Correspondence, Desmond Pacey
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New York 23 N.Y. September 20, 1949Dear Desmond Pacey,Thank you for your letter of Thursday. I am very happy that SUMMER STORM is to appear In your BOOK OF CANADIAN ST0RIES.I assume that you have text as printed in •"Story" magazine which la correct. But if the opportunity oocurs would you make some minor corrections?:1) top of page 70: "It was as if he were makingthe darkness. He would woke it now, and they'dsee— even though be drowned and was dead andwould swing deep in the lake never found." etc.2) page 68, last para, 2nd. line: "ham-tongue-and-veal sandwich. “3) page 74 last para: "They were smeared withblood where the wood had torn his father'shands."If it is of Interest for your prefatory Note, my short stories have appeared in Atlantic Monthly Story, Epoch, Tomorrow, Here and Now,' Northern Review, New Mexico Quarterly Review, Argosy (London), Cross Section 1948, The Best American Short Stories 1948 and over the International CBC.After two years and a verbal commision, Penguin Books nave reneged on my CANADIAN ACCENT (the short story collection). But I've done a now Preface which appeared in "Life & Letters" in July and shall find one of the U.S. pocket reprinters to bring it out, I hope.With very best wishes for continued success and. kind regards,Sincerely,
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The university of New BrunswickFREDERICTON. N. B.December 11, 1949Dear Mr. GustafsonI am sorry to have to inform you that it will notbe possible after all, for me to use one of your stories in the new edition of my anthology. After requesting me to select three or four new stories in June,Dr. Pierce stunned me in October by announcing that the House had decided that in view of rising costs the new edition would have to be limited to a revised introduction and the original stories. After a lively interchange of near-insults,I secured a compromise whereby the new edition will include a story by W.O.Mitchell which was scheduled for the first edition but held up by copyright difficulties,and a very short story by Ethel Wilson. I am far from satisfied with this arrangement,but I have expended too much energy over the business already and am going to reconcile myself to it.Dr. Pierce says that plan will be to bring out a more radicallychanged third edition about 1952,and I shall be hpoing to include your story at that time.With best wishes.Yours sincerely.Desmond Pacey®
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DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISHThe University of New BrunswickFREDERICTON, N. B.December 26,1949Dear Mr. Gustafson,Delighted to hear that you’ll probably be in Montreal on Jan.4. I shall be arriving there early in the morning and will get in touch with you at a decent hour.I am hoping to get a chance to see Sutherland some time that day. If you should be seeing him,by any chance,you might mention my projected visit.Season's greetingsDes Pacey
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New York 23, N.YJanuary 5, 1950Dear Desmond Pacey,I'm sorry to have missed you in Montreal I told my sister that you would bo phoning and expected to be in Canada at that time. Unfortunately so work hero accumulated that I cant got away until the end of the month for my visit in Montreal.Do hope you'll let me know if you ever come this way- or plan another visit in Montreal.I was glad you liked the PIGEON John Sutherland was most enthusiastic about it- and its fortune has turned out extremely well I heard from Houghton Jifflin today that it is to bo included in "The Best American Short Stories 1950."I've two under way at the present-one, I think, will turn out well. Themeand manner will make it hard to place, but each story's a gamble. Hi is about the only vehicle in Canada at all inter-ested in anything that doesn't follow the usual formula stuff*All best wishes,
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DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISHThe University of New BrunswickFREDERICTON, N. B.January 9, 195ODear Mr. Gustafson,I have your letter of January 5.I was sorry to miss seeing you in Montreal. I phonedyour aunt, only to be disappointed, As you say,I hope we may meet before long.I am glad to hear--but not surprised--that "ThePigeon" has had such success. It was a very interesting story.Perhaps I should say that the chief reason why Ethel Wilson's story rather than you "Summer Storm" was included in the new edition of my anthology was that the former was some fifteen pages shorter. Since Ryerson Press was determined to hold down costs,that fact was decisive. I was lucky to get the compromise I did--for several weeks it looked as if they would allow me no new material.By the way, I saw Dr. Pierce in Toronto and they promise the new edition by February. Since they have only 18 copies of the first edition left they must hurry it through.Yours sincerely,Desmond Pacey,
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Cable Address "GUARDIAN” TorontoTelephone, Adelaide 3711The Ryerson Press PUBLISHING - PRINTING - BOOKBINDING299 QUEEN STREET WESTEDITORIAL OFFICESToronto 2 CanadaDecember 3rd 19 5 1Mr. Ra ph Gustafson Apt. 7270 Central Park W.New York City, N.Y.Dear Mr. Gustafson:We are preparing a revision of our anthology A BOOK OF CANADIAN STORIES, edited by Desmond Pacey of the University of New Brunswick, and in this would like to include your story "The Pigeon". I understand that this first appeared in Story.We would appreciate having information on who the owner of the copyright is. If you still control it, we would like to have your permission to include this story in our anthology.An early reply would help us to proceed with the final preparation of the manuscript.Sincerely yours,Permissions DepartmentALFRED A. KNOPF BECKLEY-CARDY BLACKIE & SON BRUCE CHARLES C. THOMAS CHRISTOPHERS D. APPLETON-GENTURY F. A. DAVIS CO. FABER & FABER HACHETTE LITTLE. BROWN LYONS & CARNAHAN WM. HEINEMANN VICTOR GOLLANCZ YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS
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December 13, 1951Miss Enid ThorntonThe ryerson Press299 Queen St, West Toronto 2, CanadaDear Miss ThorntonThank you for your letter of the third which awaited my returm from a visit in Montreal.I am very happy to be included in the revised edition of Desmond Pacey's ABOOK OF CANADIAN STORIES. You mention that you would like to include my short story, "The Pigeon”. Some time ago, Dr. Pacey wrote no saying that ha would like to use a story of mine called "Summer Storm" and that he had it "all typed out ready, together with a prefatory note. This latter story is the one that first appeared in Story. "The Pigeon” first appeared in Northern Review and was later re-printed in the Foley Best Short Stories of 1950.However, I own the copyright on both and am glad to give permission for you to reprint either in Dr. Pacey's anthology.I am inclined to prefer that you re-print "Summer Storm" but I leave it to your editor's judgment (since "The Pigeon" is again about to re-appear). Would you let me know which story you will be using and the permission fee? Sincerely yours,
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Jan. 8, 1952Dear Desmond Pacey,I have heard from Miss Enid Thornton of Ryerson's that you wish to lnclude a story of mine in the next edition of your Anthology. Many thanks; this is verypleasant.She mentioned the title as being "ThePigeon"-- but I remember previuosly you hadselected "Summer Stories" Would you let meknow which- for, then, I Should like tosend you corrected MMS "Summer Stories"have changed a bit for my book and TheNorthern Review, when they printedthe story, loft out a paragraph and aSentence! All host wishes for1952
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DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISHThe University of New BrunswickFREDERICTON, N. B.January 12,1952Dear Ralph,Thanks for your letter of January 8.It is THE PIGEON which I am planning to use in the third edition of my anthology.lt is shorter than SUMMER STORM— always a help to hard-pressed editors,as you know—and in any case I prefer it.If you have a fuller script of THE PIGEON I should be obliged if you would send it direct to Frank Flemington of Ryerson Press with a note to that effect. The version I sent them was copied from Northern Review. I certainly hope that no last-minute economies will prevent this story from appearing. Ryerson must have cleared their costs long ago on the book,but they are still very parsimonious about it. The new edition,by the way,is to be used as a matriculation text in Quebec and perhaps in other provinces.I think you will be interested to know that Ryerson are bringing out later this month my CREATIVE WRITING IN CANADA,a short history of English-Canadian literature from the beginnings to 1950. I wonder if you could and would help to get it some publicity in the U.S.A.? The New York Times reviewed my Book of Canadian Stories,but about fifteen months after publication.I asked Ryerson how that happened, and they said they had got a wire from the Times asking for a review copy at that time. I of course wanted to know why they had not sent the Times a review copy at the time of publication,and their story was that usually such American periodicals won't even bother to pick up Canadian books from the customs house,and that consequently the publishers have pretty well given up sending them. How true that is I have no way of knowing. Anyway,I am keen that the book be reviewed in the States,and not merely or even primarily in order to swell sales,but because I feel that our literature deserves to be better known across the border. I am wondering if you could persuade the Times or SRL or the Herald-Tribune to let you review the book. I am sure Ryerson would gladly send you a review copy. Mind you,I’m not asking you for a puff,but an honest appraisal. Naturally I think the book is a good one,but it is far from perfect and is impaired for one reason by the fact that Pierce wanted the thing held down to a minimum length and I had to fight awfully hard to hold my two hundred odd pages.All the best for 1952.Sincerely,
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January 14, 1952Dear Desmond,thanks for your letter of Saturday. I have sent off the correct text of THE PIGEON directly to Mr Frank Flemington of The Ryerson Press. Many thanks about all this.It was good and exciting news to hear of the appearance of yourWRITING IN CANADA and I look forward keenly to reading it. Anything I can do to forward the book: dowm hereI'll beo most happy to. It is true that U.S. periodicals (generally) dont touch a book for review unless it has the imprint of a U.S. publisher. Do you think it would help, though, if I sent out copies to certain quarters myself from here? Though my personal contacts vary, I do think that in some cases it might establish attention. I know the chief reviewer for the Sunday NY Herald-Tribune well; I could send a copy to Harrison of theSat Review of Lit (he believes Canada shouldnt have a separate culture & I've had some contention with him!); a copy to Henry Wells at Columbia; I could get a copy to Rollo of "The Atlantic” whom I know well; to Margaret Marshall of "The
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nation”. nothing may happen, but at least it would bo known that these quarters had copies that didnt come in in a batch of dozens.If you think it worth while, just direct Ryerson's to send me what you will and I'll see that they are sent off with, letters.All the best,Sincerely,
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