SHORT TAKES : Micheners Give UT $3 Million

Author James A. Michener and his wife, Mari, have donated an additional $3 million in gifts and pledges to the University of Texas to encourage aspiring writers.

Michener, 83, who used the university as a base for research on his 1985 historically based novel “Texas,” donated $1 million to establish the Texas Center for Writers four years ago.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author, who has written more than three dozen books, earlier contributed $100,000 to the university’s Press Endowment.

“I am totally commited to helping young writers,” said Michener. “Several existing programs have distinguished records, and it would give me enormous satisfaction to see the Texas Center for Writers at UT become one of the nation’s best. I am devoting my energies and extra income to that purpose.”

The center, which provides a focus for a broad range of writing in prose, poetry, play writing and screen writing and brings to the campus a variety of writers, editors, agents and publishers for lectures and symposiums, began its program last September.