It's an odd phrasing, but as Livrechache mentions in his comment, it's most like the English idiom "to make a name for oneself/himself/herself"

Eric was not a particularly noteworthy person, but he did make something of a name for himself in the fast-paced, high-pressure world of competitive Scrabble.

It's possibly an archaic phrasing, or perhaps a paraphrase of the common idiom. Either way it almost certainly means that the man was well-known as a writer.

(Side note. The Japanese equivalent 有名 can be similarly, literally translated as "having a name" -- which is to say, "famous")

It's an odd phrasing, but as Livrecache mentions in his comment, it's most like the English idiom "to make a name for oneself/himself/herself"

Eric was not a particularly noteworthy person, but he did make something of a name for himself in the fast-paced, high-pressure world of competitive Scrabble.

"He had something of a name" is possibly an archaic phrasing, or perhaps a paraphrase of the common idiom. Either way it almost certainly means that the man was somewhat well-known as a writer.

(Side note. The Japanese equivalent 有名 can be similarly, literally translated as "having a name" -- which is to say, "famous")