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The Literary Apprenticeship of Mari Sandoz

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The Literary Apprenticeship of Mari Sandoz Nebraska History posts materials online for your personal use. Please remember that the contents of Nebraska History are copyrighted by the Nebraska State Historical Society (except for materials credited to other institutions). The NSHS retains its copyrights even to materials it posts on the web. For permission to re-use materials or for photo ordering information, please see: http://www.nebraskahistory.org/magazine/permission.htm Nebraska State Historical Society members receive four issues of Nebraska History and four issues of Nebraska History News annually. For membership information, see: http://nebraskahistory.org/admin/members/index.htm Article Title: The Literary Apprenticeship of Mari Sandoz Full Citation: Scott L Greenwell, “The Literary Apprenticeship of Mari Sandoz,” Nebraska History 57 (1976): 248-272. URL of article: http://www.nebraskahistory.org/publish/publicat/history/full-text/NH1976MSandozApp.pdf Date: 6/24/2015 Article Summary: While Mari Sandoz was published at age 11 in the Omaha Daily News, she experienced a “long and grueling apprenticeship” prior to achieving a level of success in her field. This article illustrates her struggle from the viewpoint of the editors, publishers, and agents with whom she dealt. Cataloging Information: Names: Mari Sandoz, Marie Macumber (married name and pseudonym), W E Sealock, Melvin Van den Bark, Margaret Christie, Eleanor Hinman, B A Botkin, Frank C Dodd, John D Hicks, Edward Weeks Keywords: School Executive Magazine; Scottish Rite Educational Welfare Association; Prairie Schooner; O’Brien’s Roll of Honor of American Writers; North American Review; Atlantic; Old Jules Photographs / Images: Mari Sandoz as she appeared in the early 1920’s [courtesy Mari Sandoz corporation, c.1971]; Detail from Junior Writers’ Page, Omaha Daily News April 26, 1908; Mari Sandoz in front of the old Sidney Grade School No 2 in the early 1920’s [courtesy Mari Sandoz corporation c.1972]; Melvin Van den Bark, 125-1926 [University of Nebraska Archives]; Clyde Boston home at 1225 J Street, Lincoln, Nebraska, where Sandoz occupied a single room in the house for thirteen years [courtesy of the Mari Sandoz Corporation, c. 1972]; Mari Sandoz shortly after winning the nonfiction contest for 1935 from the Atlantic Monthly [Dwight Kirsch photograph] Mu,; SWl(/u: liS sIll' IIP/}~''''t>(1 ill till' (''''~\' 19]O',~, IYhulO!:raph court/'s)' {I'/flr; SflIIIJU! Corportllioll. copyriRl1I 1972) THE LITERARY APPRENTICESHW OF MARl SANDOZ By Scott L. Greenwell Mari Sandoz began writing when she started school. At age 11 her first story. written secretly since her family viewed fiction as an idle waste oftime. was submitted to the Omaha Daily News and published on its junior page. l The printing of this story set in motion one of the most successful and distinguished writing careers in the history of Great Plains literature-also one of the most unusual. Yet nearly thirty years passed between that initial publication and the establishment of Mari Sandoz firmly as a writer. Not until the 1935 publication of Old Jules, winner of the Atlantic Monthly nonfiction contest and Book-of-the-Month Club selection. did the author acquire the leisure to write full time. She was nearly 40. In the years that intervened, Sandoz experienced what has been described as "a long and gruelling apprenticeship.tl2 The eight or ten years immediately preceding OldJules were particularly difficult, at times bitterly frustrating. It is the twofold purpose of this article to capture something of Sandoz' enormous struggle to become a writer and to explore. both from the viewpoint of the author and from that of the editors, publishers. and agents with whom she dealt. the reasons that such a talented individual had to wait to long and work so hard to achieve success. Born in the Panhandle of Nebraska the year Bryan first campaigned for the presidency. Sandoz grew up with little opportunity for schooling. When she finally enrolled at age 9 in 249 d 'hq \\,(>1\ld lIe,'r, The Broken Promise. 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MARl SANDOZ 25 1 what was ca ll ed the old Peter's school. District 165. she spoke onlY:l few words of " hybrid" En glish and attended only when family conditions permitted.] But by the age of 17, an cr no more 111:111 four and onc·h.1I1' years of formallemni ng . she was ablc to pass thc rural tenchers' examin ation and became a tcacher herself. Betwecn ti mes shc had wrillcll a few "sappy" children's stories and continucd to submit them to the Omaha newspaper under li cticious namcs. In these years. too. Sandal became acquai nted with the world of books. beginning with Robinso1l en/soe. thc tirst book she cvc r owned . and culm inating with the works of Jose ph Conrad. her favo ri te novelist. and Thom as Hardy. Sandoz was attracted to the author of Lord Jim :lIIci T Ill' Ni/.:/.:er ofl Ite N(/ rci.U II .~ when her young acquaintances were sl ill read ing I-I arold Bell Wright and "the backless remains of Mary J. H o lm es."~ Yet hcr adolescent literary taste d id not strike her as eccell tric unti l afte r she became a reader in the De partment or English. University of Nebraska. and fo und that if Conrad were to be read by the students there. he had to be crammed dow n their th roats "as a goose might be fa ttened. only the readers remai ned le:ln. :11 least spiri tual1 y! " S Or the many phases in the life of M<lri Sandoz. the period from her late tee ns. when she left the Old Jules place. until her arrival in Li ncoln half .1 dozcn years lat er is the most mysterious. It is :llmnst as if live or morc years were lift ed frol1l the middle of the young author's life and the Iwo end s join ed to close the gap.
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