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| 49 Writers guest blogger Mei Mei Evans (Oil and Water), a University of Alaska Press Alaska Literary Series author |
Special recognition goes to The Alaska Writers Guild and Alaska Pacific University for planning and hosting the first annual Great Alaska Book Fair at APU on October 12, with support from 49 Writers. Forty-five authors writing in many different genres participated–some from as far away as Unalaska! There were also five presses and literary journals represented: University of Alaska Press, VP&D House, Cirque, Alaska Quarterly Review, and the Alaska Dispatch. Our gratitude also goes to the writers themselves for bringing the range and depth of Alaskan writing into the public eye.
Our fall classes, Fundamentals of Poetry with
Kate Partridge and Find and Free Your Writer’s Voice with Deb Vanasse, got off
to a good start this week with a great group of students! There’s still one
slot left in Kate’s class that starts tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 19 & 26, 9am-12pm, Writing from Research. It’s
not too late to register!
Tonight, Friday, Oct. 18, 7pm, UAA/APU Library, LIB 307: Join us for a reading by husband-and-wife Alaska Writer Laureates Nora Marks Dauenhauer, who currently holds that honor, and Richard Dauenhauer, who was our Poet Laureate 30 years ago! Richard’s new collection of poems, Benchmarks, will be available for sale. Brought to you by 49 Writers and the UAA Department of Creative Writing & Literary Arts.
Thursday, Oct. 24, 7pm, join us at Great Harvest Bread Company, 570 E. Benson Boulevard, for a 49 Writers Reading & Craft Talk by Pilgrim’s Wilderness author Tom Kizzia, entitled “Little Did I Know…” at which he’ll talk about the three-year process of writing the book that tells this extraordinary story. As always, there will be complimentary coffee and cookies, courtesy of our marvelous hosts, and a book signing afterwards. Free admission but donations always welcome!
As the Anchorage Daily News reported recently, Alaska has its own crowdfunding website–check it out at Tallyfunder.com. 49 Writers was invited to participate and is one of the three Arts & Culture organizations currently featured. You too can join the conversation and contribute your one dollar vote! We see it as a unique opportunity to engage with individuals we might not otherwise meet and talk about our mission and programs.
If you’re in Fairbanks, there are more opportunities to hear the Dauenhauers read from their extensive body of work. Sunday, Oct. 20, 7pm, they will be at Fairbanks Arts Association’s Bear Gallery (3rd floor of Alaska Centennial Center for the Arts, Pioneer Park). Then on Monday, Oct. 21, 1:15pm at the Carlson Center, Nora will read at the plenary session of the First Alaskan Institute Elders and Youth Conference.
Also in Fairbanks today, Friday, Oct. 18, 7pm, UAF Murie Auditorium: as the kick-off event for the UAF English Department’s “Choose Your Words: Celebration of Writing,: Eva Saulitis will give a reading. Her most recently published book is Into Great Silence: A Memoir of Discovery and Loss Among Vanishing Orcas, and Eva’s essays and poems have appeared in Orion, Ecotone, Prairie Schooner, Crazyhorse, and many other journals. Eva will give a craft talk at UAF too in Gruening 405 today, Oct. 18, 3pm.
Celebration of Writing Events will continue all day tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 19 in the Murie Building on the UAF Campus. All Midnight Sun and Celebration of Writing events are free and open to the public.
Today, Oct. 18, 4-6pm at the UAA Campus Bookstore, renowned mystery writer Jan Burke will give a talk. She is author of 14 books including: Disturbance, The Messenger, Kidnapped, Bloodlines, Bones, Hocus, Eighteen, Flight, Dear Irene. This event is sponsored with Arctic Cliffhangers.
Tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 19, 3pm, Mountain View Library, Community Room: As part of Teen Read Week, meet local manga artist and author Brett Uher (Dark Moon Diary and Daemonology). Learn more about drawing manga and creating your own art.
Author Christine Byl’s Pacific Northwest Dirt Work book tour continues this week, made possible by the support of the Rasmuson Foundation. For more information, check out her website:
- Sunday, Oct. 20, 4pm, Bellingham, WA: Reading at Village Books
- Monday, Oct. 21, TBA, Friday Harbor, San Juan
Island, WA: Classroom visit at UW - Thursday, Oct. 24, 7pm, Whitefish,
MT: Reading, TBA - Friday, Oct. 25, 7pm, Missoula, MT: Reading at Shakespeare
& Co.
And there are a couple more chances to catch Erin McKittrick (Small Feet Big Land) in Southeast Alaska:
- Tomorrow, Saturday,
Oct. 19, 7pm:
Petersburg Library - Tuesday, Oct.
22, 6:30pm:
Ketchikan Library
Wednesday, Oct. 23, 5-7pm, UAA Campus Bookstore: Tom Kizzia presents Writing Alaska Nonfiction: The Creation of the Greatland. Author of the highly-acclaimed Pilgrim’s Wilderness: A True Story of Faith and Madness on the Alaska Frontier, Kizzia will examine the challenges in writing about Alaska– a place of myth, striving, and home.
Thursday, Oct. 24, 5-7pm, UAA Campus Bookstore: Dominion of Bears and Among Wolves with authors Sherry Simpson and Marybeth Holleman. This event celebrates the publication of two important Alaskan titles by two amazing Alaskan writers. Sherry Simpson (UAA MFA Program) presents Dominion of Bears: Living with Wildlife in Alaska and Marybeth Holleman presents Among Wolves: Gordon Haber’s Insights into Alaska’s Most Misunderstood Animal. Photo presentations included.
October 25, 6:30pm, Juneau Downtown Public Library: Reading by Ray Troll, author and illustrator of children’s books such as Sharkabet and science books for children and adults such as Ray Troll’s Shocking Fish Tales: Fish, Romance, and Death in Pictures. Free and open to all ages.
October 27, 1-4pm, Douglas Library: Colored pencil drawing workshop with Ray Troll. Free, with all art supplies provided. SPACE IS LIMITED to the first 30 participants; contact Andi Hirsh at 586-0442 or andrea_hirsh@juneau.org to sign up in advance. This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Juneau Public Library.
Sunday, October 20, 5pm at McNally Jackson Books: Poets & Writers is welcoming Bryan Fierro and Jill Osier, winners of this year’s Maureen Egen Writers Exchange Award, to New York! These two Alaskan writers will be in the city to meet with editors, publishers, agents, and others in the literary community as part of their prize for winning the Maureen Egen Writers Exchange, which aims to help emerging writers build a professional network. Poets & Writers will host a reading and reception in their honor. Fierro will be introduced by Ann Napolitano, this year’s fiction judge, and Osier by Afaa Michael Weaver, this year’s poetry judge. Free admission. You can read excerpts from their winning manuscripts here.
Thursday, Nov. 7, 11:30 am-1pm, Kinley’s Restaurant: the Alaska Professional Communicators monthly luncheon presents filmmaker, Mary Katzke. In 2010 Mary Katzke and her 10 year old son, Corin, sold everything and began the adventure of a lifetime. 28 countries and a world education later, Katzke and her son share their adventures in the documentary “World School.” Come hear about their travels and how the trip came together.
We hear that a good time was had by all at this week’s Poetry Parley, hosted by Hugi-Lewis Studio in Anchorage. Featured poet Sherry Eckrich was warm and the crowd was wonderful—truly standing room only. Next month’s featured poet (Wednesday, Nov. 20, 7pm) is Jocelyn Paine, who brings verse, music, dance, art, and the marquee poet Dorothy Parker. If you’d like to read Dorothy Parker, please contact poetryparley@gmail.com ASAP. Thanks to organizers Sandra Kleven, Peter Porco, and D.C. McKenzie.