Morrell's second projected source of funds was his account of his voyages, which the firm of J. and J. Harper were willing to publish.Fairhead, p. 107–9, 359 They engaged an experienced writer and dramatist, Samuel Woodworth, to make sense of Morrell's notes and sea journals, although Woodworth's role as ghost writer was not made public.Fairhead, pp. 141–42 Abby Morrell's journals received similar treatment from another established author, Samuel Knapp. His book was published in December 1832, hers early in 1833. Morrell's was very successful and sold well; the New York Mirror found it "a highly interesting and instructive work", with "stirring adventures and much geographical and nautical information". France's leading explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville was complimentary, acknowledging Morrell as "courageous, skilled and dedicated";Fairhead, p. 143 the explorer and journalist Jeremiah Reynolds, on the other hand, observed that the account contained more poetry than truth. Abby's book attracted less attention. It purported to be written to promote "the amelioration of the condition of the American seaman", a subject in which she had not otherwise evinced interest.Fairhead, p. 122 Woodworth exploited the public's curiosity by preparing a stage play, The Cannibals, which opened at the Bowery Theatre, New York, in March 1833 and had a lengthy and successful run.Fairhead, p. 144–46 Morrell's ghosted account was one of the sources used by Edgar Allan Poe in his novel The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym.Peeples, p. 56
