Clarksville, Tennessee: 1986-90.
Price: $750.00
Unbound. A collection of 15 letters, 3 cards, a poster, and one black and white gelatin silver photograph sized 4” x 5” from 1986 to 1990 written by various writers to poet and editor Colleen Watt in Clarksville, Tennessee. All items are near fine with light creasing and some toning.
The letters to Watt are from several different writers, that she was in correspondence with or had edited for. A letter from Peggy Bach praises Colleen for her work, “I found you to be an extremely interesting person and I thought your participation in so many activities on such an involved basis exhibits your many talents.” She is also written fondly of in a recommendation letter prepared for Watt by David Madden, “the excellent quality of work she does in that time grid is her main accomplishment. Her skills range from attention to details to an ability to take on and perform to high satisfaction the most complex and creative tasks.” Many of them write commending her for her help with their writing. In addition to a signed picture of Howard Nemerov, a small postcard from him says, “many thanks for the handsome card and the memory and the kind wishes. It’s a happy souvenir of a happy day. All good wishes to you and yours.”
Quite a few of the letters are from Howard Norman and from the text it can be inferred that he and Watt were close friends and collaborators. “How good it was to be insulted by you in print once again. I knew something was missing from my life, now I know. Probably, as you were writing to me, you wore boots, leather pants and cracked a whip against the computer. It’s your style all right.” Between the jokes, he writes about how his novel *The Northern Lights* may be made into a film. He then expresses his gratitude to her help in his own peculiar way, “Yes, Colleen, you were part of that book, and remain so. I have your typed drafts with me, of course. I even notice bits of hamburger, cheese, Coca-Cola on them… or is it Diet Pepsi? Plus a few fingerprints. Perhaps a little saliva, right where my writing made you sick.” The letters go on with Norman’s personal life and how his book are going and ends with, “now, what’s the gossip? Sorry for my long silence. No excuse, except for sloth and traveling.”
Watt at the time of these letters was working on her own novel and in a letter from her friend George Scarborough gives this advice, “Keep writing, Colleen. Writing is its own reward…You just keep writing. No one can tell you how it’s done. It learns to do itself… If you’ll scratch my iambus, I’ll stroke your trochee.” It comes up from the others who write to her as well, that they hope she is continuing to write.
An interesting look on the exchange between writers and their relationships with one another, including two award winning authors.
Included:
One letter from David Till, Michael and Mary Alice Johnston, Howard Nemerov, Peggy Bach, Gary Pacernick, Steven Brooks, and an unidentified author
Two letters from David Madden
Three letters from Howard Norman and George Scarborough
Eight envelopes
Two postcards
One Birthday card
One black and white gelatin silver photograph sized 4” x 5”
One *Visiting Writers Series* posters for a Michael Burkard Poetry reading, signed by Burkard and Mary Alice Johnston.
Item #402462
