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;
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
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.
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.
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
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.
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.
Steven M. Krauzer Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, The University of Montana-Missoula.
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.
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.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.
This series is largely comprised of business correspondence regarding works Krauzer sent out for publication and largely reflects Krauzer's original arrangement, with two exceptions. Krauzer's 1999 correspondence file has been placed at the front of the series due to several letters within the file dating back to Krauzer's years at Yale, and the outgoing 1981 correspondence file which contains correspondence dating as far back as 1977. These Files within this series also contain some personal correspondence, including a letter of condolence to Ripley Schemm Hugo, clippings, and drafts of short works by Krauzer. Much of the correspondence related to the compilation of works edited by Krauzer may be found in Series II, Subseries 1 (Works by Steven M. Krauzer, Works edited by Krauzer). The computer files associated with this collection are in Series V: Computer files and audio-visual materials.
This series contains drafts of works by Krauzer, as well as correspondence related to the creation of works edited by Krauzer. This series is comprised of three subseries: Subseries 1: Works edited by Krauzer, Subseries 2: Works by Krauzer, and Subseries 3: Ideas and notes for works. The files within this series contain documents relevant to the development of Krauzer’s many works, including outlines and correspondence with potential contributors to edited works. Published versions of Krauzer’s works may be found in Series IV: Published Works. The computer files associated with this collection are in Series V: Computer files and audio-visual materials.
This subseries contains correspondence, copyright agreements, and drafts of edited works by Krauzer and Bill Kittredge. Of note is their work on TriQuarterly 48, which was a special issue on literature of the West.
These boxes include page proofs, drafts of the introduction and head notes for Great Action Stories. Krauzer assigned the generic heading of "Anthology" or "Permissions" to most folders in these boxes. These boxes also include business correspondence related to the anthology, copyright permissions for stories used in the book, and a copies of stories that were considered, but not used in the final text.
These boxes include drafts of the book, introduction, and head notes for The Great American Detective. They also include business correspondence related to the anthology, copyright permissions for stories used in the book, and a copies of stories that were considered, but not used in the final text.
These boxes include drafts of Stories into Film. They also include business correspondence related to the book, copyright permissions for stories and adaptations used in the book, and copies of stories that were considered.
These boxes include drafts of the introduction to and stories used in TriQuarterly 48, an issue dedicated to the literature of the West. The boxes also include business correspondence related to the issue. Notable contributors to this issue include Edward Abbey, Ivan Doig, Richard Ford, Dorothy Johnson, Cormac McCarthy and Tobias Wolff. These files also include correspondence with William Stegner, A.B. Guthrie, and Tom Robbins.
This file contains a draft of the anthology.
This subseries contains drafts and outlines of short stories, screenplays, and book length works by Krauzer. This includes works written in collaboration with other authors, such as the Cord series, which was written in collaboration with Bill Kittredge. This subseries is organized in alphabetical order by the title of the work. Books that are part of a series are all listed under the series title. For example, The Nevada War is filed as Cord 2 as it is the second book of the series.
Original folder title reads "Various TAD Reviews."
This subseries contains files of notes not associated with published works. These files are in chronological order.
Processing note: Contains potentially offensive materials. Includes movie stills for Cocaine Wars.
Processing note: Contains potentially offensive materials. Includes movie stills for Cocaine Wars.
This series consists of contracts, royalty statements, letters of recommendation, and Krauzer’s circular card file—or rolodex. The rolodex contains cards of Krauzer’s professional contacts, as well as short passages describing characters or events. The computer files associated with this collection are in Series V: Computer files and audio-visual materials.
Receipts for comic books.
This series contains published novels by Krauzer and magazines featuring Krauzer’s works. Amongst the magazines featuring works by Krauzer are Outside, Cavalier, and Fling. In addition to the fictional works listed in Series II, this series also contains book length works of non-fiction by Krauzer that include outdoor guides and a book about hiring and promotion.
Contains potentially offensive materials. Contains issues of Outside, Vision, Bikini Battle, Montana Magazine of Western History, American West, The Armchair Detective, Adam, Far West, Cavalier, Gem, Fling, and Real Confessions.
Edited by Kittredge and Krauzer
This series consists largely of electronic copies of Krauzer’s works, correspondence, and personal records. Also included are digital audio recordings of commercials written by Krauzer, the digital master of the invitation to Krauzer’s funeral, and a digital photograph of Krauzer. To access the electronic files please contact the Archives and Special Collections for a list of available files.
Krauzer's correspondence business and personal.
Electronic drafts of Krauzer's works including potential writing projects and research notes. The files in this electronic folder are organized by Work according to Krauzer's original directory lists.
This folder contains files for the Cord series include Books 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and ideas for future books in the series.
This folder contains files for the Dennison's War series include Books 1 through 6 and ideas for future works.
This folder contains files for both Rojak books.
Krauzer's personal records.
The final versions of commercials written by Krauzer for radio.
Krauzer's airchecks for when he was a D. J. for a radio station.
The electronic version of the invitation to Krauzer's funeral.