent submitted "A Scandal in Bohemia" to The Strand. It was accepted, and Conan Doyle was contracted to write a total of six stories featuring his detective.

The Strand's printing room

Because of the very small success achieved by his first two Holmes novels, Conan Doyle's expectations were low. When "A Scandal in Bohemia" appeared in July 1891, during The Strand Magazine's first year, it was an instant hit. In assuring his own future, Conan Doyle also assured the grand success of The Strand, which ran monthly until 1950.