Lee and Truman Capote were childhood friends and there were rumors he wrote 'Mockingbird'

Lee was a tomboy growing up and rougher than other lads. Truman Capote, her friend, classmate, and neighbor was teased by other children for being a sissy and dressing up, and Lee frequently rushed to his defense. Lee and Capote both had challenging home life; Lee's mother had a mental illness, while Capote had been essentially abandoned by his own parents and was now living with his mother's family. They kept in touch over the years.

There was a persistent notion that Harper Lee's close friend Truman Capote was the real author of To Kill a Mockingbird in the years after the book's publication. After all, Lee didn't write another novel after Mockingbird, whereas Capote was a successful author who had published Breakfast at Tiffany's (1958) and In Cold Blood (1966).

It should be noted that Capote did not write Mockingbird. For starters, the novel has an entirely distinct literary voice from his. And in 1959, Capote said in a letter that he had read Lee's book but made no mention of having authored or edited it. Last but not least, Capote simply didn't back down from acknowledging credit for important achievements.

Although Lee had won the Pulitzer Prize for Mockingbird, Capote had intended to win one for In Cold Blood (a project Lee had contributed significantly to) but was unsuccessful. As a result, Capote did little to refute the suspicions while he was still living.