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About the Southwestern Writers Collection
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THE SOUTHWESTERN WRITERS COLLECTION
A Place of Inspiration
An extraordinary collection of rare and unique treasures awaits visitors
to the Southwestern Writers Collection, a distinguished archival repository
that collects and preserves the works of the region’s renowned
writers, filmmakers, and musicians.
Celebrating the Southwest’s unique heritage, the Writers Collection
explores the relationship between art and place with public exhibitions,
research opportunities, and lively events that bring together many of
today’s leading voices in the arts.
Bill and Sally Wittliff founded the Writers Collection in 1986 with
the first of many gifts: papers from author and folklorist J. Frank
Dobie which included diaries, journals, manuscripts for published and
unpublished books, personal correspondence, candid snapshots, and memorabilia.
In the years since, the Writers Collection has grown tremendously –
thanks to university support, the work of staff members, the continuing
efforts of the Wittliffs, and the gifts of hundreds of individual donors
– resulting in a rich assemblage that commands international attention.
Literature & Drama
The Southwest’s greatest writers are inevitably touched by the
power of this region, a place of distinctive geography and compelling
human history, a land rich in stories and open to limitless possibility.
Available to everyone, the archives at the Southwestern Writers Collection
offer surprising insights into the lives of artists and the works they
have made, revealing hidden aspects of the creative process. The original
archive materials are complemented by an extensive supporting collection
of Southwest-related books, magazines, videos, and recordings, which
further illuminate the profound sense of place that affects us all.
The complete literary papers of Cormac McCarthy – author of some
of the finest fiction of our times, including Blood Meridian, All the
Pretty Horses, No Country for Old Men, and The Road – document
his entire writing career. Handwritten and typed drafts, correspondence,
notes, and unpublished manuscripts reveal McCarthy at work on both novels
and screenplays.
The Writers Collection also holds the papers of nearly 100 other significant
authors, including James Crumley, John Graves, Stephen Harrigan, Beverly
Lowry, Larry McMurtry, Katherine Anne Porter, Rick Riordan, Sam Shepard,
and Edwin “Bud” Shrake. The archives of Larry L. King contain
an astounding 40,000 pieces of correspondence that detail his evolving
relationships with friends, enemies, fellow writers, and politicians.
Additionally, the 3,500-volume personal library of Molly Ivins shows
the political columnist’s wide range of interests, and the extensive
Texas Monthly archives, which currently comprise some 1200 manuscript
boxes, illustrate the award-winning magazine’s production with
everything from early story drafts and original artwork to cover layouts
and business files.
Film & Television
Film archives are essential to the Southwestern Writers Collection,
and central to these holdings is the entire production record of the
highly honored CBS miniseries, Lonesome Dove. Included is every draft
of Bill Wittliff’s screenplay, which he adapted from Larry McMurtry’s
Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, as well as principal costumes, set designs,
props, production paperwork, photographs, and 77 hours of “dailies”
representing all the printed takes from the filming. Much of the material
is on permanent display in The Lonesome Dove Room.
The filmmaking process is also notable in the archives of Academy Award-winning
writer-director Robert Benton (Bonnie and Clyde, Places in the Heart,
Kramer vs. Kramer, Nobody’s Fool) and screenwriter William Broyles,
Jr. (Apollo 13, Cast Away, China Beach), in select materials from Tommy
Lee Jones and Sam Shepard, and in over 600 screenplays.
The archives of King of the Hill, Fox TV’s animated series set
in Texas, document all stages of the Emmy Award-winning show: from the
writers’ research materials, stylebooks, and office photos to
storyboards, drawings, and the progressive script drafts of every episode.
Texas Music
The music archives of the Southwestern Writers Collection embrace a
rich variety of Texas music, from country and Western Swing to blues,
polka, rock-and-roll, conjunto, and Tejano.
There is original work by Willie Nelson: a handmade songbook he created
as an 11-year-old, and dozens of his song lyrics written on everything
from notebook paper to cocktail napkins. Posters, concert programs,
tour itineraries, recordings, tour jackets, T-shirts, photographs, publicity
clippings, Farm Aid papers, bandanas, and even an old pair of running
shoes chart the trajectory of this Texas star.
Austin City Limits creator and longtime executive producer Bill Arhos
has donated numerous personal archives from his twenty-plus years guiding
the televised concert program, offering a unique backstage look at the
celebrated series. Author and music journalist Joe Nick Patoski has
donated the papers for his acclaimed biographies of Stevie Ray Vaughan,
Selena, and Willie Nelson. The Writers Collection also serves as the
repository for the Texas Western Swing Hall of Fame, and includes stage
costumes worn by the Light Crust Doughboys and a fiddle played by Western
Swing legend Bob Wills.
Preservation & Stewardship
Many of the treasures at the Southwestern Writers Collection are one-of-a-kind
objects, and all materials are given the utmost care. They are stored
in archivally stable containers and housed in a climate-controlled environment.
The archival team ensures sound preservation practices while cataloging
the materials, and once a collection is processed, posts a “finding
aid” describing its contents online for the benefit of students
and researchers.
The Southwestern Writers Collection continually creates and mounts major
exhibitions, all of which are drawn from the permanent holdings and
shed light on various aspects of life in the Southwest. Along with multiple
exhibits, each year the Writers Collection hosts numerous classroom
visits and stages dozens of literary events, ranging from first-time
readings by graduate students to book signings and panel discussions
with leading authors and poets.
Tours, events, and exhibits are free and open to the public, offering
visitors the opportunity to engage firsthand the wondrous archived treasures,
and to celebrate and draw inspiration from the artists who continuously
redefine the Southwest in our collective imagination.
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