 Simon & Schuster had published her first book "Under the Sea Wind" in 1941; it was reviewed favorably but it sold poorly.Carson initially planned to call the sequel "Return to the Sea", and began writing in 1948, just after hiring Marie Rodell as her literary agent.Carson began by writing a single chapter (what would be "The Birth of an Island") along with a detailed outline, which Rodell used to pitch the book to publishers.