Series 1: Works, 1983-1992
This series contains primary material for five of Madison Smartt Bell's novels, Doctor Sleep, Save Me, Joe Louis, Soldier's Joy, Washington Square Ensemble and The Year of Silence. For three of these, Doctor Sleep, Save Me, Joe Louis, and Soldier's Joy, there are holograph notebooks, working drafts and final drafts. For Doctor Sleep and Soldier's Joy there are galleys and proofs as well. For Washington Square Ensemble we have only typescripts, for The Year of Silence holograph notebooks and a typescript. There are manuscripts and typescripts of several short stories, as well as a typescript and proofs for the short story collection Barking Man and Other Stories and an incomplete typescript and galleys for Zero db and Other Stories. There are numerous variants for an as yet unpublished screenply entitled, variously, The Safety Net, Quake 2 and Splat!, inspired by California earthquakes. There are several articles in typescript as well as numerous reviews. There are cassettes of four interviews, one with writer Andrew Lytle, one with writer Harry Crews, on the same cassette as one with editor Shannon Ravanel of Algonquin Books, and one with sculptor Alan LeQuire, taken on the occasion of his work on the statue of Athena for the Parthenon replica in Nashville. There is also a transcript and an edited version of an interview with writer George Garrett. Among the miscellaneous writings included in this series is an "emblem book" of sorts entitled The Double Tongue, with illustrations by artist Jean de la Fontaine and blurbs by Bell. (See the copious correspondence from Fontaine in the Personal Correspondence Series.)
This series is arranged into seven subseries: Novels, Short Stories, Short Story Collections, Screenplays, Articles, Interviews, and Miscellaneous Writings, Fragments and Notes.
"Petit Cachou:" TMs (and related printed matter), Barking Man and Other Stories, dates not examined
"Caveat Lector", dates not examined
"Southern Lit." Column #2 ("The Everett Imperative" and related materials), dates not examined
Series 2: Correspondence, 1981-1993
Consists of the business and personal correspondence of Madison Smartt Bell.
This series is arranged into three subseries: Business Correspondence (incoming), Business Correspondence (outgoing), and Personal Correspondence.
1981, 1981
1982, 1982
1983, 1983
1984, 1984
1985, 1985
1986, 1986
1987, 1987
1988, 1988
1989, 1989
1990, 1990
1991, 1991
1992, 1992
1981, 1981
1982, 1982
Viking Penguin, dates not examined
1983, 1983
Andre Deutsch, dates not examined
Doubleday, dates not examined
Geo, dates not examined
Viking Press, dates not examined
1984, 1984
Houghton Mifflin, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
Viking Penguin, dates not examined
1985, 1985
Algonquin Books, dates not examined
Andre Deutsch, dates not examined
Chatto &Windus, dates not examined
Crown Publishers, dates not examined
Houghton Mifflin, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
Viking Penguin, dates not examined
Unidentified, dates not examined
1986, 1986
Algonquin Books, dates not examined
Charles East, dates not examined
Chatto &Windus, dates not examined
Harper's Magazine: Letters to the editor, re: Bell's article, "Less is Less.", dates not examined
Houghton Mifflin, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
Viking Penguin, dates not examined
Wampeter Press, dates not examined
Unidentified, dates not examined
1987, 1987
Chatto &Windus, dates not examined
Houghton Mifflin, dates not examined
Libération, dates not examined
Loeb (Amsterdam), dates not examined
The Paris Review, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
Viking Penguin, dates not examined
1988, 1988
Andre Deutsch, dates not examined
Antaeus, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
Viking Penguin, dates not examined
1989, 1989
Chronicles, dates not examined
Doubleday, dates not examined
Houghton Mifflin, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
1990, 1990
Atlantic, dates not examined
Poseidon Press, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
1991, 1991
Algonquin Books, dates not examined
Doubleday, dates not examined
Goldmann Verlag, dates not examined
Grove Weidenfeld, dates not examined
Henry Holt &Co, dates not examined
Houghton Mifflin, dates not examined
Pantheon Books, dates not examined
Story Magazine, dates not examined
Summit Books, dates not examined
1992, 1992
Goldmann Verlag, dates not examined
Story Magazine, dates not examined
The Texas Review, dates not examined
Ticknor &Fields, dates not examined
1993, 1993
Doubleday, dates not examined
Henry Holt &Co, dates not examined
Undated, dates not examined
Undated, dates not examined
1981-1985, 1981-1985
A, dates not examined
Alderson, Thomas, dates not examined
Andrews, Kathy, dates not examined
B, dates not examined
B (unidentified), dates not examined
C, dates not examined
Cheuse, Alan, dates not examined
Chute, Carolyn, dates not examined
Cooper, Wyn, dates not examined
C (unidentified), dates not examined
D, dates not examined
D (unidentified), dates not examined
E, dates not examined
E (unidentified), dates not examined
F, dates not examined
Feist, Richard, dates not examined
F (unidentified), dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Garrett, George, dates not examined
Golub, Marcia, dates not examined
G (unidentified), dates not examined
H, dates not examined
Hughes, Alison, dates not examined
H (unidentified), dates not examined
I, J, dates not examined
Jones, Ellen T., dates not examined
K, dates not examined
Kafka, Kimberlee, dates not examined
Koch, Stephen, dates not examined
K (unidentified), dates not examined
L, dates not examined
LaSalle, Peter, dates not examined
LeQuire, Alan, dates not examined
Lewis, Deirdre, dates not examined
Lyon, Janet, dates not examined
Lytle, Andrew, dates not examined
L (unidentified), dates not examined
M, dates not examined
McCorkle, Jill, dates not examined
Moore, Elizabeth, dates not examined
M (unidentified), dates not examined
N, dates not examined
O, P, dates not examined
R, dates not examined
Roshuk, Alexis, dates not examined
R (unidentified), dates not examined
S, dates not examined
Shar, Robert, dates not examined
Skiles, Don, dates not examined
Stenson, George, dates not examined
S (Unidentified), dates not examined
T, dates not examined
T (unidentified), dates not examined
U, V, dates not examined
W, dates not examined
Wright, Stuart, dates not examined
X, Y, Z, dates not examined
1986-1987, 1986-1987
A, dates not examined
A (unidentified), dates not examined
B, dates not examined
B (unidentified), dates not examined
C, dates not examined
C (unidentified), dates not examined
D, dates not examined
D (unidentified), dates not examined
E, dates not examined
F, dates not examined
F (unidentified), dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Garrett, George, dates not examined
G (unidentified), dates not examined
H, dates not examined
H (unidentified), dates not examined
I, J, dates not examined
K, dates not examined
Kafka, Kimberlee, dates not examined
Kuznets, Miriam, dates not examined
K (unidentified), dates not examined
L, dates not examined
Lewis, Deirdre, dates not examined
M, dates not examined
McCorkle, Jill, dates not examined
M (unidentified), dates not examined
N, dates not examined
O, dates not examined
P, dates not examined
P (unidentified), dates not examined
R, dates not examined
Roshuk, Alexis, dates not examined
S, dates not examined
S, dates not examined
T, dates not examined
T (unidentified), dates not examined
U, V, dates not examined
W, dates not examined
W (unidentified), dates not examined
X, Y, Z, dates not examined
1987-1988, 1987-1988
A, B, dates not examined
C, D, dates not examined
E, F, dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Garrett, George, dates not examined
H, dates not examined
I, J, dates not examined
Johnson, Hillary, dates not examined
K, dates not examined
L, dates not examined
M, dates not examined
McCorkle, Jill, dates not examined
N, dates not examined
O, P, dates not examined
R, dates not examined
Roshuk, Alexis, dates not examined
R (unidentified), dates not examined
S, dates not examined
T, dates not examined
U, V, W, dates not examined
1988-1989, 1988-1989
A, dates not examined
B, dates not examined
Boyett, Beth, dates not examined
C, dates not examined
D, E, F, dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Garrett, George, dates not examined
Golub, Marcia, dates not examined
H, dates not examined
Homes, Amy, dates not examined
J, K, dates not examined
L, dates not examined
M, dates not examined
N, dates not examined
O, P, dates not examined
R, dates not examined
Roshuk, Alexis, dates not examined
S, dates not examined
T, dates not examined
W, dates not examined
1989-1990, 1989-1990
A, dates not examined
B, dates not examined
Black, Simon, dates not examined
Blum, Louise, dates not examined
Boyett, Beth, dates not examined
C, dates not examined
Chute, Carolyn, dates not examined
C (unidentified), dates not examined
D, dates not examined
D (unidentified), dates not examined
E, dates not examined
F, dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Garrett, George, dates not examined
Geist, Ellen, dates not examined
Golub, Marcia, dates not examined
G (unidentified), dates not examined
H, dates not examined
Homes, Amy, dates not examined
H (unidentified), dates not examined
I, J, dates not examined
K, dates not examined
Kleinke, J. D., dates not examined
L, dates not examined
M, dates not examined
M (unidentified), dates not examined
N, dates not examined
O, dates not examined
P, dates not examined
P (unidentified), dates not examined
R, dates not examined
R (unidentified), dates not examined
S, dates not examined
S (unidentified), dates not examined
T, dates not examined
T (unidentified), dates not examined
U, V, dates not examined
W, dates not examined
W (unidentified), dates not examined
Z, dates not examined
1990-1991, 1990-1991
A, dates not examined
B, dates not examined
B (unidentified), dates not examined
C, dates not examined
C (unidentified), dates not examined
D, dates not examined
D (unidentified), dates not examined
E, F, dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Golub, Marcia, dates not examined
H, dates not examined
Homes, Amy, dates not examined
H (unidentified), dates not examined
J, dates not examined
K, dates not examined
K (unidentified), dates not examined
L, dates not examined
Luke, Carol, dates not examined
L (unidentified), dates not examined
M, dates not examined
McCorkle, Jill, dates not examined
Moore, Elizabeth, dates not examined
M (unidentified), dates not examined
N, O, P, dates not examined
R, dates not examined
Roshuk, Alexis, dates not examined
R (unidentified), dates not examined
S, dates not examined
Steinke, Darcey, dates not examined
S (unidentified), dates not examined
T, dates not examined
Tatham, Robin, dates not examined
T (unidentified), dates not examined
V, dates not examined
W, dates not examined
W (unidentified), dates not examined
Z, dates not examined
1991-1992, 1991-1992
A, dates not examined
A (unidentified), dates not examined
B, dates not examined
Beal, Scott, dates not examined
B (unidentified), dates not examined
C, dates not examined
D, dates not examined
D (unidentified), dates not examined
E, dates not examined
E (unidentified), dates not examined
F, dates not examined
F (unidentified), dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Geist, Ellen, dates not examined
Golub, Marcia, dates not examined
G (unidentified), dates not examined
H, dates not examined
Hildebrand, Elin, dates not examined
Homes, Amy, dates not examined
H (unidentified), dates not examined
I, J, dates not examined
K, dates not examined
K (unidentified), dates not examined
L, dates not examined
L (unidentified), dates not examined
M, dates not examined
M (unidentified), dates not examined
N, dates not examined
O, dates not examined
O (unidentified), dates not examined
P, dates not examined
P (unidentified), dates not examined
R, dates not examined
R (unidentified), dates not examined
S, dates not examined
Steinke, Darcey, dates not examined
S (unidentified), dates not examined
T, dates not examined
U, V, dates not examined
W, dates not examined
W (unidentified), dates not examined
X, Y, Z, dates not examined
1992-1993, 1992-1993
A, B, dates not examined
Brooks, Holden, dates not examined
C, D, dates not examined
E, F, dates not examined
G, dates not examined
Geist, Ellen, dates not examined
H, dates not examined
Homes, Amy, dates not examined
I, J, dates not examined
K, L, dates not examined
M, N, dates not examined
O, P, dates not examined
R, dates not examined
Russo, Elise, dates not examined
R (unidentified), dates not examined
S, dates not examined
Steinke, Darcey, dates not examined
T, dates not examined
U, V, W, dates not examined
Wormser, Lisa, dates not examined
X, Y, Z, dates not examined
Contains a copy of Madison Smartt Bell's birth certificate, a Smartt family tree, and a list of the contents of a safety deposit box.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Family Documents, dates not examined
Includes six datebooks, containing appointments and telephone numbers.
Not arranged according to any arrangement scheme.
Memorandum Books, 1979-1985
Contains clippings of printed articles and a xerox of a story by Bell, as well as miscellaneous materials found loose among the personal correspondence.
Arranged alphabetically by title.
Contains a typescript of Thomas McGonigle's novel The Corpse Dream of N. Petkov (1986), as well as miscellaneous short works by other persons, found loose in Bell's personal correspondence. There is also some correspondence to Bell's wife Elizabeth and daughter Celia, found among Bell's personal correspondence.
Arranged alphabetically by author.
Consists of additional manuscripts, research materials, professional and personal correspondence, and other files received from the author in later accessions, documenting Bell's writing and related activities from the 1970s through 2021, though primarily from 1986 onward.
Arranged by accession.
Narrative Design, 1998
Master of the Crossroads, TMs, undated
All Souls' Rising, AMs, undated
Ten Indians, AMs, undated
Soul in a Bottle, TMs, undated
Jobs and Gigs, 2000-2003
Job Mail, 1996-1997
Story Publication, 1996-1997
Ayiti Boukman, 1995-1997
Narrative Design, 1995-1996
Correspondence with Agent, 1999
Haitian Art, 1999
Miscellaneous Freelance, 1999
Story Publication, 1998-1999
Goucher, 1998-1999
"Save me Joe Louis" [screen play], 1996
Ajapca Presume, 2003
Haiti Boukman, 2003
Lambi Fund, 1998
Haiti Hebdo, 1998
Letters from Readers, 1998
Cyberpunk, dates not examined
Column, 1995
Présumé, 1998
Acte Sud & Foreign, 1997-1998
Correspondence with Agent, 1997-1998
Job Correspondence, 1997-1998
Patrick Vilaire, 1996
Miscellaneous Freelance, 1995-1996
Story Publication, 1995-1996
Publication Mail, 1995-1996
Farquharson, 1995-1996
Job Correspondence, 1995-1996
Freelance & Reviews, 1991
PEN/Faulkner, 1997
Miscellaneous Publicity, 2000
Princeton Papers, 1994-1995
Haiti, 2000
Producers, 2000
Narrative Design, 1998-1999
Haitian Painting, 1997-2000
Art Books, 1999-2000
Copied Correspondence, 1988-1993
Samantho.1, 1980s-1990s
Job Contract, 1999-2000
CV-Old, dates not examined
Story Publications, 1995
Correspondence with Publishers, 1995
Correspondence with Agents, 1985
Job Contract, 1995
Job Applications, 1995
"Clyde", 1985
Story Drafts, dates not examined
Screenplay, 1985
"Delight", 1993
Travel and Leisure article, 1993
Tae Kwon Do, 1992-1993
Permissions, 1989-1998
Grants, 1991-1992
Miscellaneous Freelance, 1994
Story Publication, 1994
Map of Haiti, dates not examined
Anything Goes, TMs, undated
Anything Goes, page proof, 2001
Papa Toussaint, 2001
Ten Indians, TMs, 1996
All Souls Rising, TMs, undated
"Quake" VHS videocassette, 1990
Narrative Design [textbook], TMs, 1996
The Dead, TMs, undated
"Mine of Stones", TMss, undated
B general, undated
C general, undated
D general, undated
E general, undated
F general, undated
G general, undated
H general, undated
I-J general, undated
K general, undated
L general, undated
M general, undated
N general, undated
O general, undated
P-Q general, undated
R general, undated
S general, undated
T general, undated
U-V general, undated
W general, undated
A general, undated
B general, undated
C general, undated
D general, undated
E general, undated
F general, undated
G general, undated
H general, undated
I-J general, undated
K general, undated
L general, undated
M general, undated
N general, undated
O general, undated
P-Q general, undated
R general, undated
S general, undated
T general, undated
U-V general, undated
W general, undated
X-Z general, undated
[?], Tom, 1995-1996
Bibelot, 1995 May
Black, David, 1995-1996
Boult, Reber, 1987-1996
Buford, Bill, 1995-1996
[?], [?], 1995
[?], Janice, undated
Dart, William, 1996-1997
Duff, Gerald, 1995-1996
Dunn, Margurite, 1996
[?], Marion, 1996 April
[?], [?], undated
Fentress, Sam, undated
Ford, Stephen, 1996-1997
Gaitihill, Mary, 1996
Geiser, David, undated
Geist, Ellen, 1995-1997
Gifford, Bill, 1995-1996
Golub, Marcia, 1995-1997
Gordon, Mary, undated
Graywolf Press, undated
[?], [?], undated
Kelly, Eileen, 1994-1996
Kent, Jane, 1994-1996
Kuban, Karla, 1995-1996
[?], [?], 1996 August 27
[?], Victorie, undated
Laise, Jim, 1995-1996
Landis, Sara, 1995-1996
Lee, "Mop", 1996 June 5
Levy, Ellen, 1996
Mann, Sari, 1996 June 16
Martone, Michael, 1996
McKay, J., 1996 March 6
Mehta, Sonny, 1995-1996
Mooman, Glenn, 1996-1997
Moore, Andrew, 1994-1996
Morse, Richard, undated
A general, undated
B general, undated
C general, undated
D general, undated
E general, undated
F general, undated
G general, undated
H general, undated
I-J general, undated
K general, undated
L general, undated
M general, undated
N general, undated
P-Q general, undated
R general, undated
S general, undated
T general, undated
U-V general, undated
W general, undated
X-Z general, undated
A general, undated
B general, undated
C general, undated
D general, undated
E general, undated
F general, undated
G general, undated
H general, undated
I-J general, undated
K general, undated
L general, undated
M general, undated
N general, undated
P-Q general, undated
R general, undated
S general, undated
T general, undated
U-V general, undated
W general, undated
X-Z general, undated
A general, undated
B general, undated
C general, undated
D general, undated
E general, undated
F general, undated
G general, undated
H general, undated
I-J general, undated
K general, undated
L general, undated
M general, undated
N general, undated
O general, undated
P-Q general, undated
R general, undated
S general, undated
T general, undated
U-V general, undated
W general, undated
X-Z general, undated
The Year of Silence, undated
The Year of Silence, 1986
The Year of Silence, 1987
Behind the Moon, 2010 October
Behind the Moon Notes, undated
Devil's Dream, undated
Devil's Dream, 2009 May 14
Devil's Dream, 2009 May 14
Devil's Dream, 2009 June 6
Devil's Dream, 2009 July 2
Devil's Dream, 2009 August 12
The Color of Night, undated
The Color of Night, undated
The Color of Night, undated
The Color of Night, 2010 July 22
The Color of Night, 2010
The Color of Night, 2009
The Color of Night, 2010
The Color of Night, 2010-2011
Soldier's Joy, undated
Charm City, 2007 January
Charm City, undated
Charm City Research Materials, 2005-2007
Red Stick, undated
Red Stick, undated
Zig Zag Wanderer, 1994-2010
Lavoisier in the Year One, 2004 July
Lavoisier in the Year One, 2004 June
Lavoisier in the Year One, undated
Soul in a Bottle, undated
Soul in a Bottle, undated
Toussaint Before the Spirits, 2003
A, 2002 February-2003 August
B, 2002 February-2003 August
C, 2002 February-2003 August
D, 2002 February-2003 August
E, 2002 February-2003 August
F, 2002 February-2003 August
G, 2002 February-2003 August
H, 2002 February-2003 August
I-J, 2002 February-2003 August
K, 2002 February-2003 August
L, 2002 February-2003 August
M, 2002 February-2003 August
N, 2002 February-2003 August
P, 2002 February-2003 August
R, 2002 February-2003 August
S, 2002 February-2003 August
T, 2002 February-2003 August
U-V, 2002 February-2003 August
W, 2002 February-2003 August
X-Z, 2002 February-2003 August
A, 2003 August-2005 October
B, 2003 August-2005 October
C, 2003 August-2005 October
D, 2003 August-2005 October
E, 2003 August-2005 October
F, 2003 August-2005 October
G, 2003 August-2005 October
H, 2003 August-2005 October
J, 2003 August-2005 October
K, 2003 August-2005 October
L, 2003 August-2005 October
M, 2003 August-2005 October
N, 2003 August-2005 October
O, 2003 August-2005 October
P, 2003 August-2005 October
R, 2003 August-2005 October
S, 2003 August-2005 October
T, 2003 August-2005 October
U-V, 2003 August-2005 October
W, 2003 August-2005 October
Y-Z, 2003 August-2005 October
A, 2005 October-2006 June
B, 2005 October-2006 June
C, 2005 October-2006 June
D, 2005 October-2006 June
E, 2005 October-2006 June
F, 2005 October-2006 June
G, 2005 October-2006 June
H, 2005 October-2006 June
J, 2005 October-2006 June
K, 2005 October-2006 June
L, 2005 October-2006 June
M, 2005 October-2006 June
N, 2005 October-2006 June
O, 2005 October-2006 June
P, 2005 October-2006 June
R, 2005 October-2006 June
S, 2005 October-2006 June
T, 2005 October-2006 June
U, 2005 October-2006 June
W, 2005 October-2006 June
A, 2006 June-2007 June
B, 2006 June-2007 June
C, 2006 June-2007 June
D, 2006 June-2007 June
E, 2006 June-2007 June
F, 2006 June-2007 June
G, 2006 June-2007 June
H, 2006 June-2007 June
J, 2006 June-2007 June
K, 2006 June-2007 June
L, 2006 June-2007 June
M, 2006 June-2007 June
N, 2006 June-2007 June
O, 2006 June-2007 June
P, 2006 June-2007 June
R, 2006 June-2007 June
S, 2006 June-2007 June
T, 2006 June-2007 June
U-V, 2006 June-2007 June
W, 2006 June-2007 June
Z, 2006 June-2007 June
Business Cards, undated
A, 2007 June-2008 May
B, 2007 June-2008 May
C, 2007 June-2008 May
D, 2007 June-2008 May
E, 2007 June-2008 May
F, 2007 June-2008 May
G, 2007 June-2008 May
H, 2007 June-2008 May
J, 2007 June-2008 May
K, 2007 June-2008 May
L, 2007 June-2008 May
M, 2007 June-2008 May
N, 2007 June-2008 May
O, 2007 June-2008 May
P, 2007 June-2008 May
R, 2007 June-2008 May
S, 2007 June-2008 May
T, 2007 June-2008 May
U, 2007 June-2008 May
W, 2007 June-2008 May
X-Z, 2007 June-2008 May
Correspondence, 2008-2009
A, 2008-2009
B, 2008-2009
C, 2008-2009
D, 2008-2009
E, 2008-2009
F, 2008-2009
G, 2008-2009
H, 2008-2009
I-J, 2008-2009
K, 2008-2009
L, 2008-2009
M, 2008-2009
N, 2008-2009
O, 2008-2009
P-Q, 2008-2009
R, 2008-2009
S, 2008-2009
T, 2008-2009
U-V, 2008-2009
W, 2008-2009
X-Z, 2008-2009
A, 2009-2010
B, 2009-2010
C, 2009-2010
D, 2009-2010
E, 2009-2010
F, 2009-2010
G, 2009-2010
H, 2009-2010
I-J, 2009-2010
K, 2009-2010
L, 2009-2010
M, 2009-2010
N, 2009-2010
O, 2009-2010
P-Q, 2009-2010
R, 2009-2010
S, 2009-2010
T, 2009-2010
U-V, 2009-2010
W, 2009-2010
A, 2010-2011
B, 2010-2011
C, 2010-2011
D, 2010-2011
E, 2010-2011
F, 2010-2011
G, 2010-2011
H, 2010-2011
I-J, 2010-2011
K, 2010-2011
L, 2010-2011
M, 2010-2011
O, 2010-2011
P-Q, 2010-2011
R, 2010-2011
S, 2010-2011
T, 2010-2011
U-V, 2010-2011
W, 2010-2011
X-Z, 2010-2011
Subject Files, 1995-2014
Miscellaneous Freelance, 2007-2008
Jobs, 2005-2007
Jobs, 2007-2008
Jobs, 2008-2010
Agent and Publishers, 2003-2004
Agents and Publishers, 2004-2006
Agents and Publishers, 2006-2007
Agents and Publishers, 2007-2008
Agents and Publishers, 2008-2009
Agents and Publishers, 2009-2010
Agents and Publishers, 2010-2014
Miscellaneous Freelance, 2003-2004
Miscellaneous Freelance, 2004-2006
Miscellaneous Freelance, 2007-2009
Miscellaneous Freelance, 2007-2009
Miscellaneous Freelance, 2009-2010
Miscellaneous Freelance, 2010-2014
Short Fiction, 2010
Story Publications, 2002-2004
Short Fiction, 2002-2004
Work with Wyn Cooper, 2002-2007
Wyn Cooper Songs, 1995-2005
Music Mail, 2007-2008
Ambassador of Haiti, 1996-2006
Fan Mail, 2008-2014
Haiti, 2006-2014
Dream Forest, 2007-2009
Angela Terrail, undated
Toussaint Bio Material, 2004-2006
La Citadelle de la Memoire, undated
Survival Cooking, undated
Baltimore Walks, 2007
Sheila Smith, undated
Subseries 7C: 2021 Accession, 1977-2021
Child of Light, undated
Short Stories, undated
Boy with a Coin, undated
A Story Goes with It, undated
Baltimore Falls, circa 2010s
Notes and Notebooks, circa 1990s-2000s
Toussaint Louverture: A Biography, 2006
Friend of the World, 2013
Jean-Jacques Dessalines, circa 2010s
Ghost Dance, 1977-1978
Waiting for the End of the World, 1988
Fleur Carnivore Notes and Draft, 2012
Kim Kafka Correspondence, 1980-2008
Alphabetical Correspondence, 2015-2020
Alphabetical Correspondence, 2020-2021
- Scope and Contents
The collection consists of manuscripts, correspondence, family documents, and other papers of novelist Madison Smartt Bell. The earliest item in the collection is a datebook from the year 1979, the year of Bell's graduation from Princeton University. The manuscript material includes an early typescript of Bell's first novel Washington Square Ensemble (1983), as well as notebooks, drafts, galleys and proofs of Doctor Sleep (1993), All Souls' Rising (1995) and later works. Also included in the manuscript material are variants for an unpublished screenplay about an earthquake in California, entitled The Safety Net, drafts of articles and reviews, transcripts and/or cassettes of four interviews by Bell of others, and miscellaneous writings, fragments and notes, among which is a series of xeroxed images by printmaker Jean de la Fontaine with blurbs by Bell (unpublished?).
The bulk of the correspondence and of the collection is personal mail, dating from 1981 to 2011, organized chronologically and therein alphabetically, with separate folders for correspondents with the most numerous letters. Among his most frequent correspondents are his former Princeton creative writing teacher George Garrett, filmmaker Alexis Roshuk, fellow novelists Tom McGonigle, Jill McCorkle, and Elizabeth Moore, and students Amy Homes, Marcia Golub, Carolyn Chute, Ellen Geist, and Darcey Steinke. This series preserves everything from post-it notes and Christmas tags to post cards and full-length letters. There are also three boxes of business correspondence, including agent correspondence, dating from Bell's first exchanges with Jane Gelfman in 1981, and direct correspondence with editors and publishers. Ticknor and Fields is heavily represented, as the publisher that has brought out most of Bell's novels, though he later published with Harcourt Brace. The business correspondence also includes some drafts Bell kept of outgoing letters.
The family documents include an extensive family tree for the Smartt family, found loose among the correspondence, as well as Bell's birth certificate. The Papers of Other Persons series includes a typescript of fellow novelist Tom McGonigle's The Corpse Dream of N. Petkov (1986), as well as correspondence of Bell's wife, the poet Elizabeth Spires.
Additional materials received from the author following the original accession can be found in Series 7: Additional Papers, including manuscripts and correspondence related to his writings and other activities throughout the 1990s until 2021.
- Arrangement
Organized by material type, with a series for accruals.
- Collection Creator Biography:
Bell, Madison Smartt
Born in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1957, Madison Smartt Bell was raised on a farm in Williamson County just outside Nashville. His father, an attorney, and his mother were friends with the Agrarian School of poets at Vanderbilt University, which included Allen Tate, Caroline Gordon and John Crowe Ransom. Bell did not follow his parents to Vanderbilt but attended Princeton University instead, although as an undergraduate English major he did do independent research on the Agrarian School. While at Princeton Bell studied fiction-writing with George Garrett and received several prizes for his writing: the Ward Mathis Prize in 1977 for his short story, "Triptych;" the Class of 1870 Junior Prize in 1978; the Francis LeMoyne Page Award in 1978 for fiction writing; and the Class of 1859 Prize in 1979, the year in which he graduated summa cum laude.
In 1983 Bell published his first book, a novel about drug dealers entitled Washington Square Ensemble, while living in the New York City area, also the setting of his second novel Waiting for the End of the World (1985), which deals with the New York City underworld and with terrorism. From the time of his graduation from Princeton Bell lived in New York City or the New York metropolitan area until moving to the Baltimore area in 1984 to teach in the Goucher College English Department. It is not, however, until his fifth novel Soldier's Joy (1989) that he consciously returns in his work to a specifically Southern setting and to the theme of racism. Soldier's Joy is about a professional banjo player in rural Tennessee who gets shot in a racial struggle involving a black preacher whom he and his fellow Vietnam-veteran friends are trying to protect. (Bell himself is a professional banjo player.) Although he continues to be eclectic in his choice of theme and setting, for a short time Bell wrote a column on Southern literature for Southern magazine and has contributed to several anthologies of specifically Southern fiction.
Bell has also traveled widely in England and Europe and has used that experience in novels such as the thriller Straight Cut (1986) and the more philosophical novel Doctor Sleep (1991), as well as in some of his shorter fiction (e.g., "Petit Cachou" in Barking Man and Other Stories, 1990).
In All Souls' Rising (1995), Bell turns to the genre of the historical novel and writes about race in late 18th century Haiti.
Bell received his M.A. from the creative writing program at Hollins College in Virginia in 1981. He has taught as a visiting writer at several workshops and summer programs as well as in the Iowa Writers' Workshop (1987-88) and the Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars (1989). He and his wife, the poet Elizabeth Spires, who were married in 1985, have both held Guggenheim fellowships, allowing them each a year to pursue their writing careers uninterrupted by teaching duties. They have a daughter named Celia Doval Bell.
Madison Smartt Bell worked briefly in the publishing world in the New York area before he began his teaching career and has written about the difficulties young writers have breaking into the world of published fiction. He has helped many of his own students become published writers, among them Carolyn Chute, Hillary Johnson, Marcia Golub, Amy Homes, Wayne Johnson, Simon Black, Brooke Stevens, and Darcey Steinke.
- Acquisition:
Purchased from the author in multiple accessions from 1994 to 2022 (AM 1995-13, AM 1995-15, AM 2005-38, AM 2016-34, AM 2022-043).
- Accruals
This collection comprises the papers of a living author. Thus, accruals are expected in five to ten-year increments.
- Appraisal
No appraisal information is available.
- Processing Information
This collection was processed by Margaret Sherry in 1996. Finding aid written by Margaret Sherry in 1996. Additional Papers list compiled by Karla Vecchia. Folder inventory for 2004 accession added by Hilde Creager 15' in 2013. Folder inventory for 2015 accession added by Fiona Bell 18' in 2015. Materials in the 2021 accrual were processed and described by Amy C. Vo in 2022, with appropriate updates to the finding aid.
- Conditions Governing Access
The majority of the collection is open for research, with restrictions on the two folders of P.E.N./Faulkner correspondence in Subseries 7A, Box B-001857.
- Conditions Governing Use
Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
- Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
- Credit this material:
Madison Smartt Bell Papers; Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library
- Permanent URL:
- http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/js956f82f
- Location:
-
Firestone LibraryOne Washington RoadPrinceton, NJ 08544, USA
- Storage Note:
- ReCAP (scarcpxm): Boxes 1-85; B-001857
- Subject Terms:
- Agrarians (Group of writers)
Authors, American -- 20th century.
Novelists, American -- 20th century.
Poets, American -- 20th century.
Screenwriters -- United States.
Short stories, American -- 20th century. - Genre Terms:
- Correspondence
Interviews.
Manuscripts. - Names:
- Crews, Harry, 1935-2012
Garrett, George, 1929-2008
Lytle, Andrew Nelson, 1902-1995
McGonigle, Thomas