 His first, and not very good novel, "The Friendly Enemy", was published in 1913.Before the First World War broke out, he spent much of his leisure time at the Poetry Bookshop in London, which was run by Monro, and probably wrote a great many poems and short stories.In August 1914, though quite unmilitary, he joined the armed forces, and the following year obtained a commission in the Sherwood Foresters.