Writings from the Handy Colony
Edited by Helen Howe, Don Sackrider, and George Hendrick
A collection of previously unpublished writings from the Handy Writers' Colony, supported by James Jones, after the success of “From Here to Eternity,” and his mentor Lowney Handy in Marshall, Ill. This anthology reflects the writing philosophy Handy taught scores of colonists in the 1940s, '50s and early '60s through her letters, the stories, a play based on the Colony and insights by a number of her students and scholars who have studied her work and her method of teaching writing.
$17.95
About the Editors
Helen Howe
Helen Howe taught American literature, composition and creative writing at Lincoln Trail College in Robinson, Ill. Her husband, Tinks, was a childhood friend of James Jones.
Don Sackrider
Don Sackrider is a former president of the James Jones Literary Society and retired airline captain, was born in Robinson, Ill., and became the second student at the Handy Writers' Colony after James Jones.
George Hendrick
George Hendrick is a retired University of Illinois English professor and department chair who served as the first president of the James Jones Literary Society and edited "To Reach Eternity: The Letters of James Jones."
Read an Excerpt
We, of course, were never allowed to see each other's work at the Handy Colony. I even felt a little guilty seeing it in print, as when Jerry Tschappat's and Sonny Daly's books came out a short time after I left. A little strange, you might think. You don't know the half of it. The Handy Colony was as far away from Yaddo and MacDowell as the night from the day. It was more like—shall I dare say it?—a cult rather than a learning center for the fashioning of prose. At its center was one powerful woman. She drew people to her in a messianic way. She left you never the same again. Her name was Lowney Handy.
Jon Shirota recounts his sending a manuscript to Lowney in high innocent optimism, seeking admission, and its coming back like a rifle shot with "Sh**" written on it. This was not unusual. It was Standard Operating Procedure. You were brought down and then you were lifted up, thinking absolutely differently about everything in the process.