Bujold Donates Papers To NIU

Lois McMaster Bujold

Lois McMaster Bujold

The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections at NIU Libraries has recorded another coup, attracting a donation from Lois McMaster Bujold of her early draft manuscripts, final drafts, proofs, submission copies, foreign editions of books and more.

Lynne M. Thomas, curator of Rare Books and Special Collections told NIU Today —

“This is the most significant acquisition of science fiction and fantasy manuscripts we have made thus far, in terms of critical and award recognition and name recognition,” Thomas said. “Lois’s papers are a key addition to our collections of late 20th century science fiction and fantasy writing, as her work has directly or indirectly influenced a large number of the writers already held in our collections.”

Bujold’s initial gift includes papers for titles such as Cetaganda, Women at War (an anthology co-edited with Roland Green) and Falling Free, the 1988 Nebula Award winner.  Ultimately, NIU expects to receive all of Bujold’s manuscripts.

“The most unique items are certainly my early handwritten first drafts, in pencil on notebook paper,” said Bujold, describing some of the work included in her donation. “I suppose the earliest manuscripts are of the most sentimental value to me, as I was learning to become a writer by doing.”

Thomas spent eight years corresponding with Bujold and working to obtain the collection for NIU Libraries.

5 thoughts on “Bujold Donates Papers To NIU

  1. I can guess what NIU stands for, but it’s only a guess. Northern [state name] University.

  2. So much for my theory that I’ve written about Lynne Thomas’ work so often people already know it doesn’t stand for Nantucket Institute of Ukulele-strumming.

  3. Northern Illinois University, in DeKalb, IL, outside, but not far from, the Chicago metro area. Lucky NIU! Illinois also has an SIU, an EIU, and a WIU, in Carbondale and other campuses, Charleston, and Macomb, respectively.

  4. Nantucket Institute of Ukulele-strumming.

    Hey, that makes my late ukulele-playing mother a fan-after-the-fact! Thank, Mike!

    (FWIW, she did once tell me she liked ST:TNG better than ST:DS9 because in the latter “they just sat there and didn’t go anywhere,” which floored me because I used to have to fight to be able to watch the Original Series on the family color t.v. back in the ’60s.)

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