Guide to the Papers of Sara Dowse, 1998

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Summary

Collection number:
MS 7365 et al
Creator:
Dowse, Sara
Extent:
(150 ms boxes)
Language:
English and English
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Sara Dowse, National Library of Australia, [class/series/file number]'.
Availability:
Available
Access conditions:
Part available for research; part permission required for research (1 Folder in box 73). Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:
The bulk of the MS 7365 collection comprises papers relating to Sara Dowse's work as a writer, including research material, correspondence, newspaper cuttings and drafts of her novels, reviews and short stories. There are papers relating to her work as head of the Office of Women's Affairs, papers relating to grant applications, and personal correspondence with family and friends. There are extensive files on West Block, Canberra tales, Schemetime and Silver city, and also on the National Women's Advisory Council, Australian Labor Party, and Australian National Word Festival.
Biographical Note:

Dale Sara Dowse was born on 12 November 1938 in Chicago, Illinois. She grew up in New York and Los Angeles and studied arts at the University of California. In 1958, Dowse moved to Australia, settling first in Sydney where, in 1968, she obtained a BA (History and English) from the University of Sydney, and then in Canberra.

Dowse has worked variously as an editor, academic, journalist and public servant, joining the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet in 1974 as head of its newly created Women's Affairs Section (which under her leadership became the Women's

Affairs Branch and then the Office of Women's Affairs). She resigned from the Public Service in 1977 to work as a freelance writer. Dowse was one of a group of ACT-based women writers known as the 'Canberra Seven'. They produced a joint anthology of Canberra-based stories entitled Canberra tales, published by Penguin in 1988, and re-released in 1995 under the title The division of love: stories.

Dowse has written in a number of genres including fiction, non-fiction, short stories, reviews, journal articles, television mini-series and poetry. She has published six books, contributed to several volumes of short stories and her articles and reviews have appeared in a wide range of publications. Dowse's writing for television includes two episodes of the ABC-TV drama Relative Merits and a five-part adaptation of her novel, West Block, commissioned by the ABC, which was later cancelled. Dowse has also conducted a number of oral history interviews on behalf of the Oral History Section of the National Library of Australia.

In support of her career as a writer, Dowse has received several grants from the Literature Board of the Australia Council and an ACT Literary Fellowship. Her book, Sapphires, was voted 3M Talking Book of the Year in 1994, ACT Book of the Year in 1995 and was short-listed for the 1995 Steele Rudd Award. In 1995 and 1997, Dowse was voted ACT Book Reviewer of the Year.

In 1998, Dowse moved with her second husband to Canada where she continued to write and paint. In 2004 Dowse returned to Australia and currently resides in Sydney.

Immediate Source of Acquisition:

The papers have been acquired from Sara Dowse in a number of instalments between 1984 and 2005. 1984 - Boxes 1-91; 1988 - Boxes 92-99 ; Mar 1989 - Boxes 100; Jun 1989 - Boxes 101-103; 1990 - Boxes 104-111; 1991 - Boxes 112-114; 1992 - Box 115; 1994 - Boxes 115-129; 1996 - Boxes 129-130; 1997 - Boxes 131-133; 1998 - Boxes 133-146; 2002 - Box 147; 2003 - Box 148; 2004 - Box 149; 2005 - Box 150.

Arrangement:

The first five instalments of papers, covering the period 1984-1987 and contained in boxes 1-91, were amalgamated into a series arrangement consisting of literary works, correspondence, women's issues, printed materials and political issues. Subsequent instalments have been listed in the order in which they were received.

Access and use

Conditions Governing Access:
Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1082236).
Conditions Governing Use:
Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.
Preferred citation:
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Sara Dowse, National Library of Australia, [class/series/file number]'.
Location of this collection:
Parkes Place
Canberra ACT 2600, Australia
Contact:
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