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Steven M. Krauzer papers, 1970-2009

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Krauzer, Steven M.
Title
Steven M. Krauzer papers
Dates
1970-2009 (inclusive)
Quantity
20.4 linear feet and 991 electronic files
198 megabytes of digital materials
Collection Number
Mss 767
Summary
Steven Krauzer was a Missoula, Montana, based writer who authored, co-authored, or edited 33 book length works. The Steven M. Krauzer Papers consist largely of Krauzer's professional papers including correspondence and financial records related to Krauzer's works, as well as drafts and published versions of short and book length prose.
Repository
University of Montana, Mansfield Library, Archives and Special Collections
Archives and Special Collections
Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library
University of Montana
32 Campus Dr. #9936
59812-9936
Missoula, MT
Telephone: 406-243-2053
library.archives@umontana.edu
Access Restrictions

Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of Archives and Special Collections, the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, and The University of Montana-Missoula.

Languages
English
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Biographical Note

Steven Mark Krauzer was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1948 to Earl and Bernice Krauzer. Raised in Manchester, New Hampshire, Krauzer began his writing career in high school as a general reporter and sportswriter for the Manchester Union Leader. After receiving his Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Yale University in 1970, Krauzer explored the depiction of good and evil in detective fiction in his 1974 Master’s thesis in the English Literature program at the University of New Hampshire. His first magazine article, “Caught Naked in Lover’s Lane,” appeared in the February 1971 issue of Real Confessions, followed by short stories in Cavalier, Fling and Gem magazines.

Krauzer moved to Missoula, Montana in the mid-seventies, where he co-authored nine westerns with acclaimed author and University of Montana creative writing professor William Kittredge. The Cord series, published between 1982 and 1986 under the pen name Owen Rountree, featured bank robber Cord and his girlfriend accomplice Chi. With Kittredge, Krauzer also edited three anthologies in the late seventies; Great Action Stories, The Great American Detective, and Stories into Film. In 1980, they edited TriQuarterly 48, an issue dedicated to Western American literature, which included works by Edward Abbey, Richard Ford, and Cormac McCarthy.

From 1975-1977, Steven taught composition and literature as a continuing education instructor at The University of Montana. As a Visiting Instructor, he taught courses titled "The Hard-Boiled Detective in Fiction and Film" and "The American Western Film: Myth and Image." The latter he taught with Bill Kittredge. From 1990-1996, Krauzer taught Creative Writing at the University on an occasional basis as a Visiting Assistant Professor.

In 1983, he met Dorrit Karasek, a Missoula artist and mental health therapist, and they married nine years later. Throughout his career, Krauzer wrote many western and action-adventure novels under various pen names; most notably the six-volume Dennison’s War series as Adam Lassiter in the mid-eighties. Under his own name, his publications include Frame Work in 1989; Brainstorm in 1991; Rojak’s Rule in 1992; God’s Country in 1993 and Winter of the Wolf in 1994. Krauzer also led fiction writing workshops at The University of Montana as an adjunct professor and played right field for the Montana Review of Books, a team comprised of Missoula writers including Bryan DiSalvatore and James Crumley.

In 1986, Krauzer’s first screenplay was made into the Roger Corman produced film, “Cocaine Wars,” followed by “Sweet Revenge” in 1987. His last major publications were non-fiction guidebooks about kayaking and, with local Missoula author Peter Stark, outdoor winter adventuring. He also authored an outdoor advice column for Outside Magazine.

From 1996 to 2002, Krauzer worked in production for a number of radio and television stations in Missoula. He served as Production Director for KYSS-FM, KGVO, and KLCY from 1996-1999, and in Master Control for KMMF-TV in 2002. Steven died on March 18, 2009 in Missoula.

A draft of an obituary by DiSalvatore that was printed in the March 29, 2009 Missoulian is kept in the archives and special collections accession file along with a reminiscence by Michael Sherwood dated November 9, 2010.

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Content Description

The Steven M. Krauzer Papers are comprised largely of files related to specific literary works written or edited by Krauzer. These files often include drafts, notes, and treatments, which are extended synopses of a full manuscript. Files for edited works also include correspondence with publishers and copyright holders. The collection also contains general business correspondence, published copies of Krauzer's works, and computer files.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Researchers are responsible for using in accordance with 17 U.S.C. and any other applicable statutes. Non-exculsive copyright transferred to The University of Montana for unpublished works by Krauzer or materials solely authored by Krauzer including works published under a pseudonym. This transfer of rights does not pertain to materials in the Executioner series as Krauzer did not possess a legal interest in these works. For works co-authored by Krauzer, permissions may need to be attained from interested third parties for uses exceeding fair use. Exclusive copyright for works solely authored by Krauzer is to be transferred to the University by 2029 or in the event of the death of his literary heir.

Preferred Citation

Steven M. Krauzer Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana-Missoula.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

This collection consists of five series:

Series I: Correspondence, circa 1970-2008, 2.6 linear feet

Series II: Works by Steven M. Krauzer, 1972-1976, 15.2 linear feet

Subseries 1: Works edited by Krauzer, 1976-1982, 2.4 linear feet

Subseries 2: Works by Krauzer, 1972-1996, 11.3 linear feet

Subseries 3: Ideas and notes, 1977-1994, 1.5 linear feet

Series III: Personal records, 1970-2009, 0.6 linear feet

Series IV: Published materials, 1971-1996, 1.4 linear feet

Series V: Computer files, 1979-2009, 991 electronic files

Acquisition Information

The Steven M. Krauzer Papers were acquired from Earl and Bernice Krauzer in 2009 with Michael J. Sherwood acting as a representative of Krauzer's estate.

Processing Note

The collection was processed in 2010. Duplicates of drafts, computer disks, and published works by Krauzer were not retained, nor were Krauzer's Yale yearbooks nor copies of commercially produced computer programs. If possible, original folders were retained, although the titles are not necessarily reflected in the container list.

The computer files were processed in 2017. Computer programs and duplicate files were not retained. The electronic files were arranged to mirror the physical collection. All original files names were retained along with the directories created by Krauzer to describe the contents of the files. The word processing files were migrated from their original WordStar file type to Adobe PDFs.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Finding aid prepared by Steven Bingo and Margo Whitmire (2010), Edited by Erin Baucom (2017)
2010

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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