William Zinsser Papers
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
William Zinsser's papers include correspondence, manuscripts, scrapbooks, reviews and teaching materials relating to his career as a writer, editor, and educator.
Biographical Note
1922-1943Born in New York City, 1922. Princeton University, class of 1944.1943-1945Enlisted in the U.S. Army (North Africa and Italy).1946-1959New York Herald Tribune:Feature writer, 1947-1948Drama editor (in charge of Sunday section of theater, movies, music, dance, art, etc.) 1949-1954Chief movie critic, 1955-1958Editorial writer, 1958-19591959-1972Free-lance writer of magazine articles, books and other projects. Columnist for Look, 1967Columnist for Life, 1968-19721970-1979Yale University.Teacher of nonfiction writing, 1970-1979Editor, Yale Alumni Magazine, 1970-1977Master of Branford College, 1973-19791977Columnist for the New York Times, Home Section, March-September.1979-1987Book-of-the-Month Club.Executive Editor in charge of in-house publications. Also responsible for the club's educational and public service activities (public lectures, exhibits, etc.).1976Lecturer, teacher and consultant on writing to colleges, schools, school systems, newspapers, magazines, businesses, etc.1987 Free-lance writer of magazines and books. Fifteen books published altogether.1988-present Teacher of writing at the New School.
Arrangement
Folders are arranged alphabetically by subject/author heading then chronologically within each subject/author heading.
The files are grouped into 4 series:
- Series I: Letters
- Series II: Works By William Zinsser
- Series III: Biographical
- Series IV: Teaching, Lectures & Workshops
Scope and Contents
William Zinsser's papers include correspondence, manuscripts, scrapbooks, reviews and teaching materials relating to his career as a writer, editor, and educator. Also included is an audio tape of On Writing Well read by William Zinsser (Nov. 21, 1990). Important correspondents in the General Letters (Series 1A) include: Kurt Vonnegut, Fred Hargadon, Michael Norman, Richard Wald, Pierre Leval. Also note Pat C. Hoy II's review of Inventing the Truth (Series 2D).
SERIES DESCRIPTION
SERIES I: LETTERS
This series contains letters to and from William Zinsser on a range of subjects. Some responses are attached to the original letters. William Zinsser's original chronological grouping was retained except for letters from frequent correspondents, which are grouped together.
Subseries A contains general letters (1980-1998) to and from William Zinsser arranged chronologically. These letters are about general subject matter. Letters to and from frequent correspondents are arranged alphabetically by the correspondent's last name.Subseries B contains letters to and from William Zinsser about his articles. The folders are labeled by subject, but they are arranged chronologically following the development of his career.Subseries C contains letters to and from William Zinsser about his book, On Writing Well (and its subsequent editions). This series is arranged chronologically according to the book's original publication and the subsequent five editions.Subseries D contains letters to and from William Zinsser about his other books and is arranged chronologically according to each book's publication.Subseries E contains letters to and from William Zinsser about the Fales Library party at New York University held for his donation of his papers, as well as NY Times article regarding that event.
SERIES II: WORKS BY WILLIAM ZINSSER
This series contains works published by William Zinsser, as well as press reviews and comments regarding his works.
Subseries A contains manuscripts of books authored by Williams Zinsser and is arranged alphabetically by title. See especially the manuscripts of the fifth and sixth editions of On Writing Well for documentation of William Zinsser's editing techniques.Subseries B contains articles authored by William Zinsser and various assorted writing projects (some unfinished and/or unpublished). This subseries includes the original text (written by Zinsser) from the Book-of-the-Month Club 60th Anniversary Exhibit, New York Public Library. This subseries is arranged by genre (articles, book reviews, travel profiles, television scripts, etc.) and then arranged chronologically.Subseries C contains six scrapbooks of original articles written by William Zinsser for the New York Herald Tribune between 1946-1959. One scrapbook (1948-1949), due to its large size, is on top of Box 6.Subseries D contains reviews and press comments about William Zinsser's published books. This subseries is restricted to commentary on books written by William Zinsser and books edited by William Zinsser. Within each genre, this subseries is arranged chronologically.Subseries E contains lyrics written by Zinsser.
SERIES III: BIOGRAPHICAL
This series contains articles written about William Zinsser's life, accomplishments, and writings. This series contains only one folder.
SERIES IV: TEACHING, LECTURES & WORKSHOPS
This series contains lecture notes, invitations to speak, workshop information, teaching notes, letters from former writing students and papers regarding the genesis of Zinsser's academic career.
Subseries A contains lecture notes, letters, and articles from his academic teaching at Yale University (1971-1978), his editorship at Yale Alumni Magazine (1970-1977), his Mastership at Branford College (1973-1979), and his teaching at The Fieldston School (1998). The letters from former writing students, which were solicited by Mark Singer in honor of On Writing Well's 6th edition, are also included. This subseries is arranged chronologically.Subseries B contains lecture notes, workshop requests, and articles from William Zinsser's talks and workshops given 1976-1998 throughout the United States on writing. This subseries is arranged chronologically.
Subjects
Organizations
Genres
People
Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open to researchers. Please contact the Fales Library and Special Collections, fales.library@nyu.edu, 212-998-2596.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright (or related rights to publicity and privacy) for materials in this collection was not transferred to New York University. Permission to use materials must be secured from the copyright holder. Please contact the Fales Library and Special Collections, fales.library@nyu.edu, 212-998-2596.
Preferred Citation
Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date (if known); William Zinsser Papers; MSS 31; box number; folder number; Fales Library and Special Collections, New York University Libraries.
Provenance
The William Zinsser Papers were a gift of William Zinsser in June 1998 in conjunction with the publication of the 6th edition of On Writing Well. Included in William Zinsser's gift to Fales Library was a collection of the books that he authored and edited. The accession number associated with these materials is 1998.031.
Separated Material
The following collection of books authored and edited by William Zinsser were donated with his papers. These items were separated into the Fales American Collection and have been individually cataloged. Records for the items can be located in Bobcat.
American places : a writer's pilgrimage to 15 of this country's most visited and cherished sites / William Zinsser, 1st ed., New York : HarperCollins Publishers, c1992.
American places : a writer's pilgrimage to 15 of this country's most visited and cherished sites / William Zinsser, 1st Harper Perennial ed., New York : Harper Perennial, 1993, c1992.
Annual report of the National Refractory & Brake Company [by William Zinsser. Drawings by James Stevenson, [New York, Harper & Row, 1969]
Any old place with you / Zinsser, William Knowlton, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1957.
The city dwellers / Zinsser, William Knowlton, [1st ed.], New York, Harper & Row [1962]
Easy to remember : the great American songwriters and their songs / William Zinsser, Jaffrey, N.H. : David R. Godine, 2001, c2000.
Extraordinary lives : the art and craft of American biography / Robert A. Caro ... [et al.] ; edited by William Zinsser, New York : American Heritage ; Boston : Distributed by Houghton Mifflin, 1986.
Extraordinary lives : the art and craft of American biography / Robert A. Caro ... [et al.] ; edited by William Zinsser, Boston : Houghton Mifflin, [1988]
A family of readers : an informal portrait of the Book-of-the-Month Club and its members on the occasion of its 60th anniversary / William Zinsser, New York : Book-of-the-Month Club, 1986.
Going on faith : writing as a spiritual quest / edited and with an introduction by William Zinsser ; [contributors], Diane Ackerman ... [et al.]., New York : Marlowe & Co. : Distributed by Publishers Group West, [1999]
The haircurl papers and other searches for the lost individual / Zinsser, William Knowlton, 1st ed., New York, Harper & Row, 1964.
Inventing the truth : the art and craft of memoir / Russell Baker ... [et al.] ; edited with a memoir and an introduction by William Zinsser, Boston : Houghton Mifflin, c1987.
Inventing the truth : the art and craft of memoir / Russell Baker ... [et al.] ; edited with a memoir and an introduction by William Zinsser, New York: Book-of-the-Month-Club 1987.
Inventing the truth : the art and craft of memoir / Russell Baker ... [et al.] ; edited with an introduction by William Zinsser, Rev. and expanded 2nd ed., Boston : Houghton Mifflin, c1995.
Inventing the truth : the art and craft of memoir / Russell Baker ... [et al.] ; edited with an introduction by William Zinsser, Rev. and expanded ed., 1st Mariner books ed., Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 1998.
Look, Ma, I am kool! and other casuals / compiled and edited by Burton Bernstein, Englewood Cliffs, N.J. : Prentice-Hall, c1977.
The lunacy boom [by] William Zinsser, [1st ed.], New York, Harper & Row [1970]
Mitchell & Ruff : an American profile in jazz / William Zinsser ; foreword by Albert Murray, 1st Paul Dry Books ed., Philadelphia : Paul Dry Books, 2000.
On writing well : an informal guide to writing nonfiction / William Zinsser, 1st ed., New York : Harper & Row, c1976.
On writing well : an informal guide to writing nonfiction / William Zinsser, 2nd. ed., New York : Harper and Row, c1980.
On writing well : an informal guide to writing nonfiction / William Zinsser, 3rd ed., rev. and enlarged, New York : Harper & Row, c1985.
On writing well : an informal guide to writing nonfiction / William Zinsser, 4th ed., rev., updated, and expanded, New York, N.Y. : Harper Perennial, c1990.
On writing well : the classic guide to writing nonfiction / William Zinsser, 6th ed., rev. and updated, New York : Harper Perennial, c1998.
On writing well [sound recording] / William Zinsser, Abridged, New York, NY : HarperCollins, c1998.
On writing well : the classic guide to writing nonfiction / William Zinsser, 25th anniversary ed., 6th ed. rev. and updated., 1st Harper Resource Quill ed., New York : Quill, 2001.
The paradise bit, a novel / [by] William K. Zinsser., [1st ed.], Boston : Little, Brown, [1967]
Paths of resistance : the art and craft of the political novel / Isabel Allende ... [et al.] ; edited by William Zinsser, Boston : Houghton Mifflin, c1989.
Pop goes America / Zinsser, William Knowlton, [1st ed.], New York, Harper & Row [1966]
Search & research; the collections and uses of the New York Public Library at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street / Zinsser, William Knowlton, New York, New York Public Library, 1961.
Seen any good movies lately? / Zinsser, William Knowlton, [1st ed.], Garden City, N.Y., Doubleday, 1958.
Speaking of journalism : 12 writers and editors talk about their work / William Zinsser, and Jennifer Allen ... [et al.]., 1st ed., New York : HarperCollins, 1994.
Speaking of journalism : 12 writers and editors talk about their work / William Zinsser ; and Jennifer Allen ... [et al.]., 1st Harper Perennial ed., New York : Harper Perennial, 1995.
Spiritual quests : the art and craft of religious writing / Mary Gordon ... [et al.] ; edited by William Zinsser, Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 1988.
Spring training / William Zinsser, 1st ed., New York : Harper & Row, c1989.
Spring training / William Zinsser ; introduction by Daniel Okrent, 1st Prentice Hall Press ed., New York : Prentice Hall Press, [1990]
They went : the art and craft of travel writing / Ian Frazier ... [et al.] ; edited by William Zinsser, Boston : Houghton Mifflin, c1991.
Weekend guests; from "we're so glad you could come" to "we're so sorry you have to go," and vice-versa / Zinsser, William Knowlton, [1st ed.], New York, Harper & Row [1963]
Willie and Dwike : an American profile / by William Zinsser, 1st ed., New York : Harper & Row, c1984.
Worlds of childhood : the art and craft of writing for children / Jean Fritz ... [et al.] ; edited by William Zinsser, Boston : Houghton Mifflin, c1990.
Writing to learn / William Zinsser, 1st ed., New York : Harper & Row, c1988.
Writing with a word processor / William Zinsser, 1st ed., New York : Harper & Row, c1983.
The Writer Who Stayed. Philadelphia: Paul Dry Books, 2012.
Writing Places: The Life Journey of a Writer and Teacher. New York: Harper Collins, 2009.
American Places: updated and expanded by the author. The Akadine Press, 2002.
Writing About Your Life: A Journey into the Past. New York: Marlowe & Company, 2004.
Bibliography
Zinsser, William. American Places: A Writer's Pilgrimage to 15 of This Country's Most Visited and Cherished Sites. HarperCollins: New York, 1992. Zinsser, William. American Places: A Writer's Pilgrimage to 15 of This Country's Most Visitedand Cherished Sites. HarperPerennial: New York, 1993. Zinsser, William. Annual Reprot [sic] of the National Refractory & Brake Company. Illus. James Stevenson. Harper & Row: New York, 1969.Zinsser, William. Any Old Place With You. Illus. Robt Day. Simon and Schuster: New York, 1957Zinsser, William. "A Connoisseur's Guide to H2O." "Jury Duty." "Peabody's Complaint." Look, Ma, I am Kool! And Other Casuals. Ed. Burton Bernstein. Prentice-Hall, Inc.: Englewood Cliffs, 1977. 221-235. Zinsser, William. Ed. Extraordinary Lives: The Art and Craft of American Biography. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1986.Zinsser, William. Ed. Extraordinary Lives: The Art and Craft of American Biography. Boston:Houghton Mifflin Company, (1988).Zinsser, William. A Family of Readers: An Informal Portrait of The Book-of-the-Month Club andIts Members on the Occasion of its 60th Anniversary. Book-of-the-Month Club: New York, 1986.Zinsser, William. The Haircurl Papers & Other Searches for the Lost Individual. Harper & Row: New York, 1964.Zinsser, William. Ed. Inventing the Truth: The Art and Craft of Memoir. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1987.Zinsser, William. Ed. Inventing the Truth: The Art and Craft of Memoir. Rev. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1995.Zinsser, William. ed. Inventing the Truth: The Art and Craft of Memoir. Rev. intro. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998.Zinsser, William. "[1930's]." Five Boyhoods: Howard Lindsay, Harry Golden, Walt Kelly, William K. Zinsser, and John Updike. Ed. Martin Levin. Doubleday & Company, Inc.: New York, 1962. 117-154. Zinsser, William. On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. Harper & Row: New York, 1976. Zinsser, William. On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. 2nd ed. Harper & Row: NewYork, 1980. Zinsser, William. On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. 3rd ed., rev. and enlarged. Harper & Row: New York, 1985. Zinsser, William. On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. 3rd ed. [Chinese] Harper & Row: New York, 1985. The Rock House Publishers: Hong Kong, 1985. Zinsser, William. On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. 4th ed., rev., updated, and exp. HarperPerennial: New York, 1990. Zinsser, William. On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. Audio recording of 4th ed. [HarperCollins Publishers: New York, 1991.] Harper Audio: New York, Nov. 21, 1990. Zinsser, William. On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction. 6th ed., rev. and updated. HarperPerennial: New York, 1998. Zinsser, William. ed. Paths of Resistance: The Art and Craft of the Political Novel. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1989.Zinsser, William. Search & Research: The Collections and Uses of the New York Public Library at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street. Illus. Tom Funk. The New York Public Library: New York, 1961.Zinsser, William. Seen Any Good Movies Lately? Or, The Education of a Movie Critic. Illus. Robert Day. Doubleday & Company, Inc.: New York, 1958.Zinsser, William. Speaking of Journalism: 12 Writers and Editors Talk About Their Work. HarperCollins: New York, 1994. Zinsser, William. Speaking of Journalism: 12 Writers and Editors Talk About Their Work. HarperPerennial: New York, 1995. Zinsser, William. Ed. Spiritual Quests: The Art and Craft of Religious Writing. Boston: Houghton MifflinCompany, 1988. Zinsser, William. Spring Training. Harper & Row: New York, 1989. Re-print. Prentice Hall Press, 1990.Zinsser, William. Ed. They Went: The Art and Craft of Travel Writing. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1991.Zinsser, William. ed. Worlds of Childhood: The Art and Craft of Writing for Children. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1990.Zinsser, William. Ordbehandlaren Och Jag. [Writing with a World [sic] Processor. (Swedish)] 1983. Berghs Förlag Ab; Malmö, 1984.
About this Guide
Processing Information
In 2017 the following accretions were integrated into the collection.
Accretion 2005, containing letters, articles, biographical information, and documents on talks and workshops, was integrated into Series I, II, III, and IV, respectively. The accession number associated with these materials is 2005.031.
Accretion 2010, containing letters, articles, and manuscripts, was integrated into Series I and II. The accession number associated with these materials is 2010.031.
Accretion 2012 consists of letters and was integrated into Series I. The accession number associated with these materials is 2012.031.
Accretion 2013 includes letters, integrated into Series I, and printouts of the blog "Zinsser on Friday," published in 2012 as The Writer Who Stayed. These printouts have been integrated into Series II. The accession number associated with these materials is 2013.031.
