The Selima Hill Archive contains approximately 120 manuscript notebooks in addition to drafts, revised printouts, correspondence, postcards, and ephemera. The notebooks at the core of the archive date from the late 1960s to the present, and are of three varieties. The first are notebooks preparatory to poetry composition, including lists of words and phrases as well as notes and draft lines and stanzas. The second are commonplace books, containing quotes from a wide range of writers and philosophers. The third variety of notebooks are concerned specifically with Hill’s experience of Asperger’s Syndrome.

At earlier stages of her career, Hill routinely destroyed notes and drafts following publication. However, drafts and revised proofs of more recent poems have been preserved in the collection. Correspondence includes personal material in addition to correspondence with Bloodaxe Books, the Poetry Trust, and other institutions. The Archive also gathers a range of miscellaneous personal items, including scrapbooks, diaries and family albums.

A collection level description is available at Archives Hub. Readers wishing to consult the collection in person at the University Library Special Collections may complete our request form. Further information about Special Collections, including accessibility and opening hours, can be found here.