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Thayer, Douglas H., 1929-2017

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1929-

Biographical History

Douglas Thayer (1929-2017) is a professor and author in Utah.

Douglas Thayer was born in 1929 and grew up in Provo, Utah. At seventeen, he enlisted in the United States Army, serving in Germany, where he would later return as a missionary. Thayer earned degrees from Brigham Young University (BYU) (BA, English), Stanford (MA), and the University of Iowa (MFA, fiction writing), and had begun doctoral programs at Stanford and University of Maryland when he discovered his passion for fiction writing. He has since published several works in quarterly publications; most of his writing focuses on the Mormon experience, but also reflects his love of the outdoors, which he developed as a child. Thayer is currently a professor of composition at BYU, specializing in fiction writing, but also teaches courses on the short story and Mormon literature, among other things. He is married to Donlu DeWitt, with whom he has six children.

Over the course of his career, Thayer has received a Karl G. Maeser Creative Arts Award, an Alcuin Fellowship in General Education, and several prizes for his work, including a Dialogue Award in Fiction and Association for Mormon Letters awards for short fiction, novels, and lifetime membership. He is currently the author of fifteen short stories and two collections thereof, five novels, and an interview, and is working on a memoir and a young adult novel.

Citation:
Cavazos, Julian. "Professor Reaches 50-year Teaching Mark." BYU Daily Universe, May 11, 2007. Accessed online March 13, 2012. http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/64319/7722

WikiPedia. "Douglas Thayer." Accessed online March 13, 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Thayer

DouglasHThayer.com. "About the Author." WordPress, 2009. Accessed online March 13, 2012. http://douglashthayer.com/?page_id=2

Found in 3 Collections and/or Records:

Douglas H. Thayer correspondence, articles, other material, circa 1962-2009

 Series
Identifier: MSS 3178 Series 2
Scope and Contents Contains transcript of Brigham Young University (BYU) forum address given by Thayer, BYU magazines and other newspaper clippings featuring Thayer, notecards containing information for his published works and research, some correspondence, and a copy of the journal Irranteum. The forum address discusses reading and the importance of literacy in the home. The newspaper clippings are reviews of Thayer's books, mentions of his achievements, or discuss his life as a writer. The notecards have...
Dates: circa 1962-2009

Douglas H. Thayer draft notes, circa 1950-2011

 Series
Identifier: MSS 3178 Series 1
Scope and Contents Contains notes on a variety of works. Files of each work include consecutive manuscripts of each work, complete with author commentary and corrections, and title changes. Some also include final manuscripts of the works or photocopies of the pieces published in journals or anthologies. Each file also contains correspondence related to the work, typically emails from publishers or other writers discussing it. Some of the included pieces are "Harris," "Summer Fire," "Greg," "Oakhills," and...
Dates: circa 1950-2011

Douglas H. Thayer papers

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 3178
Abstract

The collections consists primarily of manuscripts of Thayer's works, including personal notes, publisher/editor corrections and correspondence, and some public response. Also included are various newspaper and magazine articles featuring the author.

Dates: approximately 1950-2009