Scope and Contents
Conditions Governing Access
Conditions Governing Use
Source of Acquisition
Accruals and Additions
Related Materials
Related Publications
Preferred Citation
Biographical Note
Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & University Archives
Title: Larry McCaffery Papers
Creator:
McCaffery, Larry
Identifier/Call Number: MS-0498
Physical Description:
55.33 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1919-2009
Date (bulk): 1976-2005
Language of Material:
English
, Japanese
, Russian
, Chinese
.
Scope and Contents
The
Larry McCaffery Papers (1919-2009) document four decades of McCaffery's distinguished career as a literary critic and professor of English at San
Diego State University. The collection includes manuscripts of McCaffery's literary interviews with well-known contemporary
American and postmodern writers; correspondence; research files; lecture notes; clippings; book objects; and more. The majority
of materials date from the 1980s and 1990s and focus primarily on McCaffery's literary criticism and scholarship. The collection
is divided into six series:
Literary Files (1919-2009),
Teaching Files (1979-2006),
Research Files (1974-2009),
Personal Files (1977-2007),
Book Objects (1989-1996), and
Zines and Underground Publications.
The Literary Files (1919-2007) is the largest series in the collection and center around McCaffery's relationships with writers as well as his
scholarship about their work. These files include correspondence, manuscripts, interviews, research files, publishing contracts,
and more. Of particular note are the Interview Files, which capture every phase of McCaffery's unique interview process. The
Literary Files are divided into six subseries:
Author Files,
Interview Files,
Published Works,
Unpublished Works,
Editor Files, and
Correspondence. The
Author Files contain manuscripts and correspondence from numerous writers. Many of the manuscripts include notes and edits from the writers
themselves as well as McCaffery. While much of the correspondence is personal, many letters also discuss individual writing
processes, current and future writing projects, and current events. This subseries is arranged alphabetically by author last
name. Highlights include a manuscript of Mark Danielewski's
Fifty Year Sword, complete with color key for the publisher. The
Interview Files, also arranged alphabetically by interviewee last name, include audio recordings of McCaffery's literary interviews, interview
transcripts, drafts with edits, correspondence, research files, and final interview manuscripts. McCaffery interviewed more
than 75 writers during his career including Kathy Acker, Samuel Delany, David Foster Wallace, Tom Robbins, Joanna Russ, Mark
Danielewski, and Ursula LeGuin. These files document the evolution of an interview--from the taped recording to the final
manuscript, and include edits and comments made by McCaffery and the interviewee. Also included are McCaffery's extensive
research files for each interviewee with include other interviews, criticism, and essays, short stories, and other writings
by or about the interviewee. This series is divided into subseries:
Manuscript and Research Files and
Audio Recordings. Please note that the majority of the audio recordings are currently unavailable for research for preservation reasons.
Published Works includes manuscript drafts, galleys, prospectus', correspondence, reviews, and promotional materials for McCaffery's numerous
publications, which are further divided into three subseries:
Fiction Anthologies,
Interview Collections, and
Scholarly Works. Within these subseries materials are arranged in reverse chronological order by publication date.
Fiction Anthologies include materials for
After Yesterday's Crash: the Avant-Pop Anthology (1997),
Avant-Pop: Fiction for a Daydream Nation (1993), and
Storming the Reality Studio (1991).
Interview Anthologies include
Some Other Frequency: Interviews with Innovative American Authors (1995),
Across the Wounded Galaxies: Interviews with Contemporary American Science Fiction Authors (1990),
Alive and Writing: Interviews with American Authors of the 1980s (1987), and
Anything Can Happen: Interviews with Contemporary American Novelists (1983). The largest subseries,
Scholarly Works, contains manuscripts, correspondence and extensive research files for his two major casebooks,
Expelled from Eden: A William T. Vollmann Reader (2004) and
Federman from A to X-X-X-X - A Recyclopedic Narrative which he co-edited with Tom Hartl and Doug Rice in 1998, as well as files for
Metaphysical Muse: the Work of Robert Coover, Donald Barthelme, and William H. Gass (1982),
Postmodern Fiction: A Bio-Bibliographical Guide, and several published essays and interviews.
Unpublished Works is the smallest subseries in
The Literary Files with manuscript drafts and correspondence for a few essays and a casebook. These materials date from the mid- to late 1970s
and the early 1990s. The
Editor Files document McCaffery's extensive work as editor or special guest editor at various literary journals and publishers including
Black Ice Books,
Fictional International, the
American Book Review,
Review of Contemporary Fiction, and others. Materials include correspondence with contributors as well as other editors, manuscripts, reviews, and promotional
materials; and are arranged alphabetically by publisher or journal title with general correspondence included at the end.
Finally, the
Correspondence subseries contains folders of correspondence to various publishers and covers a range of topics--from prospective projects
to McCaffery's thoughts on various various writers and subjects.
The
Teaching Files document McCaffery's 30-year teaching career as professor of English at San Diego State University, and include syllabi,
lecture notes, readings, research, handouts, bibliographies and reading lists. The series is divided into three subseries:
Course / Subject Files,
Author Files, and
Rock Music Files. The
Course / Subject Files are arranged alphabetically by course title, followed by alphabetical subject files. Materials in this subseries include
syllabi, reading lists, lecture notes, assignments, study guides, and more. The
Author Files are arranged alphabetically by last name and include notes, articles, and handouts on various writers and their literary
works. Lastly, the
Rock Music Files document McCaffery's research and interest in numerous musical groups and artists, which he frequently used in classes. These
files are arranged alphabetically by artist/band name.
The
Research Files document two major research projects that McCaffery never completed. Each project is divided into its own subseries: the
OJ Simpson Project Files, and the
Bruce Springsteen Project Files. The
OJ Simpson Project Files document McCaffery's interest in and fascination with the OJ Simpson trial, and how contemporary writers were responding
to the rise of media, digital technologies, and the impact of "information overload." Although McCaffery had contacted various
publishers and contributors for the intended volume, he never finished the project. The subseries contains correspondence
with editors as well as potential contributors, news clippings including entire issues from various tabloids like
The National Enquirer and
The Globe, various trial-related ephemera, and even "Squeeze the Juice" a board game about the OJ murder trial. McCaffery gathered
the majority of materials in the
Bruce Springsteen Project Files for a potential comprehensive on Springsteen. Some of the materials were also used for McCaffery's classes on Springsteen
and Rock Poetry. This subseries contains news clippings, criticism, essays, correspondence, album and tour information, and
class materials related to Springsteen and the E Street Band. Materials are divided into five subseries:
Class Materials / Notes;
General Files;
Clippings, Articles and Essays;
Tours / Album Coverage; and
Fanzines and Underground Publications.
The
Personal Files consist of materials about McCaffery and include four small subseries:
General Files;
China Fulbright; and
Conferences. The
General Files contain articles, blurbs, and clippings about McCaffery; awards and accolades; and correspondence from students and admirers
of his work. The
China Files document McCaffery's Fulbright in China in 1989 and include his final report, correspondence, and various tourist brochures
and programs.
Conferences documents various symposiums and conferences that McCaffery either attended and/or organized including the Science Fiction
Research Association's 1986 annual conference held at San Diego State University. Highlights include correspondence with conference
speakers, including Harlan Ellison.
The
Book Objects series consists of works by Norman Conquest (also known as Derek Pell). These objects are typically texts that have been
manipulated or reworked to convey a specific message or idea. Highlights include Baudrillard's Simulacrum Cake and Foucault's
Tamponnoir.
The last series,
Zines and Underground Publications includes various poetry, fiction, creative writing and pop culture underground publications. Most are DIY publications or
published by small, independent presses. This series documents McCaffery's penchant for innovative and experimental fiction.
Titles are arranged alphabetically.
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research. Due to preservation concerns, some analog audiovisual materials are currently unavailable
for research.
Conditions Governing Use
The copyright interests in these materials have not been transferred to San Diego State University. Copyright resides with
the creators of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. The nature of historical archival and manuscript collections
is such that copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine. Requests for permission to publish must be
submitted to the Head of Special Collections, San Diego State University, Library and Information Access. When granted, permission
is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder(s), which must also be obtained in order to publish. Materials from our collections are made available
for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials.
Source of Acquisition
Larry McCaffery
Accruals and Additions
2009-034, 2009-049, 2010-029, 2011-022
Related Materials
Elizabeth Chater Manuscript Collection
Jefferson Sutton Science Fiction Collection
http://spinelessbooks.com/mccaffery/
Related Publications
Books from the McCaffery Collection are availabe in the [url=https://sdsu-primo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-explore/search?query=any,contains,%22Larry%20McCaffery%20Collection%22&tab=everything&search_scope=EVERYTHING&vid=01CALS_SDL&lang=en_US&offset=0]Library's
catalog[/url].
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, folder title, box number,
Larry McCaffery Papers, Special Collections and University Archives, San Diego State University Library.
Biographical Note
Dr. Lawrence F. McCaffery, better known as Larry McCaffery, was born in Dallas, Texas on May 13, 1946. He received his BA
from Notre Dame in 1968, and his doctorate from the University of Illinois in 1975. His dissertation focused on Robert Coover.
In 1976, McCaffery began his more than 30-year career as professor of English and Comparative Literature at San Diego State
University. During this time he taught classes on Postmodern Literature, Contemporary American Literature, Bruce Springsteen,
Japanese Postmodernism, Punk Aesthetics and much more. He also helped to found the English Department's Living Writers Series,
which invites important writers to speak on campus. McCaffery was awarded two Fulbrights and served as a visiting professor
at the University of Nice in 1984, and at the Beijing Foreign Studies University in China between 1988 and 1989, where he
witnessed the student protests, including the tragic events at Tiananmen Square. He participated in several other visiting
professorships at the University of California, San Diego, Deep Springs College, and Seikei University in Japan.
In addition to teaching, McCaffery built a reputation as an important postmodern and contemporary American literary critic
known for identifying influential and innovative writers. In 1982, he published
Metafictional Muse: the Work of Robert Coover, Donald Barthelme and William H. Gass. A year later, he and Tom LeClair co-authored
Anything Can Happen: Interviews with Contemporary American Novelists. This work identified important postmodern writers and served as McCaffery's first foray into the literary interview. His
unique interview process consisted of recording the initial interview, then loosely transcribing the conversation into a textual
draft. This 'transcript' was then heavily edited by both himself and the interviewee. The result was a collaborative text
based on the original conversation. McCaffery's informal style and close relationships with many of the interviewees generated
personal and important insights into each interviewee's works and influences. In 1986, McCaffery published a second collection
of literary interviews with his wife, Sinda Gregory titled
Alive and Writing: Interviews with American Authors of the 1980s. He continued identifying and interviewing important writers, completing a third interview collection--
Across the Wounded Galaxies: Interviews with Contemporary American Science Fiction Authors--in 1990. Five years later, he published
Some Other Frequency: Interviews with Innovative American Authors. Many of his interviews were also published in prominent literary journals, including the
Paris Review. Several were nominated for the Pushcart Prize, which honors small press publications.
During the 1990s, McCaffery compiled several fiction anthologies. He is perhaps best known for his seminal cyberpunk anthology
Storming the Reality Studio (1991), which featured fiction and criticism that situated cyberpunk in the postmodern paradigm. McCaffery's focus on science
fiction helped elevate it as a legitimate literary genre worthy of serious scholarship. In the words of Brooks Landon, McCaffery
was "science fiction's Friend in the High Castle." His other two fiction anthologies,
Avant-Pop: Fiction for a Daydream Nation (1993) and
After Yesterday's Crash: the Avant-Pop Anthology (1997), focused on radical and innovative writers working influenced by postmodernism, the avant-garde, and popular culture
and media.
McCaffery also published several scholarly casebooks, including
Expelled from Eden: A William T. Vollmann Reader (2004) and
Federman from A to X-X-X-X a Recyclopedic Narrative (1998). Both works required extensive research and ongoing conversations with both writers.
Throughout his career, McCaffery served as editor for numerous literary publications. In 1983, he became co-editor alongside
Harold Jaffe of
Fiction International, a literary magazine dedicated to innovative and experimental fiction, which had just relocated from New York to San Diego
State University. He also served as editor for
American Book Review, and as executive editor for
Critique: Studies in Contemporary Fiction. McCaffery guest edited several special issues including Postmodern literature issue,
Review of Contemporary Fiction's Young Authors issue, and the
Mississippi Review's seminal Cyberpunk issue. In addition, McCaffery was an editor for Black Ice Books, which published controversial and provocative
literature, including Samuel Delany's
Hogg.
McCaffery retired from SDSU in 2010. He and his wife Sinda live in Borrego Springs.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
American literature--20th century
American literature--20th century--Sources
San Diego State University--Faculty