The Special Collections Department holds many manuscript collections pertaining to literary figures. While most of these writers are connected with Arkansas, others lived and wrote elsewhere, both in this country and abroad. Some achieved national prominence and others remained relatively obscure outside their own regions. They wrote poetry, fiction, screenplays, critical reviews, inspirational and travel stories, biographies, and memoirs, among other genres. Their works were intended for readers of all ages and were published in magazines, newspapers, and books. Their collected papers permit researchers to explore beyond the limits of published works toward greater understanding of the authors' lives and times.

Correspondence and manuscript drafts comprise the largest segments of these collections. With corrections and notes in the margins, manuscript drafts of published and unpublished works provide glimpses of writers at work. Correspondence with publishers reveals details about the business aspects of writing. Personal correspondence between a writer and family, friends, and other writers may include not only biographical details but information about wider issues in the writer's environment or the literary scene. Much of the correspondence represents incoming mail, sometimes addressed to a relatively obscure figure from a better-known friend or colleague; consequently these collections contain letters from an impressive and extensive number of literary figures.

Additional items in these collections include personal and family records, scrapbooks, diaries, photographs, and files of newspaper clippings. The collections provide commentary on writers of the past and present; on the art of writing; and on topics of general interest, such as politics and travel. Correspondence and photographs provide evidence of the literary community to which the writers belonged.

Book collections and the vertical file in the Special Collections Department support the collections of literary figures and offer information about other writers as well. The diversity of these resources attracts a broad range of users, including scholars and students from this campus and other educational institutions, journalists, and researchers pursuing personal interests.

The following collections are a sample of the literary material which may be found in the department. This list does not include authors who wrote only nonfiction works, such as Daisy Bates, Evalena Berry, or David Yancy Thomas; nor does it include records for organizations established to encourage the study of literature, such as the Pathfinder Club of Morrilton or the Modern Literature Club of Fayetteville. The department continues to acquire writers' papers for preservation and research. Please contact the Special Collections Department for the information about holdings which may further your research.