He completed his second draft in 1936, by which point he had devised the major plot lines of the final version. He is believed to have drawn from this to create the Walpurgis Night ball of the novel. In the early 1920s, Bulgakov had visited an editorial meeting of an atheist journal. He started writing the novel in 1928, but burned the first manuscript in 1930 (just as his character The Master did) as he could not see a future as a writer in the Soviet Union at a time of widespread political repression. Mikhail Bulgakov was a playwright and author. Many critics consider it to be one of the best novels of the 20th century, as well as the foremost of Soviet satires. The Master and Margarita combines supernatural elements with satirical dark comedy and Christian philosophy, defying categorization within a single genre. The devil, manifested as one Professor Woland, challenges the Soviet citizens' beliefs towards religion and condemns their behavior throughout the book. The story concerns a visit by the devil and his entourage to the officially atheistic Soviet Union. The novel has since been published in several languages and editions. A samizdat version circulated that included parts cut out by official censors, and these were incorporated in a 1969 version published in Frankfurt.

The manuscript was not published as a book until 1967, in Paris.

A censored version, with several chapters cut by editors, was published in Moscow magazine in 1966–1967, after the writer's death, by his widow. H istorian an d Russian history expert Orlando Figes delves deep into the historical context of the novel and its barely concealed attacks on the Soviet Union in an introduction writ ten for the edition.The Master and Margarita ( Russian: Мастер и Маргарита) is a novel by Soviet writer Mikhail Bulgakov, written in the Soviet Union between 19 during Stalin's regime. This sumptuous edition showcases Peter Suart’s specially commissioned illustrations, which e xplore the philosophical and fantasy themes of the narrative, while his stunning binding d esign features Azazello, Koroviev and Behemoth in antagonistic pose s. One of Folio’s most requested titles, the novel has also been a source of inspiration for writers and musicians, featur ing in David Bowie’s Top 100 Books and inspiring Mick Jagger’s lyrics for ’ Sympathy for the Devil‘. I ts subversive message, dark humour and lyrical force combin ed to make it a beacon of optimism and freedom through out Russia and the world. Smuggled past the censors in 1967, and published more than 25 years after Mikha il Bulgakov’s death, Th e Master and Margarita was an i nstant success. The Devil has arrived in Moscow and, along with his demons and a large black cat, he carves a trail of chaos and destruction through Soviet society.

The master and margarita