In 1986, the juiciest headline to come out of the Ivy League wasn't some scientific breakthrough, or even a shocking new uptick in tuition rates. It was the discovery of a student prostitution ring at Brown.
Twelve years later, inspired by that story, four Harvard alums have penned a steamy novel portraying their alma mater as a place where sex is everywhere, professors smoke crack, students work as prostitutes, deans are debauched and half the campus has secret lives.
Authors Faith Adiele and Julia Sullivan, who were roommates freshman years (along with author Melanie Thernstrom, who published a book about the murders at Dunster House last fall), teamed with classmates Bennett Singer and Michael Melcher, all Class of '86, to craft "The Student Body" under the nom de plume, "Jane Harvard." The book was conceived when the four went away for spring break in 1992, and decided to "write the world's smartest trashy novel together in a week," said Singer, who now works as an editor at "Time." "We underestimated the work involved."
That's an understatement, indeed. The book subsequently went through nine drafts, four pen names, and two titles, and was rejected 29 times before it found an editor in Jon Karp (himself a graduate of the infamous Brown, Class of '86) willing to take it on. Even then, the book wasn't done. Karp sent the authors a 30-page, single-spaced memo, detailing changes he thought would improve the novel. That added another year to the job - which by then had already consumed five years - since the authors now all were geographically scattered and had fulltime jobs.
Unlike previous collaborative novels - the most famous being "Naked Came the Stranger," the novel written by 20 editors at Newsday - the authors of "The Student Body" were striving for a seamless, coherent book. To do that, they agreed on a plot, drew up a detailed outline, and divided up the writing. Then they read each other's drafts, marking them up in four different colors of ink.
"The group process was supportive," said Singer. "It sparked us to work fast and think in daring, creative ways."
But not so supportive as to be tension-free, said Adiele, who teaches English at Framingham State. "We'd get pissed off on a regular basis," she said. "It was like a sibling relationship. We'd not talk to each other for a day, then we'd get through our differences."
The group decided early on that majority ruled when there were conflicts. "It never became a contest of wills," Adiele said. "When three people say, 'You know, Faith, that chapter really sucked,' it made it easier to go with what the group wanted."
The project was refreshingly free of prima donnas, they say. Each author contributed what he/she did best. Singer researched the book - calling escort services, going to sex clubs, and talking to callgirls - and oversaw final editing. Adiele, Sullivan, and Melcher did the initial drafts, and Melcher, who's now a lawyer in New York, served as project manager and taskmaster. Being properly educated Ivy Leaguers, they made sure their randy but smart characters were multicultural, demonstrated a range of sexual preferences, and practiced gender equality.
While "The Student Body" may be a touch racier than the tomes that normally emanate from Harvard's hallowed halls, campus reaction to the book has thus far been highly favorable. "Harvard Magazine, which reflects official sentiment, called it, with typical Crimson hyperbole, "an achievement unprecedented in the history of literature."
The authors, undaunted by their grueling experience, are now plotting the further adventures of their characters. "We have a fondness for this project," said Singer. "But if we're going to do it again, we'll take a month off. We've learned how to make this work through trial and error. Next time we'll do it quicker."
In the sequel, they say, several major characters from the book will be featured in the years after graduation - that difficult time when having potential is not enough.
- Linda Tischler
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