 Back in London , Fleming had his manuscript — which he described as his " dreadful oafish opus " — retyped by Joan Howe , his red @-@ haired secretary at The Times on whom the character Miss Moneypenny was partly based . Clare Blanchard , a former girlfriend , advised him not to publish the book , or at least to do so under a pseudonym . During the book 's final draft stages , Fleming allowed his friend , and later editor , William Plomer to see a copy , and remarked " I really am thoroughly ashamed of it ... after rifling through this muck you will probably never speak to me again , but I have got to take that chance . " Despite this , Plomer thought the book had sufficient promise and sent a copy to the publishing house Jonathan Cape . At first they were unenthusiastic , but were persuaded to publish on the recommendation of Fleming 's older brother , Peter , an established travel writer whose books they managed . 
