| Dates: | 1977-1993 |
| Size: | 1 linear foot |
| Repository: | Chicago Public Library, Harold Washington Library Center, Special Collections, 400 S. State St., Chicago, IL 60605 |
| Collection Number: | spe.a00007 |
| Immediate Source of Acquisition: | Donated by Richard Meade in 2013. |
| Conditions Governing Access: | Materials are open without restrictions. |
| Physical Location: | Materials are stored offsite and advance notice is required for use. Please request materials at least 24-hours prior to your research visit to coordinate access. |
| Conditions Governing Use: | Please consult staff to determine ability to reuse materials from collection. |
| Preferred Citation: | When quoting material from this collection the preferred citation is: Story Press Records, [Box #, Folder #], Special Collections, Chicago Public Library |
| Finding Aid Author: | Johanna Russ, January 2016. Updated and ingested into ArchivesSpace by Johanna Russ, 2021. |
Abstract
Story Press publishing company operated in Chicago in the 1980s, publishing short stories. This collection documents its history through correspondence, business files, review files and copies of published books.
Biographical/Historical
On September 11, 1978, David Meade, Richard Meade, Carol J. Evans, Robert Hass and Judith Sensibar incorporated Story Press in Chicago. Richard Meade’s vision for his new, small publishing company was to publish collections of short stories by regional writers who had never published books. At that time, small presses focused on poetry, and Meade wanted to promote the short story genre. His father, David Meade, had worked as an editor and assisted Richard with the press.
Meade continued to work on his English PhD at the University of Chicago and to teach while serving as Story Press’s publisher and editor. Though the books were well reviewed and Story Press was successful in earning grants and literary prizes, running a small press was, for Meade, a labor of love. He never expected to turn a profit. By 1985, correspondence shows that Meade was having trouble funding the venture. In 1986, Meade had begun working at another Chicago publisher, Nelson-Hall. By 1987, there were rumors in the literary world that Story Press had gone out of business. Correspondence reveals that it was simply dormant, and Meade published one more book in 1988 before officially closing shop in 1991. In a little over a decade, Story Press published nine books.
Scope and Contents
The collection gives a good portrayal of the workings of a small press, including acquiring manuscripts, the editing process and funding the enterprise through grants and literary prizes. It primarily includes correspondence and reviews, with some administrative files covering articles of incorporation, copyright permissions, contracts and funding. A large portion of the correspondence files consists of letters from authors seeking a publisher for their work. The correspondence series also includes letters from a handful of authors published by Story Press written to Richard Meade. These letters reveal real friendships between author and publisher and range from discussing the business of writing and publishing to family and personal updates to conversation about what each has been reading. The reviews cover most of the books published by Story Press and appeared in regional and national publications.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in three series:
- Series 1: Administrative Files
- Series 2: Correspondence
- Series 3: Reviews
Separated Materials
The following books, published by Story Press, were also donated by Richard Meade, along with the records described above. They have been added to Chicago Public Library’s catalog and can be viewed in the Special Collections Reading Room.
- The Hour of the Sunshine Now: Short Stories by Norbert Blei, 1978.
- The Monkey Puzzle Tree: Short Stories by Florence Chanock Cohen, 1979.
- Squid Soup: Stories by Michael Mooney, 1980.
- Swimming the Channel: Poems by Richard Meade, 1981.
- August Heat: Short Stories by Richard Dokey, 1982.
- What the Moon Said: Short Stories by Geoffrey Clark, 1983.
- Crimes of Passion: Short Stories by David Jauss, 1983.
- Nobody is Ever Missing: Stories by June Rachuy Brindel, 1984.
- Ruffian on the Stair: Short Stories by Geoffrey Clark, 1988.
Subject Headings
- Blei, Norbert
- Brindel, June Rachuy
- Clark, Geoffrey, 1940-
- Cohen, Florence Chanock
- Dokey, Richard
- Jauss, David
- Meade, Richard, 1946-
- Mooney, Michael, 1939-
- Small presses
- Small press books
Collection Inventory
Series 1: Administrative Files
Scope and Contents
Of note in this series is a promotional blurb from Gwendolyn Brooks.
Arrangement
This series is arranged alphabetically by folder title.
| Box 1 | Folder 1 | Address book and account book, 1977-1983 |
| Box 1 | Folder 2 | Account book, 1982-1986 |
| Box 1 | Folder 3 | Articles of Incorporation, 1978 |
| Box 1 | Folder 4 | Blurbs, 1978-1983, undated |
| Box 1 | Folder 5 | Contracts, 1978-1983 |
| Box 1 | Folder 6 | Literary awards and prizes, 1978-1985, undated |
| Box 1 | Folder 7 | Original art by Inara Cedrins. Illustrations for Richard Dokey’s August Heat. Postmarked from Chesterton, Indiana, 1981 May 26 |
| Box 1 | Folder 8 | Permissions for Geoffrey Clark’s What the Moon Said, 1973-1982 |
Series 2: Correspondence
Scope and Contents
This series includes general correspondence and correspondence with individual writers. Occasionally letters from the individual authors for whom there are separate folders also appear in the general correspondence files, so researchers are encouraged to consult both areas.
Arrangement
General correspondence is arranged chronologically, and correspondence with individual writers is arranged alphabetically by correspondent's last name.
| Box 1 | Folder 9 | General Correspondence, 1978 |
| Box 1 | Folder 10 | General Correspondence, 1979 |
| Box 1 | Folder 11 | General Correspondence, 1980 |
| Box 1 | Folder 12 | Fan Letters, 1981-1983, undated |
| Box 1 | Folder 13 | General Correspondence, 1981 |
| Box 1 | Folder 14 | General Correspondence, 1982 |
| Box 1 | Folder 15 | General Correspondence, 1983 |
| Box 2 | Folder 1 | General Correspondence, 1984 |
| Box 2 | Folder 2 | General Correspondence, 1985 |
| Box 2 | Folder 3 | General Correspondence, 1986-1987 |
| Box 2 | Folder 4 | Norbert Blei correspondence, 1977-1993, undated |
| Box 2 | Folder 5 | Geoffrey Clark correspondence, 1981-1992 |
| Box 2 | Folder 6 | Richard Dokey correspondence, 1979-1987 |
| Box 2 | Folder 7 | David Jauss correspondence, 1982-1987 |
| Box 2 | Folder 8 | Michael Mooney correspondence, 1979-1986, undated |
Series 3: Reviews
Scope and Contents
This series includes articles about Story Press and scrapbooks, originally kept as binders, with reviews of multiple books from the publisher. Information about programs and advertisements and mailers from Story Press also appear. Also in Series 3 are reviews about individual titles. Reviews for books for which there are separate folders also appear in the scrapbooks, so researchers are encouraged to consult both.
Arrangement
Reviews about Story Press generally are arranged chronologically. Reviews about individual titles are arranged alphabetically by author's last name.
| Box 2 | Folder 9 | Reviews and articles about Story Press, 1978-1979, undated |
| Box 2 | Folder 10 | Review of Story Press books, 1984 April |
| Box 2 | Folder 11 | Scrapbook, 1978-1982 [contains many reviews of The Hour of the Sunshine Now by Norbert Blei.] |
| Box 2 | Folder 12 | Scrapbook, 1978-1990 |
| Box 2 | Folder 13 | Reviews of What the Moon Said by Geoffrey Clark, 1983-1985 |
| Box 2 | Folder 14 | Reviews of The Monkey Puzzle Tree by Florence Chanock Cohen, 1979, undated |
| Box 2 | Folder 15 | Reviews of August Heat by Richard Dokey, 1982-1983 |
| Box 2 | Folder 16 | Reviews of Swimming the Channel by Richard Meade, 1981-1982 |
| Box 2 | Folder 17 | Reviews of Squid Soup by Michael Mooney, 1980-1982 |
