The papers of The Writers Club, Inc. reflect the more than twenty-five year history of an organization of Washington, D.C. African American literati. Founded by a small group of five local writers, the club dedicated itself to "stimulating more creative writing among those who have had their writings accepted by periodicals or publishers of note." The collection was donated by J. Leon Langhorne in 1971.
The Writers Club, Inc. served a critical need in providing encouragement, support, and visibility to a group of talented and creative African Americans often ignored by mainstream publishers and other media. In addition, the organization presented to the public some of the finest African American writers and scholars of the day.
The core of the collection exists in two notebooks of minutes covering a twenty-year period. The minutes were recorded by two club secretaries, Alfred Nixon (1941-1948) and J. Leon Langhorne (1948-1961).
Discussions of their own writings, and discussions by invited guests enlivened both regular and public meetings. John Hope Franklin, J. Saunders Redding, Rayford Logan, Mae Miller Sullivan, Owen Dodson, E. Franklin Frazier, Georgia Douglas Johnson, and Montague Cobb were some of the more well-known participants. Meetings were held in members' homes three times a year. Members were required to pay dues of $.25 a meeting or $.75 for the year. "Refreshments" served early on eventually became "delightful repasts," and then "elegant dinners." An important part of each meeting agenda required each member to report on works-in-progress or those about to be or recently published.
Potential members were scrutinized and voted on before being invited to join the club. Among some of those invited into membership were Inabel and Arnett Lindsay, and Dorothy and James Porter. Sterling A. Brown is also mentioned as a possible member, but there is no record of his attendance at any meeting in the minutes. An obvious bond among many of the members was their affiliation with Howard University.
