The Pickwick Papers was published in monthly parts by Chapman and Hall between 1836 and 1837. The initial idea for the project came from the illustrator Robert Seymour (1798-1836) who wanted to produce a magazine of comic engravings based around a cockney sporting club, and where the illustrations would be linked together by accompanying text to create a narrative. After several writers turned down Chapman and Hall, they then asked Dickens who agreed to their proposal. After suffering from depression for many years (and having had a disagreement with Dickens about his artwork for 'The Dying Clown' in the days before hand), Seymour took his own life on April 20th 1836, before the second instalment of Pickwick had been published. Chapman, Hall and Dickens then hired Robert William Buss as the illustrator, but they were disappointed with his work and and fired him. They then hired Hablot Knight Browne (who's pseudonym 'Phiz' would assonate with Dickens's 'Boz'). The Pickwick Papers would go on to become a literary phenomenon, catapulting Dickens to huge success and fame, while Knight Browne would go on to become Dickens's main illustrator, illustrating ten of his novels. The illustrations below are taken from the 'Authentic Edition' of Dickens's works (1901-1906) and reproduce Seymour and Browne's original illustrations.