Summary Information
Title: Alden R. Carter Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1960-1997
Creator: Carter, Alden R., 1947-
Call Number: Eau Claire Mss CJ
Quantity: 8.6 c.f. (26 archives boxes including 5 videorecordings) and 27 megabytes (3240+ data files, in 1 computer disk box)
Repository: Housed at the Area Research Center, William D. McIntyre Library, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire; owned by the Wisconsin Historical Society, Library-Archives Division
Archival Locations: UW-Eau Claire McIntyre Library / Eau Claire Area Research Ctr.
Abstract: Papers of a Wisconsin writer of fiction and non-fiction for young adults, including book proposals, drafts, notes, galley proofs, publicity materials, high school and college term papers, and correspondence with publishers, editors, and agents. Videotaped interviews and talks by Carter are also present.
Note: There is a restriction on use of this collection; see details in the Restriction/Administrative Information portion of this finding aid.
Language: English
Search Terms/Subject Terms: Authors
Biography/History
Alden Richardson Carter was born April 7, 1947, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, to John Kelley Carter and Hilda Richardson Carter (Fletcher). Graduating from Eau Claire Memorial High School in 1965, Carter continued his education with a Navy ROTC scholarship at the University of Kansas, earning a bachelors degree in English and humanities. He graduated in 1969 and went into the Navy as an officer for the next five years. In 1974, after his stint in the Navy, Carter married Carol Shadis, whom he had met nine years before. As Carter says, “we were in love almost from the first.” Carter went on to earn his teaching certificate from Montana State University, then taught English and journalism in Marshfield, Wis.
Carter had known since he was eight that he wanted to write; he also knew that he was not finding the necessary time to write as a teacher. So, in 1980 with the support of his wife, Carter quit his job and began writing full-time. Growing Season was published by Coward-McCann in 1984 and was named an ALA Best Book for Young Adults.
Carter's mother Hilda Carter Fletcher has been his “first editor” for most of his books and her comments appear on many of the manuscripts throughout the collection. His literary agent encouraged him to write young adult nonfiction between fiction books. He coauthored his first nonfiction book, Supercomputers, with his brother-in-law, Wayne LeBlanc, with whom Carter also wrote his second nonfiction book, Modern Electronics. Carter continued writing young-adult fiction as well. Wart, Son of Toad (1985), Sheila's Dying (1987), and Up Country (1989) were all named ALA Best Books and Robodad (1990) (later reissued as Dancing on Dark Water (1993)) was named Best Children's Fiction Book of the Year by the Society of Midland Authors. Carter's nonfiction subjects range from China and the Revolutionary War, to computers and radios. His books have won a variety of awards.
Carter has been a resident of Marshfield, Wisconsin, since 1976. He and his wife have two children, Brian Patrick Shadis Carter (born 1983) and Siri Morgan Shadis Carter (born 1987). Carter's hobbies include travel, reading, canoeing, and outdoor activities, especially in Wisconsin.
Publications of Alden R. Carter
Growing Season (1984)
Wart, Son of Toad (1985)
Sheila's Dying (1987)
Up Country (1989)
”Tree” (short story, 1989)
Robodad (1990), reissued as Dancing on Dark Water (1993)
Dogwolf (1994)
Between a Rock and a Hard Place (1995)
"Bull Catcher” (short story 1996)
Bull Catcher (1997)
”The Gully” (short story 1997)
”Trashback” (short story 1997)
”Jock Story” (short story 1998)
Crescent Moon (1999)
Supercomputers (with Wayne LeBlanc, 1985)
Modern China (1986)
Modern Electronics (with Wayne LeBlanc, 1986)
Illinois (1987)
Radio: From Marconi to the Space Age (1987)
American Revolution Series: Colonies in Revolt (1988)
American Revolution Series: Darkest Hours (1988)
American Revolution Series: At the Forge of Liberty (1988)
American Revolution Series: Birth of the Republic (1988)
The Shoshoni (1989)
The Battle of Gettysburg (1990)
The Last Stand at the Alamo (1990)
The Colonial Wars: Clashes in the Wilderness (1992)
The War of 1812: Second Fight for Independence (1992)
The Mexican War: Manifest Destiny (1992)
The Civil War (1992)
The Spanish-American War: Imperial Ambitions (1992)
Battle of the Ironclads: The Monitor and the Merrimack (1993)
China Past--China Future (1994)
I’m Tougher than Asthma (with Siri Carter, 1996)
Big Brother Dustin (1997)
Seeing Things My Way (1998)
Dustin's Big School Day (1999)
Scope and Content Note
The collection includes all stages of the writing process for Carter's fiction and nonfiction, plus publicity information and papers written in high school (starting in 1959) and college. The papers detail the writing and publishing process from first drafts to the search for a publisher to galleys to how a successful writer goes about developing ideas for the next book. There are only a few personal letters, but much correspondence with publishers, editors and agents. The papers are grouped in nine series: Early Life, Book-Length Fiction, Book-Length Nonfiction, Short Stories, Speeches, Unpublished Book Proposals and Ideas, Biographical Information, Electronic Drafts and Correspondence, and Video Tapes. Within series, the materials are arranged largely in chronological order (by publishing date for books).
The Book-Length Fiction and Book-Length Nonfiction series may include notes for the book, drafts of the book, correspondence (including rewrite notes), galleys, and page proofs. In China Past--China Future, there are two manuscript copies from his book Modern China which Carter used for research purposes in the second China book. In Radio: From Marconi to the Space Age there is a manuscript titled “Modern Communications,” an earlier title for what became Radio.
The Short Stories series may contain notes drafts, correspondence and galleys. Unpublished Book Proposals and Ideas are chronological by date, with undated proposals in the back. This series may contain notes, outlines, proposal letters, and other correspondence. The Electronic Drafts and Correspondence series is on computer disks and contains materials from most of his books plus correspondence, material from speaking engagements, and other miscellaneous information. Carter's explanation of his file-naming system is located in box 1, folder 1. All of Carter's related computer files now reside on the Global-1 server at UWEC and can be accessed in Special Collections; they are regularly backed up. The first nine original disks also exist in Word 5.1 for Macintosh and the cross platform Word '98 format. Finally there is a series of Video Tapes.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Use Restrictions: Copyright in this collection is retained by Alden Carter, his heirs and assigns. All users are cautioned that most manuscripts included in the collection have been published in their final form as books under rights granted by the author to various publishers.
Acquisition Information: Presented by Alden R. Carter, Marshfield, Wis., 1994-1997. Accession Number: M94- 209
Processing Information: Processed by Daardi Sizemore, 1996-97 and Jennifer Snyder, 1999, at the Eau Claire Area Research Center.
Contents List
Box 1 | Series: Copy of this finding aid |
Series: Early Life, 1959-1970 | |
Box 1 Folder 2-4 | High school papers |
Box 1 Folder 5 | Kansas University college papers |
Box 1 Folder 6 | Montana State University college papers |
Box 1 Folder 7 | Other papers |
Series: Book-Length Fiction | |
Box 1 Folder 5 | Growing Season (1984) |
Box 2 Folder 1 | Handwritten rough manuscript |
Box 2 Folder 2 | Typed manuscript |
Box 2 Folder 3 | Revised manuscript |
Box 2 Folder 4 | Revised typed manuscript |
Box 2 Folder 5- 6 | Major revision of manuscript |
Box 3 Folder 1- 2 | Manuscript with editing marks |
Box 3 Folder 3 | Correspondence |
Box 3 Folder 4 | Rewrite notes |
Box 3 Folder 5 | Galleys and specifications |
Wart, Son of Toad (1985) | |
Box 4 | Notes |
Box 4 Folder 2 | Original manuscript (handwritten) |
Box 4 Folder 3 | Original manuscript typed |
Box 4 Folder 4 | Manuscript with editor's comments |
Box 4 Folder 5 | Rewrite notes and correspondence |
Box 4 Folder 6 | Page proofs |
Sheila's Dying (1987) | |
Box 5 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 5 Folder 2-3 | Manuscript with typesetting orders |
Box 5 Folder 4 | Partial manuscript with editor's comments |
Box 5 Folder 5 | Rewrite notes and correspondence |
Box 5 Folder 6 | Galleys |
Up Country (1989) | |
Box 6 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 6 Folder 2 | Original manuscript |
Box 6 Folder 3-4 | Revised manuscript |
Box 6 | Galleys |
Robodad (1990) | |
Box 7 | Notes |
Box 7 Folder 2 | Manuscript with editor's notes |
Box 7 Folder 3 | Manuscript with typesetting orders |
Box 7 Folder 4 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 7 | Galleys with edit |
Box 7 Folder 6 | Galleys |
Box 7 Folder 7 | Page proofs |
Dancing on Dark Water (reissue on Robodad (1993) | |
Box 7 | New cover picture |
Dogwolf (1994) | |
Box 8 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 8 Folder 2-3 | Early manuscript |
Box 8 Folder 4-5 | Edited manuscript |
Box 8 Folder 6-7 | Final manuscript |
Box 8 Folder 8 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 9 | Galleys with heavy editing |
Box 9 | Galleys with less editing |
Box 9 Folder 3 | Page proofs |
Between a Rock and a Hard Place (1995) | |
Box 10 Folder 1 | Manuscript |
Box 10 Folder 2 | Manuscript |
Box 10 Folder 3 | Working draft of manuscript |
Box 10 Folder 4-5 | Early manuscript with edit |
Box 10 Folder 6 | Early manuscript with edit |
Box 10 Folder 7 | Late working manuscript |
Box 11 | Late working manuscript, continued |
Box 11 Folder 2-3 | Galleys |
Bull Catcher (1997) | |
Box 12 Folder 1 | Between Third and Home proposal (later Bull Catcher) |
Box 12 Folder 2 | Possible titles and early manuscript labeled Catching Fire |
Box 12 Folder 3 | Catching Fire early manuscript |
Box 12 Folder 4-5 | Manuscript 1st revision |
Box 12 Folder 6-7 | Edited manuscript version |
Box 23 Folder 1- 2 | Revision 2 (corrected by Graham Olson - longtime baseball coach) |
Box 23 Folder 3 | Edited draft |
Box 23 | Section of manuscript, Spring 1993 |
Box 23 Folder 5 | Inserts |
Box 23 | Long excerpts |
Box 23 Folder 7-8 | Galleys |
Box 23 Folder 9 | Edited manuscript, miscellaneous pages |
Box 26 Folder 6 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 26 Folder 7 | Publication agreement and correspondence |
Box 26 Folder 8 | Manuscript - 4045 word count |
Box 26 Folder 9 | Manuscript - 6143 word count |
Crescent Moon (1999) | |
Box 13 Folder 1 | 1st complete draft, 1996 July |
Box 26 Folder 10 | Manuscript - Comments/edits by Larry Lynch with cover letter, 1996 August 6 |
Box 26 Folder 11 | Manuscript - Comments.edits by Hilda Carter Fletcher, 1996 August/September |
Series: Book - Length Nonfiction | |
Supercomputers (1985) | |
Box 14 Folder 1- 4 | Notes |
Box 14 Folder 5 | The 5th Generation - book, with notes, used as reference in Supercomputers |
Box 14 Folder 6 | Manuscript |
Box 14 Folder 7 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 14 | Galleys |
Modern China (1986) | |
Box 15 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 15 Folder 2 | Manuscript with edit |
Box 15 Folder 3 | Manuscript with David Changs edit |
Box 15 Folder 4 | Manuscript with typesetting orders |
Box 15 Folder 5 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 15 Folder 6 | Page proofs |
Modern Electronics (I1986) | |
Box 16 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 16 Folder 2 | Edited manuscript with original illustrations |
Box 16 Folder 3 | Correspondence |
Illinois (1987) | |
Box 16 Folder 4 | Notes |
Box 16 Folder 5 | Rough manuscript |
Box 16 Folder 6 | Correspondence |
Box 16 Folder 7 | Galleys |
Radio: From Marconi to the Space Age (1987) | |
Box 16 Folder 8 | Notes |
Box 16 Folder 9 | Modern Communications - became Radio: ... 18 months before publication |
Box 16 Folder 10 | Manuscript with edit and typesetting orders |
Box 16 Folder 11 | Rewrite notes and correspondence |
Box 16 Folder 12 | Galleys |
American Revolution series: Colonies in Revolt (1988), Darkest Hours (1988), At the Forge of Liberty (1988), Birth of the Republic (1988) | |
Box 17 | Notes |
Box 17 Folder 2 | Correspondence and notes |
The Shoshoni (1989) | |
Box 17 Folder 3 | Notes |
Box 17 Folder 4 | Manuscript |
Box 17 Folder 5 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 17 Folder 6 | Galleys |
The Battle of Gettysburg (1990) | |
Box 17 Folder 7 | Notes |
Box 17 Folder 8 | Manuscript |
Box 17 Folder 9 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 17 Folder 10 | Galleys |
Box 26 | Reference sheet |
The Last Stand at the Alamo (1990) | |
Box 17 Folder 11 | Notes |
Box 17 Folder 12 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 17 Folder 13 | Galleys |
The Colonial Wars: Clashes in the Wilderness (1992) | |
Box 17 Folder 14 | Notes |
Box 17 Folder 15 | Early manuscript with edit |
Box 17 Folder 16 | Revised manuscript |
Box 17 Folder 17 | Correspondence |
Box 17 Folder 18 | Galleys with specifications |
Box 17 Folder 19 | Maps |
The American Revolution: War for Independence (1992) | |
Box 18 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 18 | Maps and pictures |
Box 18 Folder 3 | Early manuscript |
Box 18 Folder 4 | Manuscript |
Box 18 Folder 5 | Revised manuscript |
Box 18 Folder 6 | Correspondence |
Box 18 Folder 7 | Galleys and specifications |
The War of 1812: Second Fight for Independence (1992) | |
Box 18 Folder 8 | Notes |
Box 18 | Early manuscript with edit |
Box 18 Folder 10 | Revised manuscript |
Box 18 Folder 11 | Correspondence |
Box 18 Folder 12 | Galleys |
The Mexican War: Manifest Destiny (1992) | |
Box 18 Folder 13 | Notes |
Box 18 Folder 14 | Manuscript |
Box 18 Folder 15 | Copy-edited and fact-checked manuscript |
Box 18 Folder 16 | Correspondence |
Box 18 Folder 17 | Galleys |
The Civil War (1992) | |
Box 19 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 19 Folder 2 | Edited manuscript |
Box 19 Folder 3 | Correspondence |
Box 19 Folder 4 | Galleys |
Box 19 Folder 5 | Page proofs |
The Spanish-American War: Imperial Ambitions (1992) | |
Box 19 Folder 6 | Notes |
Box 19 Folder 7 | Manuscript |
Box 19 Folder 8 | Correspondence |
Box 19 Folder 9 | Galleys |
Box 19 Folder 10 | Page proofs |
Battle of the Ironclads: The Monitor and the Merrimack (1993) | |
Box 19 Folder 11 | Notes |
Box 19 Folder 12 | Manuscript |
Box 19 Folder 13 | Correspondence |
Box 19 Folder 14 | Galleys |
China Past--China Future (1994) | |
Box 20 Folder 1 | Notes |
Box 20 Folder 2 | Notes-reference |
Box 20 Folder 3 | Modern China revised manuscript with edit by David Chang |
Box 20 Folder 4 | Modern China page proofs with notes |
Box 20 Folder 5 | Revised manuscript |
Box 20 Folder 6 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 20 Folder 7 | Manuscript rough pages |
Box 20 Folder 8 | Page proofs |
Box 20 Folder 9 | Manuscript rough pages |
Box 20 Folder 10 | Galleys |
I'm Tougher than Asthma (1996) | |
Box 24 Folder 1 | Galleys (copy of faxed original) |
Box 27 Folder 1 | Proposal for book - known as Siri's Asthma |
Box 27 Folder 2 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 27 Folder 3 | Photocopy of the book Where's Chimpy? by Bernice Rabe, a book about a girl with Down's Syndrome |
Box 27 Folder 4 | Picture of dust mite at x150 magnification: color photocopy, note included |
Box 27 | Book mock-up |
Box 27 Folder 6-7 | Page mock-up (post-it notes) |
Box 27 Folder 8 | Handwritten mock-up |
Box 27 Folder 9 | Introduction by Carol S. Carter - draft[?] |
Box 27 Folder 10 | Biography |
Box 27 Folder 11 | Suggested reading and resources list |
Box 27 Folder 12 | “More About Asthma,” 1995 July 25 |
Box 27 Folder 13 | Picture list with notes |
Box 27 Folder 14 | Edited manuscript, 1995 March 21 |
Box 27 Folder 15 | Edited manuscript with correspondence, 1995 May 16-17 |
Box 27 Folder 16 | Edited manuscript, 1995 May 16 |
Box 27 Folder 17 | Manuscript - submitted, 1995 May 16 |
Box 27 | Edited manuscript - known as Siri and Her Asthma, 1995 June 26 |
Box 27 Folder 19 | Edited manuscript, 1995 July 3 |
Box 27 Folder 20 | Edited manuscript, 1995 July 21 |
Box 27 Folder 21 | Edited manuscript with corrections by Dr. Bucholtz, correspondence included, 1995 August 3 |
Box 27 Folder 22 | Pages of designer set with correspondence, 1995 May 25 - known as Siri's Asthma |
Box 27 Folder 23 | Faxed copy of designer set, 1995 August 1 |
Box 27 Folder 24 | Notes and brochures on asthma - from unmarked manila envelope |
Big Brother Dustin (1997) | |
Box 24 Folder 2 | 1995 February 2 manuscript -known as Ready for Mary Ann |
Box 24 Folder 3 | 1995 December 18-19 edited manuscript- known as Ready for Mary Ann |
Box 24 Folder 4 | 1996 April 25 manuscript |
Box 26 Folder 2 | Correspondence and rewrite notes |
Box 26 Folder 3 | Page proofs, 1996 July 15 |
Box 26 Folder 4 | Page proofs, 1996 July 26 |
Box 26 Folder 5 | Design set of “photo album” in book, 1996 August 7 |
Series: Short Stories | |
Box 21 Folder 1 | “Tree” (1989) galley |
Box 21 | “The Gully” (1997) aka “Amish Rescue” - 2 versions |
Box 21 Folder 3 | “Trashback” (1997) |
“Bull Catcher,” (1996) | |
Box 21 Folder 4 | Edited Manuscript pp. 15-30 |
Box 21 Folder 5 | Edited manuscript |
Box 21 Folder 6 | Edited Manuscript - 3,827 word count |
Box 21 Folder 7 | Edited Manuscript - 3,386 word count |
Box 21 | Manuscript - 7,865 word count |
Box 21 Folder 9 | Edited Manuscript - 7,865 word count |
Box 21 Folder 10 | Edited Manuscript - 7,984 word count |
Box 21 Folder 11 | Edited manuscript |
“Jock Story,” 1998 June 11 | |
Box 26 Folder 16 | Manuscript - 1,969 word count |
Box 26 Folder 17 | Edited manuscript - 1,969 word count |
Box 26 Folder 18 | Manuscript - 1,905 word count |
Box 26 | Manuscript - 1,966 word count |
Series: Speeches | |
Box 21 Folder 12 | “Of Curve Balls and High Heat: How I Came to Write a Baseball Novel” (1997) |
Series: Unpublished Book Proposals and Ideas | |
Box 21 Folder 13 | Jim Fletcher proposal (1980) |
Box 21 Folder 14 | A canoeing book (1983) |
Modem Power | |
Box 21 | Actual Proposal that Literary Agent sent, 1984 |
Box 21 Folder 16 | 1984 |
Box 21 Folder 17 | Electronic Workhorse, 1983 or 1984 (The proposal was on mainframes. The topic was dropped and was replaced by Supercomputers.) |
Box 21 Folder 18 | Thomas Edison (1985) |
Box 21 Folder 19 | The Ain't Remover - A Practical Guide to Improving Your Child's Speech, circa 1985 |
Box 21 Folder 20 | Tesla- 1984-1986 |
Gerard's Race (1996-7?) | |
Box 21 | Proposal- 2 versions |
Box 21 Folder 22 | Manuscript with friends suggestions |
Series: Biographical Information | |
Box 21 | Credit List |
Box 21 Folder 24 | Credit List, 1997 |
Box 21 Folder 25 | Autobiography - early copy |
Box 21 | Autobiography - copy |
Box 21 Folder 27 | Page copies of his autobiography from Gale Research |
Box 21 Folder 28 | Publicity brochures |
Series: Electronic Drafts and Correspondence (3.5" Computer Disks) | |
Original Disks-Series A in Macintosh Clarisworks and Word 5.1 formats | |
Box 22 | Wart, Son of Toad / Robodad |
Box 22 | Alamo / Gettysburg / Shoshoni / Colonial Wars |
Box 22 Disk No. A3 | American Revolution / Mexican War / War of 1812 |
Box 22 | Supercomputers / Modern Electronics |
Box 22 Disk No. A5 | Modern China / Spanish-American War / Civil War |
Box 22 Disk No. A6 | Radio: From Marconi to the Space Age / Illinois / Monitor and Merrimack |
Box 22 Disk No. A7 | Revolution Series (4 Books) |
Box 22 | Sheila's Dying |
Box 22 Disk No. A9 | Up Country |
Box 22 | Proposals |
Box 22 Disk No. A11-12 | Letters for UW Archives |
Box 22 | UW Archives, Speaking, Drive Test Permission |
Dogwolf | |
Box 22 Disk No. A14 | #1-10 |
Box 22 Disk No. A15 | #1- Original and Revision |
Box 22 Disk No. A16 | #2- Revision, Final, Revision, Smooth Final |
Box 22 Disk No. A17 | Correspondence |
Between a Rock and a Hard Place | |
Box 22 Disk No. A18 | #1 |
Box 22 Disk No. A19 | #2 |
Macintosh Word 5.1 Disks-Series B (User Copies) | |
Box 22 Disk No. B1 | Wart, Son of Toad / Civil War |
Box 22 Disk No. B2 | Robodad / Mexican War |
Box 22 Disk No. B3 | Radio / Illinois / Monitor and Merrimack |
Box 22 Disk No. B4 | Modern Electronics / Alamo |
Box 22 Disk No. B5 | Modern China / American Revolution |
Box 22 Disk No. B6 | Supercomputers / Spanish-American War |
Box 22 Disk No. B7 | Colonial Wars / Gettysburg / War of 1812 |
Box 22 Disk No. B8 | Revolution Series (4 books) |
Box 22 Disk No. B9 | Up Country |
Box 22 Disk No. B10 | Sheila's Dying / Shoshoni |
Series: Video Tapes | |
Originals - Series A | |
Box 25 Video No. A1 | “The Creative Process and Writing.” Speaker: Alden Carter, 1985 June 27 |
Box 25 Video No. A2 | Alden Carter, Middle/Jr. High Author Breakfast - WCC, 1990 October 13 |
Box 25 Video No. A3 | Alden Carter - YA Author Speaking About Writing, 1992 April 6 |
Box 25 Video No. A4 | “A Conversation with Alden Carter.” Produced by the School District of Marshfield, WI, 1993 October 6 |
Box 25 Video No. A5 | “The Creative Process and Writing.” Speaker: Alden Carter, 1985 June 27 |
User Copies - Series B | |
Box 25 Video No. B1 | “The Creative Process and Writing.” Speaker: Alden Carter, 1985 June 27 Note: Video B1 may not match up correctly with A1. |
Box 25 Video No. B2 | Alden Carter, Middle/Jr. High Author Breakfast - WCC, 1990 October 13 |
Box 25 Video No. B3 | Alden Carter - YA Author Speaking About Writing, 1992 April 6 |
Box 25 Video No. B4 | “A Conversation with Alden Carter.” Produced by the School District of Marshfield, WI, 1993 October 6 |
Box 25 Video No. B5 | “The Creative Process and Writing.” Speaker: Alden Carter, 1985 June 27 Note: Video B5 may not match up correctly with A5. |