Hemingway, Ernest

Autograph letter signed (“Ernest Hemingway” in pencil), to Arnold Gingrich (“Dear Major G”) in Chicago, a wide-ranging letter to the editor of the newly minted Esquire magazine

6 pages (268 x 208 mm), [Paris], 6 November [1933]; in pencil on three sheets of gray paper watermarked “Joynson Extra Superfine,” some light staining on the first sheet, last page a trifle soiled, original stamped envelope addressed in Hemingway’s hanꦅd. At the top of page 4 he has typed “Ernest Hemingway / Paris Letter,” followed by a five-line typedꦺ beginning of the piece; all of this has been crossed through in pencil by him.

“I’ve written 3 books of stories now and there are 2 unsuccessful ones in the 3 books.”

A fine letter, written ten days after the publication of Winner Take Nothing: half of the letter is about writing short stories; the rest concerns Esquire (Hemingway’s comments on the first issue, his editorial advice, his arrangements with the magazine, etc.). “... Your statement [in a recent letter] about when and where stories published absolutely correct and exactly what I wrote Scribners in July. Also wrote them what magazines to give credit to. That hasn’t been done either. I am not responsible for their front matter. OK-ed final proof by cable with corrections. Never saw jacket until got book at Sylvia Beach’s [Shakespeare and Co. in Paris] ... ‘Mother of a Queen’ and ‘Day’s Wait’ [stories in Winner Take Nothing] are better stories than you think they are. But thanks very much for taking the trouble to comment. Trouble with ‘One Reader Writes’ [another story in the book] is that letter is exactly true and because I didn’t make you a picture of the woman. Papa was careless or it was too hot that day in 🍰Havana. I’ve written 3 books of stories now and there are 2 unsuccessful ones in the 3 books. I mean that don’t do what they are supposed to do. There are no phony ones ... Also when you have the time mark a volume — anyone — of De Maupassant, Turgenieff, Chekov, Kipling, Merimee and see how you come out on stars and how many phonies there are. Turgenieff and Kipling rate plenty high. I’ve written more good stories and as good stories as Turgenieff — already. Kipling wrote 20 time as many and a damned sight better stories than I have. But I am going t🧜o get better as I get older and he didn’t. So may have a chance.

“All right — Take a book of stories by [Sherwood] Anderson, [Morley] Callaghan, Faulkner and Co. Shit. I don’t compete with those punks. Faulkner will go straight for a damned fine wonderfꦇul first paragraph —Then get tired and start faking all over the place — Morley was damned honest but dull. He’s still dull. Since it seemed I learned everything I know from Sherwood better not criticize him. But the funny thing is that Sherwood and I both learned everything we knew at the start not from Stein but where Stein learned it — From Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. Anderson, however, wrote some damned fine stories ..."

“I finished a 15,000 word story [the first Harry Morgan story, “One Trip Across,” later incorporated into To Have and Have Not] in Madrid that is damned good — all action — just what that damned book [Winner Take Nothing] needed — Have to stop now to go over it ... I wish you a lot of luck on the magazine. Why don’t you get horse piece from Evan Shipman [friend of Hemingway’s from the Paris days and a racing expert ] ... You need more about racing and it should be by people who know about it. From the inside. Sportsmen like shooting, fishing, sailing, flying, things to do with horses. The snot is about horses, flying and sailing. There is less snot about fishing and shooting in U. S. though shooting getting quite increasingly snotty in the East. Deep sea fishing also getting pretty snotty. Your magazine needs at least 1/3 snot to be a 𝔍success — with that t🏅itle if there is too much literature it will go haywire. If you want good writers cheap you must catch them damned early. I can’t do you any regularly monthly letters while out in Tanganyika [Hemingway would leave for Africa at the end of November] because the trip is going to cost more a day than the pieces bring and I’m damned if I’m going to sit around doping out a piece when I’m paying to shoot ...”

REFERENCE:

Letters, ed. Spanier, et al., 5:531–34

PROVENANCE:

Arnold Gingrich (recipient) — Jonathan Goodwin (Sotheby's Parke Bernet, 12 April 1978🧸, part of lot 717) — Maurice F. Neville (Sotheby's New York, 13 April 2004, lot 109)