Walking toward the George Inn on a drizzly evening, yellow light from its bustling Parliament Bar spilling out on wet cobblestones, it’s easy to imagine the ghostly footsteps of the past.

Is that a double-decker bus rumbling down the Borough High Street? Or a four-in-hand carriage sweeping into the inn’s cobbled yard? And those commuters hurrying toward London Bridge — could one be an anxious Nancy bravely spiriting Oliver Twist to safety?

London is the kind of place where past and present, fiction and real-life swirl together in an ever-changing kaleidoscope. Which is why a fun way to explore the nooks and crannies of this sprawling city is to take a novel approach and look for places featured in your favorite books, or for the real-life hangouts of writers you admire.

Your choices are as varied as the many authors linked to London, but here are a few suggestions to get you started.

LEXICON LEGEND

“If a man is tired of London, he is tired of life,” wrote author, critic and lexicographer Samuel Johnson, whose many pithy quotes also include “No man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for money.”

But did you know that Johnson worked as a hack writer to support himself before making it big with A Dictionary of the English Language in 1755? You’ll learn about that and more — including his fondness for cats — at Dr. Johnson’s House, a small but charming museum set in the 300-year-old townhouse where he lived. A statue of one of Johnson’s cats, Hodge, sits in the courtyard in front of the house, while inside the collection includes 18th and 19th century prints as well as paintings, several manuscripts and porcelain from the period.

If you are in need of refreshment, stroll around the corner to the Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese Pub on Fleet Street. Don’t be thrown off by the name, which sounds a little like the kind of place you might find in the food court of an American mall. This is the real deal: A tavern has been on the property since 1538, and what’s there now was rebuilt after the previous one burned down in the Great Fire of London in 1666. It’s associated with several literary figures, including Dickens.

DICKENS OF A TIME

Charles Dickens might be the quintessential London author. He lived here, worked here, campaigned for social justice here and set many famous scenes here.

A good starting point is 48 Doughty St., the house where Dickens lived and wrote from 1837 to 1839. His first two children were born here and this is where he wrote Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby. The house, near the Russell Square Underground station, is now home to the Charles Dickens Museum, which recently reopened after a major renovation. There are audio guides, a learning center and cafe and numerous artifacts, including the author’s writing desk and chair.

About a 20-minute walk from Doughty Street is St. Paul’s Cathedral, mentioned in several books and the place where David Copperfield took Clara Peggoty to show her the view of London from the top. The Golden Gallery — up 528 steps — runs around the highest point of the outer dome and offers panoramic views that take in the River Thames, Tate Modern and Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. You can get here by the Tube, taking Russell Square to St. Paul’s, which requires a change from the Piccadilly to Central line at Holborn.