In 1960, she began her working relationship with agent Candida Donadio, who helped her sell “To You, Frere ‘Twig'” to Mademoiselle.
At McGraw-Hill, editor Robert Gutwillig aided her in transforming “The New Girl” and “To You, Frere ‘Twig'” into the two novels featuring Felicia Whitfield: The Last of the Whitfields (1962) and The New Girl (1964).
Sanguinetti’s third novel, The Dowager (1968), was published by Charles Scribner’s Sons. There, she worked with editor Burroughs Mitchell.
McBee’s Station (1971), her fourth novel, was published by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Her editor was Audrey Soracco.
Sections
McGraw-Hill Era (1960-1964)
Scribner’s Era (1965-1968)
Holt, Rinehart and Winston Era (1970-1971)
Clicking any of the images below will allow you to read the correspondence at full size.
McGraw-Hill Era (1960-1964)
Candida Donadio served as Sanguinetti’s agent from 1960 through 1971, the decade plus that saw the publication of her four novels. Though she began as a secretary to Herb Jaffe, a dramatic agent, he eventually gave her a job as agent in his firm. She went on to represent writers like Philip Roth, Thomas Pynchon, and Joseph Heller, for whom she sold Catch-22. Since Donadio was a rising star, her upward mobility makes tracking her correspondence with Sanguinetti a bit challenging. Her earliest letters, from 1960, were written when she was with Herb Jaffe Associates; the bulk of the correspondence, 1961-1967, comes from Donadio’s time with Russell & Volkening; and the remainder, from 1968-1972, are on the letterhead of her own company, the Robert Lantz-Candida Donadio Literary Agency.
Robert “Bob” Gutwillig shepherded Sanguinetti through the publication of her first two novels. Gutwillig was a man moving up in the publishing world, and after the publication of her second novel, he left McGraw-Hill around 1965 for New American Library. By then, her relationship with the publisher had soured anyway, so their professional relationship was broken. Gutwillig was himself an author — at one point, he takes a leave of absence from McGraw-Hill to finish his own novel — and their correspondence shows that he related to her as a fellow writer in addition to as her editor.
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Associate Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., June 29, 1960
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Associate Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., June 30, 1960
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Associate Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., July 13, 1960
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Associate Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., November 9, 1960
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Herb Jaffe Associates, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., November 10, 1960
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Herb Jaffe Associates, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., November 30, 1960
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Associate Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., December 7, 1960
Typed memo, Candida Donadio, Herb Jaffe Associates, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., January 23, 1961
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., January 27, 1961
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., March 15, 1961
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., March 21, 1961
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., April 7, 1961
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, June 15, 1961
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, August 3, 1961
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Ponte Vedra, Fla., August 17, 1961
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 4, circa 1961
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, Inc., New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, September 27, 1961
Contains the following enclosure: Handwritten letter, Tracey Brigden, Mademoiselle, New York, N.Y., to Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, Inc., New York, N.Y., September 1961
Typed letter, Barbara Lee Collins, Assistant Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., December 27, 1961
Contains the following enclosure: Typed letter (carbon), Phillip A. Sanguinetti, Pittsburg, Penn., to Barbara Lee Collins, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., January 4, 1962
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, January 4, 1962
Contains the following enclosures: (1) Clipping, McGraw-Hill advertisement, including blurb about The Last of the Whitfields, circa 1962; (2) Clipping, listing for The Last of the Whitfields, publication unknown, circa 1962; (3) Clipping, notice of The Last of the Whitfields, Library Journal, October 1, 1961
Typed letter, Sonia Levinthal, Publicity Director, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., January 8, 1962
Typed letter, Barbara Lee Collins, Assistant Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Philip and Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburg, Penn., January 23, 1962
Handwritten letter, Mrs. Richard J. (Barbara Lee) Collins, Clayton, Mo., to Elise Sanguinetti, January 1962
Typed letter, Barbara Lee Collins, Assistant Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., February 6, 1962
Typed letter, Sonia Levinthal, Publicity Director, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., February 9, 1962
Typed letter, Sonia Levinthal, Publicity Director, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., February 19, 1962
Typed letter, Barbara Lee Collins, Assistant Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., February 26, 1962
Typed letter, Sonia Levinthal, Publicity Director, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., March 20, 1962
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, March 26, 1962
Typed letter, Barbara Lee Collins, Assistant Editor, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., April 5, 1962
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Cagnes-sur-Mer, France, to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., April 7, 1962
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., April 12, 1962
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, April 16, 1962
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., April 19, 1962
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., May 3, 1962
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., May 16, 1962
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, May 22, 1962
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., May 24, 1962
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., June 14, 1962
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Pittsburgh, Pa., June 28, 1962
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., December 13, 1962
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., December 26, 1962
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., January 7, 1963
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., January 11, 1963
Contains the following enclosures: (1) Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, Inc., New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, January 14, 1963; (2) Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., January 29, 1963
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., January 21, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., February 25, 1963
Contains the following enclosure: Typed letter (carbon), Robert Gutwillig, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Professor Hudson Strode, University of Alabama, University, Ala., February 25, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., March 5, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., March 25, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., July 17, 1963
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 4, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 6, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 9, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 17, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 27, 1963
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., December 20, 1963
Handwritten letter, Robert Gutwillig, Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, London, U.K., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., February 18, 1964
Contains the following enclosure: Mockup of book jacket for The New Girl
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Executive Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., March 4, 1964
Typed letter, Robert Gutwillig, Executive Editor, Trade Book Department, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., August 14, 1964
Typed letter, Edward Kuhn, Jr., Editor in Chief and General Manager, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 11, 1964
Handwritten letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., October 6, 1964
Candida is here referencing the recent death of Elise’s father.
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., October 19, 1964
Scribner’s Era (1965-1968)
Burroughs Mitchell brought out Sanguinetti’s third novel. He inherited part of the portfolio of legendary editor Max Perkins, including James Jones’s World War II novel From Here to Eternity.
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., March 2, 1965
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., April 1, 1965
Handwritten letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., May 20, 1965
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., July 23, 1965
Telegram, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., January 19, 1966
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., January 24, 1966
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., February 3, 1966
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 14, 1967
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Russell & Volkening, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., November 15, 1967
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., December 15, 1967
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., March 26, 1968
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., April 17, 1968
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., May 10, 1968, with the following enclosures: Blurb text, James Merrill
Typed letter, Patricia Beresford, Publicity Director, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., June 24, 1968
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., September 12, 1968
Typed letter, Burroughs Mitchell, Editor, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., October 31, 1968
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, under signature of Valerie Emitt, Robert Lantz-Candida Donadio Literary Agency, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, December 23, 1968
Holt, Rinehart and Winston Era (1970-1971)
Audrey Soracco was Sanguinetti’s editor for the publication of her fourth novel. She seems to have left the company at some point late in the process, possibly not by her own choice.
Typed letter, Audrey Soracco, Editor, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., April 28, 1970
Typed letter, Audrey Soracco, Editor, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., May 4, 1970
Typed letter, Audrey Soracco, Editor, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., May 22, 1970
Typed letter, Audrey Soracco, Editor, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., June 25, 1970
Contains the following enclosure: Typed letter, Lynne M. Cohen, Permissions, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Ind., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., May 28, 1970
Typed letter, Audrey Soracco, Editor, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., July 2, 1970
Typed letter, Audrey Soracco, Editor, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., December 2, 1970
Typed letter, Thomas C. Wallace, Editor-in-Chief, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., March 12, 1971
Typed letter, Aaron Asher, Director, General Book Division, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., March 23, 1971
Handwritten letter, Audrey Soracco, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, Anniston, Ala., April 19, 1971
Typed letter, Candida Donadio, Robert Lantz-Candida Donadio Literary Agency, New York, N.Y., to Elise Sanguinetti, April 23, 1970
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