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Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians
Dedicated to preserving the legacy of Carson McCullers; nurturing writers and musicians,
educating young people; and fostering literary, musical, artistic, and intellectual
culture in the United States and abroad.
Events
Carson McCullers
Carson McCullers was born Lula Carson Smith in Columbus, Georgia, on Feb. 19, 1917.
Most famous for her novels "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter," "Reflections in a Golden
Eye," "The Member of the Wedding," "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe," and "Clock Without
Hands." McCullers was also a playwright and a short story writer.
Her small but significant body of work includes five novels, two plays, 20 short stories,
more than two dozen nonfiction pieces, a book of children's verse, a number of poems,
and an unfinished autobiography.
McCullers' life was blighted by a series of cerebral strokes caused by a misdiagnosed
and untreated childhood case of rheumatic fever. The first stroke occurred when she
was only 24 years old, and within several years, she was completely paralyzed on her
left side. McCullers suffered a final stroke in August 1967 and died at age 50 on
Sept. 29, 1967.
Celebrity Connections
Actress Marilyn Monroe came to lunch at Carson's house in Nyack, along with her husband Arthur Miller and novelist Isak Dinesen
Known as one of the most significant American writers of the 20th century, Carson McCullers was a novelist, a short-story writer, playwright, essayist and poet who grew up in
Columbus, Georgia.
When Oprah Winfrey selected Carson's book The Heart is a Lonely Hunter for her book club in 2004, the 76-year-old book became a No. 1 bestseller that May.
Truman Capote, trailblazing writer from the South, author of Breakfast at Tiffany's and In Cold Blood, was a close friend of McCullers.
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tennessee Williams first connected with Carson by sending her a fan letter after reading The Member of the Wedding.
Karen Allen, costar in Raiders of the Lost Ark, debuted her short film adaptation of McCullers's short story "A Tree. A Rock. A
Cloud." at Carson's 100th Birthday Celebration.
The Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians is dedicated to preserving the
legacy of Carson McCullers; to nurturing writers and musicians and educating young
people; and to fostering literary, musical, artistic, and intellectual culture in
the United States and abroad.
To that end, the Center operates a museum-artist residency space in McCullers' childhood
home in Columbus, Georgia, and an events space in her adult home in Nyack, New York;
offers fellowships for writers, artists, musicians, and scholars; presents educational
and cultural programs in both Columbus and Nyack; and maintains an ever-growing archive
of materials related to the life and work of Carson McCullers.
Learn More About Carson And Her Work:
CSU maintains an extensive archive of McCullers material on campus in the CSU Archives.
Many of McCullers' papers are housed in The Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas in Austin.
In 1944 when Carson's father died, her mother left Columbus and moved to Nyack, New
York, where she bought this house. Carson lived with her mother and sister off and
on in this house for years. Carson eventually bought the house from her mother and
is where she died in 1967. In December 2006, the McCullers house in Nyack was added
to the National Register of Historic Places.
Carson's physician and long time friend, Dr. Mary E. Mercer, bequeathed the home in
Nyack to Columbus State University's Carson McCullers Center. After Mercer's passing
in late April 2013, the Center inherited not only the house but also many Carson-related
artifacts and documents that shed light on the last 10 years of Carson's life.
Due to the generosity of Mercer, CSU is one of the only universities to own two homes
by a single author and now houses the world's most extensive research collection on
Carson. An endowment in Mercer's name also has been created to continue these efforts
in the curation and preservation of Carson's legacy.
A Tree. A Rock. A Cloud.
a film by Karen Allen that debuted Feb. 19, 2017 at CSU
Based on the short story by groundbreaking Southern American writer Carson McCullers
at age 19, the film "A Tree. A Rock. A Cloud." is set at a roadside café in the morning
of spring 1947. A boy and man meet by chance. The man relates a luminous tale of personal
heartbreak and loss, and of his hard-won understanding of the nature of love. The
film also is the directorial debut of award-winning, New York-based actor/director
Karen Allen.
Executive produced by Columbus State University's Carson McCullers Center.
Note from the Director
"I came across this story when I was in my early 20's. As a young actor I was drawn
to Carson McCullers as a playwright and novelist at first, and then began to read
everything she’d written that I could get my hands on. "A Tree, A Rock, A Cloud" always
loomed large for me among her many short stories, It is a quiet, subtle, mysterious
story. It sneaks up on you and has stayed indelibly etched in my imagination all these
years. It is a delicate, Zen like passing of wisdom from a older man to a young boy
on a rainy day in a roadside café when their two lives unexpectedly intersect. The
story, as I see it, is flooded with the raw, tangible beauty of the natural world,
set in contrast to the complex, intangible yearning for love in their interior worlds.
I intend to stay very close to the story Carson McCullers wrote and to illuminate
the characters she has so beautifully drawn in the pages of this story."
Karen Allen Director and Screenwriter
Karen Allen (Director & Screenwriter)
Known for her work as an award-winning actor in more than 40 feature films ("Animal
House," "A Small Circle of Friends," "The Wanderers," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "Starman,"
"Scrooged," "The Glass Menagerie," "Malcolm X," "The Perfect Storm," "The Sandlot,"
"Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," "White Irish Drinkers," "Bad
Hurt," and the soon to release "Year By the Sea"). She has worked for 30 years on
and off Broadway ("A Summer Day," "Speaking in Tongues," "The Glass Menagerie," "The
Monday After the Miracle," "Extremities," "As You Like It," "The Country Girl"). Karen
began directing theatre at Bard College at Simon’s Rock 10 years ago and continued
her work as a director at the Berkshire Theatre Festival in Stockbridge, Massachusetts
("Moonchildren," "Extremities," "Frankie and Johnny in the Clair du Lune") and in
New York City with the Obie winning production of Lucy Thurber’s Ashville at the Cherry
Lane Theatre. She is a longtime member of the Actor's Studio, on the faculty of the
Theatre Dept. at Bard College at Simon's Rock, and on the Board of the Berkshire International
Film Festival and the Board of the Amazon Conversation Team. Based on the short story
by Carson McCullers, "A Tree. A Rock. A Cloud." is the first film she has written
and directed.
Carson McCullers (Author)
Born in Columbus, Georgia, Carson McCullers was a prolific American writer of novels,
short stories, essays, plays, and poetry. McCullers examined the psychology of lonely,
isolated people, which she depicted through her eccentric characters and interpreted
with deep empathy. She is best known for her novels, The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1940), which she wrote at the age of twenty-two, Reflections in a Golden Eye (1942), and for her play, A Member of the Wedding (1952). Her novel, The Ballad of a Sad Café (1951), was adapted for the stage by playwright Edward Albee. Four of her novels and plays
have been made into feature films. She died in Nyack, New York, in 1967, at the age
of 50.
Jeffrey DeMunn (Actor)
Jeffrey DeMunn is a film, television and stage actor. His film credits include: The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, The Mist, The Majestic, The Blob, The X-Files:
Fight the Future, Hollywoodland, Burn after Reading, Citizen X, Barbarians at the
Gate, and Empire Falls. TV: Billions, The Walking Dead, Divorce, The Affair, Mob City,
The Good Wife, Storm of the Century, Kojak: The Price of Justice, Moonlighting, LA
Law, The West Wing, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, E.R., The Practice, Trial by
Jury, and Hill Street Blues. Theater: Death of a Salesman, Our Town, The Price, Hedda
Gabler, Spoils of War, Sleight of Hand, K2, Bent, Comedians, Modigliani, King Lear
and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
James McMenamin (Actor)
James McMenamin is best known for his portrayal of Charlie "Donuts" Coates on the
Netflix series Orange is the New Black. Other recurring television credits include TNT's Public Morals, Showtimes' Nurse Jackie, and HBO's Olive Kitteridge. He's appeared as a guest star on Person of Interest, Inside Amy Schumer, The Good
Wife, and many others. He recently appeared in the feature films In Dubious Battle, The Long Home, and Blood Heist. He has worked extensively in theatre and made his Broadway debut in the 2014 production
of Of Mice and Men. He has previously worked on stage with director Karen Allen in Extremities at the
Berkshire Theatre Festival, and in Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre's production Ashville.
Jackson Smith (Actor)
Jackson Smith (the Boy) resides in Western Massachusetts, not far from where A Tree. A Rock. A Cloud. was filmed. The is his first experience acting in a film. Jackson loves music. He
plays the piano and trombone, and spends his time creating short pieces on Garage
Band. He is an avid baseball player and fan of the sport. He does parkour, and he
is presently performing card tricks for anyone who will be his audience. He studies
film with Douglas Trumbull; writing, directing and editing his own home movies.
The Marguerite and Lamar Smith Fellowship for Writers
Purpose
Named in honor of Carson's parents, The Marguerite and Lamar Smith Fellowship for
Writers was inspired by McCullers's experience at the Breadloaf Writer's Conference
in Vermont, especially the Yaddo Arts Colony in Saratoga Springs, New York. To honor
the contribution of these writers' residences to McCullers's work, the Carson McCullers
Center for Writers and Musicians awards fellowships for writers to study in her childhood
home in Columbus, Georgia. The fellowships are intended to afford the writers in residence
uninterrupted time to focus on their work, free from the distractions of daily life
and other professional responsibilities.
Description and details
The Marguerite and Lamar Fellowship for Writers is offered during fall semester. The
fellowship begins the first of September and ends the first of December. During this
time, the writing fellow will reside in a spacious private apartment inside Carson
McCullers's childhood home, the Smith-McCullers House. The fellow is provided with
a stipend of $5,000 to cover costs of transportation, food and other incidentals.
Fellowship recipients are encouraged to take an active role in the community and to
meet informally with students and local residents interested in writing. The fellow
will work with the McCullers Center director to plan a presentation near the end of
the residency.
The Smith-McCullers House is located on a quiet residential street in Columbus' historic
area. The fellow will occupy one-half of the Smith-McCullers House. The remainder
of the house serves as the Smith-McCullers house museum. Because the house operates
as a museum and outreach center, events and tours frequently occur in the upper part
of the home during the fellow's time here. However, the apartment is comprised of
a large living/writing/sleeping space, a private bathroom, and a private entrance,
allowing fellows to work without interruption or disturbance by the Center and Museum.
The kitchen is shared by the fellow and the Center. The Center uses the kitchen for
special events throughout the fall, in which the fellow is always invited to participate.
The apartment is adequately furnished. Fellows need bring only their personal belongings.
The Carson McCullers Center provides utilities, general property maintenance, a computer
and online service. Fellows are encouraged to bring a laptop. Since public transportation
is limited, an automobile is recommended; however, there are grocery stores, post
offices, and other services within walking distance. A spouse or companion is welcome,
but children and pets are not allowed.
2023 Fellow: Lauren Irschick
Lauren Irschick is a PhD candidate in music theory at the University of Rochester. Her current research
investigates the ways in which techniques of fiction may be applied to music analysis
through the study of novels by Carson McCullers, Willa Cather, and Richard Powers,
among others.
Lauren holds an MA from the University of Rochester and a BMus from McGill University.
She has taught courses in popular music analysis, collegiate writing, and tonal and
post-tonal music theory and aural skills at the University of Rochester’s Eastman
School of Music and the College of Arts and Sciences, and her teaching has been recognized
by the TA Prize for Excellence in Teaching (Eastman School of Music), the Breadth
Fellowship for Warner School and Eastman School Students (University of Rochester),
and the Tomlinson Engagement Award for Mentoring (McGill University). While in residence
at the Smith-McCullers House, she will complete work on her dissertation, entitled
“The Fictionalization of Music Analysis”.
a cover letter which explains why you would make a suitable fellow, as well as the
nature and extent of the work you intend to complete during the 3-month residency
your latest curriculum vitae, making sure to include fellowships, scholarships, prizes,
or other honors you have received;
a writing sample of no more than 20 pages;
II. Also, we require at least two letters of recommendation.
All applications must be completed on or before April 1.
All applications will be acknowledged, and finalists will be chosen and scheduled
for telephone interviews with the selection committee by May 15.
After each finalist completes a telephone interview, a Fellow will be chosen by the
selection committee, to be announced June 1.
The Carson McCullers Center Fellowship Program English Department Columbus State University 4225 University Avenue Columbus, GA 31907
Announcement of Winner: June 1. All applicants will receive notification of the winner.
Faulkner Studies Scholarship
Created in honor of Columbus resident Susan M. Cochran and her dedication to study
of the great American author William Faulkner, the Scholarship for Faulkner Studies
provides funding for gifted students majoring in English at Columbus State University
to pursue their education in literary studies.
The Susan M. Cochran Memorial Endowment for Faulkner Studies
The Susan M. Cochran Memorial Endowment for Faulkner Studies provides funding for
gifted students majoring in English at Columbus State University to pursue their education
in literary studies, to spend one semester of intense, one-on- one directed study
of Faulkner with a CSU faculty member, and to travel one summer during their undergraduate
career to attend the University of Mississippi’s annual Faulkner and Yoknapatawpha
Conference in Oxford.
Scholarship Details
one new incoming student to be awarded a scholarship each year
student must declare major in English and remain an English major to continue receiving
the scholarship
scholarship student receives $1,000 per year for four years
student must maintain a 3.0 grade point average to continue receiving the scholarship
student must enroll in a directed study course on Faulkner with CSU faculty member
by or during third year of study
student must attend Faulkner and Yoknapatawpha Conference in Oxford by or during the
third year of study
student will receive an additional $1,000 to attend the Faulkner Conference
Eligibility & Selection Criteria
In order to be considered for the scholarships, applicants must:
Be an incoming student at Columbus State University
Declare a major in English
Sign a letter of intent to meet all requirements of the scholarship
The Carson McCullers Literary Awards
Columbus State University's Department of English and Carson McCullers Center for
Writers and Musicians proudly present The Carson McCullers Literary Awards.
Prizes: The Carson McCullers Literary Awards offer prizes for Georgia and Alabama
high school students in fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, expository essay, playwriting
and screenwriting: with $300 for first place in each of those categories, $200 for
second place, $100 for third place.
Prizes are awarded to CSU students, including the Sara Ayres Jordan Awards in fiction,
poetry, and creative non-fiction, as well as prizes in expository essay, playwriting
and screenwriting, with $300 first place, $200 second place, $100 third place.
Please visit the following site to learn more about the writing awards and to submit
entries for the competition: CSU Department of English
Please consider a contribution to the Carson McCullers Center. Your gift will help
to ensure future programming and to maintain this important historical site. All contributions
to the Carson McCullers Center are tax deductible to the full extent of the law. For
more information on making gifts, contact:
Nick Norwood, Director The Carson McCullers Center 1519 Stark Avenue Columbus, GA 31906
Or mail contributions to:
The Carson McCullers Center 1519 Stark Avenue Columbus, GA 31906
Please email mccullerscenter@columbusstate.edu or call 706-565-1200, Monday to Friday. If your call goes to voicemail, please leave your name and contact
information, the date and time you would like to tour the house, and please give at
least 24-48 hours advance notice. Your call will be returned, as soon as possible,
during regular business hours Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM (excluding holidays).
The sources of creation are very mysterious, and I don't think one can find them by
just looking for them. I think they have to come from within you. Don't you feel so?
~Carson McCullers
For questions concerning copyright and permissions to use the works of Carson McCullers,
please contact Andrew Nurnberg Associates at www.andrewnurnberg.com.
Contact
Nick Norwood, Director The Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians 1519 Stark Avenue Columbus, GA 31906