Bly,
Carol
Carol Bly papers
1936-2003
University of
Minnesota Libraries. Literary Manuscripts Collection, Manuscripts
Division [mss]
89
boxes
The papers of Carol Bly
encompass her writings from childhood through her career as a professional
author. The collection is especially rich in correspondence, notes from the
many writing workshops and courses she has conducted, and drafts of her works.
Mss 79
English
Mezzanine
Administrative Information
Restrictions on Access
Access restricted; written permission required; consult the archivist
for further information.
Restrictions on Use
Copyright retained by the author.
Preferred Citation
Carol Bly Papers (Mss 79), Literary Manuscripts Collection, University
of Minnesota Libraries, Minneapolis.
Acquisition
Collection was acquired from the author, 2003.
Processing Information
The collection was processed and the finding aid written by Alan
Lathrop, May 2004.
Accruals
Materials will be added to the collection on an annual basis.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into the following series:
- Diaries
- Lectures
- Early School-Related Manuscripts
- Undated Correspondence
- Correspondence
- Custom Crosswords
- The Loft
- Teaching Notes
- Notes for Talks and Speeches
- Miscellaneous
- Personal
- Gethsemance Episcopal Church
- Reviews and Writings By and About Bly
- Writings (Manuscripts of works)
- Publications
Biographical Note
Carolyn McLean was born in Duluth on April 16, 1930. She attended
private school in North Carolina and obtained her B.A. in English and history
at Wellesley College in 1951. She taught at Carleton College, Hamline
University, University of Minnesota, and the Vermont Studio Center. She married
poet Robert Bly in 1955 (later divorced) and published
<emph render="underline">Fifties</emph> and
<emph render="underline">Sixties</emph> literary magazines
with her husband.
Her publications include:
<emph render="underline"> Letters from the Country</emph>;
The Passionate, Accurate Story: Making Your Heart’s Truth into
Literature;
<emph render="underline">Beyond the Writer’s Workshop: New Ways to
Write Creative Nonfiction</emph>;
<emph render="underline">An Adolescent’s Christmas:
1944</emph>; and
<emph render="underline">My Lord Bag of Rice: New and Collected
Stories</emph>.
Awards that Bly has received include: Edelstein-Keller Author of
Distinction, University of Minnesota 1998-99; Honorary Doctor of Humane
Letters, Northland College 1992; Minnesota Book Award 1991; Minnesota Women’s
Press Favorite Woman Author 2000; Minnesota Humanities Award for Literature
2001.
Scope and Content Note
The collection includes correspondence, diaries, drafts of writings,
notes for lectures, talks, speeches, and writing workshops, plus early personal
papers from 1936 to 2003. There is also material from her business, “Custom
Crosswords”, including crosswords composed for clients with accompanying
correspondence. The collection contains copies of editions of her published
books and essays.
Related Material
See also the James Wright Papers (Mss 66) and the Milkweed Editions'
Archives (Mss 80).
Notable Correspondents
This lists notable persons whose letters are located in Bly's
chronological correspondence. The list was created by staff as they processed
the collection.
- Bly, Robert
- Buchwald, Emilie
- Hampl, Patricia
- Holm, Bill
- Keillor, Garrison
- Wright, James
Index Terms
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog
of the University of Minnesota Libraries. Researchers desiring materials about
related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these
headings.
Bly,
Carol
Bly,
Robert
Custom Crosswords
<emph render="underline">The
Fifties</emph>
<emph render="underline">The Sixties</emph>
Detailed Contents
The following section contains a detailed list of the materials in the
collection.
1-D
Diaries,
1943-1999
Lectures,
1976-2001
1
1976 - 1982
1A
American Farm Project,
1980
1B
1982
2
1983
3
1984-1986
4
1987 - Feb. 1989
5
March 1989 - Dec. 1989; 1990
6
1991
7
1992 - March 1994
8
April 1994 - Nov. 1995
9
1996
10
Jan. - Oct. 1997
11
Oct. 1997
12
Jan. - Oct. 1998
13
Oct. 1998 - 1999
14
2000 - 2001
Early School-Related Manuscripts
Undated Correspondence
Includes correspondence for which no year could be identified.
Correspondence,
1936-2003
Early years of correspondence were arranged chronologically.
Beginning in 2001 Bly started arranging her correspondence alphabetically by
correspondent within each year. Undated correspondence for each year is
included as a separate folder at the end of each year.
1
1936-1973
1A
Thaxted, England,
1964-1978
Also includes newsletters, clippings and ephemera
2
1974-1980
2
Delia Hunter,
1969-1979
2
Brothers,
1977-1979
2A
1979-1983
2A
Letters from the
Country
Includes correspondence and reviews
3
1981-1982
3A
Washburn family and Hope Washburn,
1952-1983
3B
1982-1983
3B
COMPAS
3C
John Lang,
1981-1982
3C
Region 3 Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota,
1976-1979
3C
Southwest State University Reading,
1982
3C
Solidarity Day,
1981
4
1983
4
Alice and Fred Bloom,
1981-1984
4
Andover Class Fund Agent,
1982-1985
4
Twintab,
1984
5
1985
5
Jan. - April 1986
5
Creative Education,
1983-1985
5
Stan Marcewicz
6
May 1986 - Dec. 1986
6
1987
6
1988
6
John Castell
7
1989
7
Jan. - Aug. 1990
7
Bunge interview
8
Sept. - Dec. 1990
8
Jan. - Aug. 1991
8
Marieluise Fleisser,
1990
8A
Sept. - Dec. 1991
8A
Jan. - Feb. 1992
8A
Ranae Hanson
9
March - Dec. 1992
9
Michael True,
1992
9
Leo Hertzell,
1992
10
Jan. - Oc. 1993
11
Nov. - Dec. 1993
11
Jan. - June 1994
11
Center for Psychological Studies in the Nuclear Age,
1993
12
July - Dec. 1994
12
Jan. - Feb. 1995
12
Colleen Tasto,
1995
12
Mark Vinz and Tom Tammaro anthology,
1995
12
"Story Telling in the Twin Cities,"
1994-1995
12A
March - Dec. 1995
12A
Ted Kooser dinner,
April 7, 1995
12A
"My Godchildren,"
1985-1995
13
Jan. - Nov. 1996
14
Dec. 1996 - March 1997
14
Richard Hamlow,
1996
14A
AOL writers,
1996-1997
Includes email on AOL
15
April - Dec. 1997
15
Scott Sanders dinner,
May 27, 1997
16
Jan. - Aug. 1998
16
MHC Focus Group,
Feb. 18, 1997
16
Colleen Tasto,
1997
16
"The Masters Forum,"
1997
16
Larry Holland,
1997
16
SSM (Shattuck-St. Mary's School) Faculty Writing,
1998
17
Sept. 1998-April 1999
17
Jan Peterson-Schweinhorst,
1999
17A
May - Dec. 1999
17A
Letters in support of McKnight Award,
1999
18
Jan. - Aug. 2000
19
Sept. - Dec. 2000
19
Emilie Buchwald honorary degree letters of
recommendation,
2000
19
Baypoint Design's Northland Values Pamphlet
(Pollock)
20
2001 (A-G)
21
2001 (H-N)
22
2001 (O-Z)
23
2002 (A-H)
24
2002 (I-S)
25
2002 (T-Z)
26
2003 (A-F)
27
2003 (G-M)
28
2003 (N-Z)
Custom Crosswords,
1979-1990
Includes correspondence, clippings, puzzles for various clients,
and other material relating to the "Custom Crosswords" business.
1
1979
2
1979-1983
3
1983-1986
4
1988-1990
The Loft,
1975-1995
1
Board minutes, programs, by-laws,
1975-1993
2
Board minutes, staff and committee reports,
correspondence,
1993-1995
3
Short story writing contest,
1979-1995
Includes critiques of students' work, correspondence with
students in correspondence courses
4
Correspondence students' files,
1995s
Amery, Wisconsin writer's workshop
Teaching Notes,
1974-2001
Includes notes for workshops and courses taught.
1
University of Minnesota courses,
1984-1989
2
University of Minnesota courses,
1990-1995
3
University of Minnesota courses,
1995-1998
4
University of Minnesota courses,
1999-2000
5
Hamline University,
1983-1986
6
Hamline University,
1984, 1987-1989
7
Carleton College,
1990-1991
7
Normandale College,
1989
7
Omega Conference,
1992
7
Hofsos Writers Group, Iceland,
2000-2001
7
Fiction class, Ashland, Or
July 2000
8
Indiana University Writers Workshop,
1985
8
University of Iowa Advanced Nonfiction Writing Class,
1991
9
Duluth: The Depot,
1991, 1995
9
American Farm Project project book,
1979-1982
9
Land Stewardship Project,
1980(/)
10
University of Minnesota--Split Rock,
1993-1998
10
University of Minnesota--Cloquet,
1993, 1995
Writing projects and classes
11
11
University of Minnesota Directed Studies,
Summer 2000
11
Madison Soap Opera Project,
1980
11
Human Services Task Force,
1974
11
Guidelines for judging the Sing Heavenly Muse Fiction Contest,
1983
11
Project Impull,
1983
11
Minnesota Farmers Union: Blizzard story project,
1981, 1983
11
Dorothy Sennett, Full
Measure,
1985
11
Milkweed Chronicle
benefit,
Nov. 7, 1982
3 copies of script
11
Northland,
1996, 1997
12
Northland,
1992-1998
Notes for Talks and Speeches
The Fifties and
The Sixties,
1949-1962
Consists of clippings, a few drafts of writings, anti-war
materials (issues, "Poets Against the Vietnam War"), publicity, very early
Robert Bly work (1949-1951), first 5 issues of The
Fifties; The Sixties v. 10;
The Lion's Tails & Eyes (1962);
Coastlines #19 (1962).
Miscellaneous
Letter sent to Universities cancelling their
subscriptions to The Sixties,
1967-1969
Attack on colleges doing germ warfare
research
"As a River of Light" - text by Michael Denis Browne,
music by John Foley (cassette audio tape)
James Wright
2000
Includes photographs from "A Tribute to James Wright," New York,
Dec. 13, 2000 (in black binder); photographs from "By Heart," conference and
readings at the University of Minnesota, 2000; photographs of three clippings
(no date); "James Wright Retrospective," VHS tape (no date)
Garrison Keillor Lake Wobegon story (cassette audio
tape),
Oct. 1995
Personal
Awards
Application for associate professorship at University of
Minnesota,
1991
Photographs
Family and Carol Bly
Journals
Family documents
Includes letters, clippings, genealogy and other family
books
Carol McLean Bly: early years to 1955
Includes clippings, manuscript of poem (1947), wedding
photograph
Carol Bly
Miscellaneous personal - clippings, Andover Academy news
items
Gethsemane Episcopal Church, Appleton, MN,
1975-1978
1
Newsletters,
1975-1978
Miscellaneous materials from Carol Bly's service as church
secretary
2
Episcopalian liturgical miscellaney; Episcopal morality;
Talks given at Gethsemane; Diocesesan materials,
1975-1978
Includes notes, clippings, publications
Reviews and Writings by and about Carol Bly
Writings by others (copies of publications)
Includes clippings, correspondence, interviews, writings, and
other material
"Talk of Heroes."
Milkweek Editions -- Publicity
Writings about Bly and interviews with her
Reviews by Bly
An Adolescent's
Christmas
Backbone
"Beyond Borders"
Beyond the Writer's
Workshop
Changing the
Bully
Letters from the
Country
My Lord Bag of
Rice
The Passionate Accurate
Story
Rachel River (motion
picture)
The Tomcat's
Wife
Notices of events involving Bly
Notices of activities of Bly
Work and writing by others
Writings (manuscripts of works),
1939-1985
Folder titles as given.
1
"The First Things I Ever Wrote,"
1939-1940
1
Going to the Country,
1948
Chapter 1 only
1
"The Tree of Wonders,"
1948
1
"Perhaps We are a Disaster Area,"
1957-1965
In A Country Journal
1
"An Evil Chance,"
1954
1
"Friends and Enemies,"
ca. 1958
1
"A Dark Future Prepared,"
1961
1
"A Failed Piece,"
1961
(no title for work)
1
Poems and short prose,
ca 1965
1
"An Eastern Memoir,"
1966
1
James Wright's visits to Odin House,
1977
1
"A Discourse of Optimism for Dark Moments,"
1978
1
"Religious Symbols,"
1979
1
"The Last of the Gold Star Mothers,"
1979
1
"Linear Feminine Imagination,"
1984
1
"Winning and Celebration: Rural Episcopal Church Life,"
1985
1
"Cry of the Loon"
Copies of a newsletter
1
Rachel River
(script)
2
An Adolescent's Christmas
1944,
1997-2000
Includes correspondence and a few drafts
2
My Dear Republican Mother and
Other Essays,
Sept. 2001
Unpublished book of essays
3
Writings for Minnesota
Monthly
Correspondence
3
"Letter from the Country"
Draft, published copy, correspondence
3
"Charismatic Men's Movement as Psychological Booty,"
1992
Published in Omni; draft,
published copy, correspondence
3
Forward to Full Measure
by Dorothy Sennett (Graywolf Press, 1985)
Xerox of proof
Publications
Copies of various editions of Carol Bly's work; 3 boxes.