urn:taro:utexas.hrc.00366 Alice Adams: A Preliminary Inventory of Her Papers at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center Finding aid created by Hope Donovan Rider Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, 2006 Finding aid encoded by Hope Donovan Rider, 2006 Finding aid written in English. The University of Texas at Austin, Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center Adams, Alice, 1926-1999 Alice Adams Papers 1931-2000 27 boxes, 1 oversize box, 10 galley folders (12.39 linear feet) The Alice Adams papers span her career as a novelist and short story writer. Most of her novels and short story collections are represented by typescripts and/or proofs. Also present are non-fiction articles and book reviews written by Adams. There is extensive correspondence with literary agents, editors, and other writers. English. None Index Terms People Abrahams, William Miller, 1919- Adams, Judith. Bellow, Saul. Colwin, Laurie. Hall, Donald, 1928- . Mailer, Norman. Oates, Joyce Carol, 1938- . Steele, Max, 1922- . Wilson, Vicky. Document Types Contracts. Drafts. Galleys. Juvenilia. Notebooks. Photographs. Printers' proofs. typescripts Scope and Contents

The Alice Adams papers span her career as a novelist and short story writer. Most of her novels and short story collections are represented, including Listening to Billie, Superior Women, and The Last Lovely City. The collection is arranged in three series: Series I. Works, 1931-2000; Series II. Correspondence, 1958-1999; and Series III. Personal and Career-Related.

Series I. Works is subdivided into Subseries A. Novels and Short Story Collections, Subseries B. Uncollected Short Stories, and Subseries C. Other Writings. Subseries A. consists of typescripts, proofs, and correspondence relating to her novels and collected short stories. There is also a typescript for her travel book, Mexico: Some Travels and Some Travelers There. Of interest is a typescript draft of an unpublished early novel, The Impersonators, written when Adams and her husband were living in Paris in 1947. There are no handwritten drafts of the works present because Adams destroyed early versions of her works once they had been transcribed.

Subseries B. contains short stories that were not collected in other volumes. Some stories are represented only by typescripts, while others include tear sheets or a published volume of the periodical containing the story, as well as publication correspondence. There is one file of early short stories written in 1946 while Adams was a student at Radcliffe.

Subseries C. includes non-fiction articles and book reviews written by Adams, as well as many of her working notebooks.

The correspondence in Series II. is arranged alphabetically by last name or subject, depending on the original folder titles in Adams's files. The correspondents reflect both her personal and business relationships. There is extensive correspondence with her various literary agents, including Peter Matson and Lynn Nesbit, as well as Vicky Wilson, her editor at Knopf. Many writers are represented, including Saul Bellow, Alison Lurie, Norman Mailer, Joyce Carol Oates, and the poet Donald Hall. Many letters and business documents are addressed to Alice Linenthal. Adams married Mark Linenthal in 1946, and although they divorced in 1958, she continued to use her married name on government records and for business purposes.

Series III. Personal and Career-Related includes royalty statements, articles written about Adams, and personal clippings files, as well as a collection of photographs and postcards. The bulk of the photos are travel pictures from Mexico, where Adams often went for vacation, and from various trips to Europe, including a trip taken to Portugal as research for a magazine article. Most of these date from the 1970s and early 1980s. There are several files of personal and publicity photos, including a wedding photograph from 1946 that shows her parents and husband.

Books, periodicals, audio cassettes, and personal effects received with this collection were transferred to appropriate departments within the Ransom Center.

Acquisition:

Purchase, 2000

 Access:

Open for research

 Processed by:

Hope Donovan Rider, 2005

 Alice Adams Papers--Folder List Series I. Works, Subseries A. Novels and Short Story Collections 1 1-4 After the War: a novel (novel, 2000), typescripts After You've Gone (short stories, 1989) 1 5-7 Typescripts, offprints, correspondence 2 1 Typescripts, cont'd 2 2 Clippings, correspondence Almost Perfect (novel, 1993) 2 3-4 Typescript 2 5 Early revisions Proofs, master set 2 6-7 1st pass 2 8-9 2nd pass 2 10 Clippings, correspondence 3 1 Careless Love / The Fall of Daisy Duke (novel, 1966), correspondence, reviews Caroline's Daughters (novel, 1991) 3 2-6 Typescript 3 7 Proof, bound 4 1 Clippings, correspondence Families and Survivors (novel, 1975) 4 2 Typescript proofs with handwritten corrections * Galleys (*removed to oversize box 28) 4 3 Clippings, correspondence 4 4-5 The Impersonators, [1947] typescript, The Last Lovely City (short stories, 1999) 4 6-8 Typescripts, offprints, correspondence 5 1-7 Typescripts, cont'd 5 8 Book jackets 5 9 Clippings, correspondence Listening to Billie (novel, 1978) 6 1 Typescript Proofs 6 2-3 Heavily corrected 6 4 1st rev. master set Medicine Men (novel, 1997) 6 5 Notebook, ca. 1994 6 6-8 Typescript 7 1-2 Typescript, cont'd 7 3 Proof, bound 7 4 Clippings, correspondence, publication materials Mexico: Some Travels and Travelers There (non- fiction, 1990) 7 5 Typescript 7 6 Clippings, correspondence Return Trips (short stories, 1985) 8 1-5 Typescripts, correspondence, offprints * Typescripts, correspondence, offprints 8 6 Page proofs 9 1 Page proofs, cont'd 9 2 Clippings, correspondence Rich Rewards (novel, 1980) * Galleys (*removed to galley file) 9 3 Clippings, correspondence Second Chances 9 4-5 Typescript, photocopy 9 6 Clippings, publication correspondence A Southern Exposure (novel, 1995) 10 1-6 Typescripts Proofs 10 7 Master set, 1st pass 11 1 Master set, 1st pass, cont'd 11 2-3 Master set 11 4-5 With handwritten corrections 11 6 Bound 11 7 Clippings Superior Women (novel, 1984) 12 1-3 Typescript, photocopy * Galleys (*four folders removed to galley files) 12 4-6 Page proofs, with handwritten corrections 13 1-6 Page proofs 13 7 Production materials 14 1 Production materials, cont'd 14 2 Contracts, royalty statements 14 3-4 Clippings, correspondence, publicity materials * Publicity and review materials (*removed to oversize box 28) 14 5 Party photographs To See You Again (short stories, 1982) 14 6-8 Typescripts, correspondence 15 1-2 Typescript, photocopy * Galleys (*four folders removed to galley files) 15 3-4 Page proofs 15 5 Clippings, correspondence Subseries B. Uncollected Short Stories Early stories, drafts 15 6 ca. 1946 16 1-2 ca. 1959-1960s 16 3-4 Uncollected stories, typescripts, correspondence 16 5 A- Complicities 16 6 Arabel's list, drafts, published in Ploughshares 17 1 Arrangements, drafts, correspondence, published in Epoch 17 2 The Best Revenge, published in Boulevard 17 3 Computers-Fa 17 4 Cressida, in Oregon, typescripts, published in Boulevard 17 5 For-H 17 6 Gay Friends, drafts, correspondence, published in Santa Monica Review 18 1 Humpty Dumpty, drafts, correspondence, tear sheet 18 2 K-P 18 3 Love and Work, published in Southwest Review 18 4 The Oasis, published in The Graywolf Annual Two: Stories by Women 18 5 R-W 18 6 The Shipbuilder From Düsseldorf, typescript, published in Story Subseries C. Other Writings 18 7 Book reviews, 1976-1984 18 8 Commencement address, University of California, Berkeley, 22 May 1987 19 1 Diary, ca. 1937 19 2-3 Juvenilia, artwork and poetry, ca. 1931-1937 19 4 Miscellaneous projects 19 5 Non-fiction articles and stories Notebooks 19 6 1949-1972 19 7 1972-1980 20 1 1979-1985 20 2 1980-1987 20 3 1985 20 4 1987-1988 [ Caroline's Daughters] 20 5 1987-1991 20 6 1991-1997 20 7 1992-1994, "The Sick Book," haiku 21 1 1997-1999 Undated 21 2 The Book of Bob - Mirrors, [ Almost Perfect] 21 3 [A Southern Exposure] 21 4-7 Poetry, drafts, notebooks, ca. 1934-1946 21 8 Talks about writing and writers, typescripts Series II. Correspondence, 1958-1999 21 9 A-C 21 10 Abrahams, William (Billy), 1960s-1970s 21 11 Adams, Judith, 1962-1998 22 1 Adams, Judith, cont'd 22 2 Brown, Margery, 1973-1985 22 3 Business correspondence, 1985-1998 22 4 Colwin, Laurie, 1976-1984 22 5 D-H 22 6 Dodds, John, 1963-1965 22 7 Ewert, William, re special edition of "Molly's Dog," 1983-1984 22 8 Hall, Donald, 1990-1996 22 9 Harris, Jeanne, 1977-1985 22 10 I-R 22 11 International Creative Management Inc., agents Lynn Nesbit and Erica Spellman, 1977-1984 23 1-2 Jessner, Lucie, 1958-1979 23 3 Johnson, Diane, 1975-1999 23 4 Lowry, Beverly, 1986-1994 23 5 Mailer, Norman, 1963-1969 23 6 Maine property, 1960-1986 23 7-8 Matson, Peter, 1965-1971 23 9 The New Yorker correspondence, 1968 23 10 Poirier, Richard, 1961-1996 23 11 Protest, 1985 23 12 Rags, rejections, 1953, 1967-1970 24 1 S-W 24 2 Segal, David, 1965-1966 24 3-4 Steele, Max, 1962-1998 24 5 Summerlin, Dolly, 1981-1983 24 6 Wilson, Victoria (Vicky), 1977-1996 24 7-8 Writers, 1971-1998 24 9 Writers conferences, 1981-1985 25 1 Miscellaneous, 1960s, 1974-1999 Series III. Personal and Career-Related 25 2 American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, award, 1992 25 3-4 Articles and critical essays about Adams 25 5 Clippings re poetry, restaurants, travel Photographs Personal 25 6 Adams-Linenthal wedding, 1946 25 7 Adams with others, 1971-1974 25 8 60th birthday album, 1986 25 9 Adams and Robert McNie 25 10 Headshots and publicity photographs 25 11 Miscellaneous, loose Travel 25 12 Alaska, 1981 25 13 Boston-New York City, 1984 Europe 25 14-15 Early 1970s, with Robert McNie 25 16 1984 25 17 Italy, 1985 Mexico 26 1-2 1970s 26 3 Guanajuato 26 4 Mexico City 26 5 San Miguel 26 6 Zihuatanejo, 1980 26 7-8 Portugal, 1984 26 9 Santa Fe, 1985 26 10 Taos, 1982 26 11 Postcards, blank 27 1-2 Postcards, cont'd 27 3 Royalty statements, 1985-1993 28 Oversize