Many thanks to all the writers who submitted to the Anchorage Remembers anthology! We received more than 40 stories, which the selection committee will start reviewing soon. The majority of those stories came from writers who participated in one of the four memoir workshop series offered by this official Centennial project. Stay tuned for details, and to see story excerpts posted on the Anchorage Remembers blog.
The latest word from University of Alaska Press is that the University of Alaska Fairbanks recommendation to reduce or eliminate their funding did not move forward as one of the actions to be implemented at this time. UA Press director Joan Braddock attributes this result in no small way to the input that UAF received from many of you. The message to the administration was clear: the Press is serving a critical role in supporting writers and readers across the North. She thanks you again for this support, which not only influenced the future of the Press but also helped employees to maintain morale at a difficult time.
Rasmuson Foundation is now accepting its next round of applications from all previous Rasmuson Individual Artist Award Recipients for its Artist Residency Program. Online applications for 2015 residencies will be accepted now through August 15, 2014. Questions about the program can be directed to Program Coordinator Jeremy Pataky. Jeremy can be reached by email at: jeremy.pataky (at) gmail.com or by phone at 907-244-7717.
Interested in a fun project? Here’s an invitation to writers from Jeff Brown, Program Director at KTOO/KRNN. I’ve been talking with authors for a long time on KTOO-FM, based here in Juneau. I’m convinced we’ve got a great stable of writers here in Alaska and came up with a totally non-original – but fun – project. Think of it as a chain letter for novelists. The premise is that we assemble a couple dozen writers and write a book one chapter at a time by one author at a time. Author “A” would start out the process with Chapter One, pass it on to Author “B,” who would write Chapter Two, and pass it on to the next writer, and so on. The authors would be selected pretty much at random and work anonymously until the final page was written. Each author would have one week to write. The work-in-progress would be shared via the web so everyone could be involved as readers. I’m thinking that the project would start out as a mystery, but who knows where it could go from there. I have some concepts in mind, but it seems best if there was a lot of flexibility so it’s an open field. If you want to know more, you can contact Jeff at jeff (at) ktoo.org.
Spearheaded by author Debby Dahl Edwardson, the Alaska Books for Alaska Kids initiative seeks to engage Alaska’s students with important, relevant literature that meets core curriculum standards. Meaningful books will promote a love of reading, and Alaska students will develop pride in who they are and where they come from. A steering committee is working to develop a mission statement, goals, strategies, budget, and an action plan for the initiative, with the goal of launching pilot programs in up to five Alaska districts. Those interested in helping with the initiative should email debvanasse (at) gmail.com.
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| Jo-Ann Mapson |
Friday, July 11, 5pm, Barnes & Noble: Jo-Ann Mapson, in town for the UAA MFA residency, will sign copies of her latest novel, Owen’s Daughter.
Sunday, July 13, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Reading Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents Rebecca Solnit, keynote writer for this year’s residency and author of The Faraway Nearby, A Field Guide to Getting Lost, and Wanderlust: A History of Walking. Click here for the pdf of the full reading schedule.
Monday, July 14, 4-6pm, UAA Campus Bookstore: Award-winning author Melinda Moustakis will read from her story collection and discuss her writing. Born in Fairbanks, Melinda captures the sense of Alaska in her acclaimed book Bear Down Bear North: Alaska Stories, which won the Flannery O’ Connor Award and the Maurice Prize.
Monday, July 14, 8pm, Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Readings Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents readings by Ed Allen, Eva Saulitis, and Valerie Miner.
Tuesday, July 15, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Contributions to Literacy in Alaska (CLIA) Awards followed by a staged a staged reading of Zack Rogow’s “Tangled Love: The Life and Work of Yosano Akiko,” part of the Northern Renaissance Arts and Sciences Reading Series of UAA’s summer low-residency MFA program. Rogow, an associate faculty member of the MFA program, is the author, editor or translator of 20 books and plays. Steven Hunt, director of the performance, is a director, playwright, and assistant professor of theater at UAA. Free and open to the public.
Wednesday, July 16, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Readings Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents readings by this year’s graduating students.
Thursday, July 17, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Readings Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents readings by Guest Poet Susanna Mishler, Andromeda Romano-Lax, and Linda McCarriston.
Saturday, July 19, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Readings Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents readings by Elizabeth Bradfield, Carolyn Turgeon, and Sherry Simpson.
Sunday, July 20, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Readings Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents readings by Rich Chiappone, Nancy Lord, and Jo-Ann Mapson.
Monday, July 21, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Readings Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents readings by Distinguised Guest Fiction Writer Padgett Powell and Craig Childs.
Tuesday, July 22, 8pm, UAA Arts Building, Room 150: Northern Renaissance Arts & Sciences Readings Series, in conjunction with UAA MFA Summer Residency, presents readings by David Stevenson, John P. O’Grady, and Anne Caston.
July 6, 7pm, Denali Education Center in McKinley Village, AK. Charles Sheldon Center: “Over the Hills: The Wilderness Act Turns 50” – Join Seth Kantner, Marybeth Holleman, Sean Hill, Erica Watson, and Christine Byl in celebrating the birthday of the Wilderness Act. Free and open to all.
July 11, 6:30pm, Auke Rec covered shelter, Juneau: Join this month’s Woosh Kinaadeiyí open mic and poetry slam. The event, open to poets and performers of all ages and all abilities, will be hosted by Christy NaMee Eriksen and Jacque Boucher. Sign up to read at 6pm. Suggested donation is $5. A potluck barbecue will take place at 5:30 pm. Attendees are encouraged to bring a dish to share. Woosh Kinaadeiyí is a local nonprofit committed to diversity, inclusive community, and empowering voice. The organization hosts monthly poetry slams and open mics throughout the community. For more information, visit facebook.com/wooshpoetry, or email juneaupoetryslam@gmail.com with questions.
July 20-26: The Island Institute hosts the Sitka Symposium at Sheldon Jackson Campus in Sitka. This year’s theme, “Radical Imagining: Changing the Story With Stories of Change” will explore dominant narratives of our culture in relation to the challenges of our time, and consider empowering stories of transformative change initiated by people in communities large and small. Leading the Symposium will be Winona LaDuke, Luis Alberto Urrea, Alan Weisman, and Molly Sturges.
July 22-28: The Wrangell Mountain Writing Workshop in McCarthy presents: True Story, with Tom Kizzia, Frank Soos, and Nancy Cook. During this five-day workshop, writers will explore the craft of creative nonfiction: drafting compelling narratives that tell true stories. Click here for more information.
August 22-24, Center for Alaska Coastal Studies‘ Peterson Bay Field Station (across Kachemak Bay from Homer): Line by Line in Kachemak Bay: a writer and artist retreat led by Marilyn Sigman and Marilyn Kirkham. Registration $225, including water taxi transportation, food, two nights lodging, and a journal. For more information and to sign up, contact info@akcoastalstudies.org or 907-235-6667.