| Description | 11 letters from JC Powys to James Abell and 4 loose leaves of incomplete letters. The letters cover Abell's writing, Powys' issues with hypochondria and agoraphobia, 'Weymouth Sands', 'Glastonbury Romance', 'Wolf Solent', 'A Philosophy of Solitude', and general discussions on writing and original thought. The collections also includes two cuttings of obituaries for Powys, an advertisement for 'Rodmoor' and 'Wood & Stone', a loose page with Powys' poem 'The Ailanthus', and a copy of 'The Art of Happiness' (Pocket Series No.414, 1923, Haldeman-Julius Company, Kansas)
James Abell is described in Powys' ''Autobiography' pp543-544, 556 (1967, Macdonald: London) in which Powys claims Abell's "curiously metaphysical attitude to literature... has been of considerable value to me in the writing of my latest novels, for he has encouraged me to rebel against that Henry James rule of "straining" the whole thing through one character's consciousness". |
| Admin History | See EUL MS 433 for Admin history of John Cowper Powys. James Abell is mentioned in Powys's 'Autobiography' pp543-544, 556 (1967, Macdonald: London). Powys describes Abell as a philosopher, though it is unclear whether this is his profession or passion. |