Round Up of News & Events - 49 Writers, Inc.

Since its founding, the Machetanz Art Festival at Mat-Su College has been a highlight of early summer. Now in its fifth year, the festival invited 49 Writers to partner with them to bring a literary component to the program. The result is an authors’ panel discussion followed by three workshops on various aspects of craft. So come up to the Valley and check it out. Preregistration is available online.

Happy writing
Morgan

EVENTS IN ANCHORAGE

Events at the UAA Bookstore

June 10, 4-6pm. Poet Tom Sexton presents A Ladder of Cranes.

June 15, 4-6pm. Author and Activist Chris Dixon presents Another Politics: Talking Across Today’s Transformative Movements

Bestselling , Newbery Award winning author Kate DiCamillo, the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, will visit Anchorage on June 11-12. She will make presentations at four local libraries. Click here for the schedule.

EVENTS AROUND ALASKA

SOUTHCENTRAL, MAT-SU, KENAI PENINSULA

Author events at Fireside Books, Palmer:

Robert H. Armstrong, Friday, May 29 at 11:00am. Bob Armstrong has pursued a career in Alaska as a biologist, naturalist, and nature photographer since 1960. He is the author of the best-selling book Nature of Southeast Alaska and numerous other popular and scientific books and articles on the natural history of the state. He lives in Juneau, Alaska.
Timothy Bateson, Saturday, May 30 at 11:30am. Timothy’s short story appears in the new anthology: .Across the Karman Line.

Machetanz Art Festival writing panel and workshops, June 6, at the Mat-Su College campus. Preregistration required.

Writers Panel: Is This the Golden Age of Alaskan Writing? 9-10:30am. Panelists: Deb Vanasse, Don Rearden, Julie LeMay
Poetry: The Mysterious and the Obscure. 10:30-12pm, Instructor: Julie Hungiville LeMay
Unleashing the Screenwriter Within. 1-2:30pm. Instructor: Don Rearden
Saturday, June 6—1:00-2:30 PM
Windows on Your Characters: Strategies for Compelling Fiction. 2:30-4pm. Instructor: Deb Vanasse
Spoken Word Poetry Slam Workshop for High School. 6-7:30pm. Instructor: Trey Josey

Kachemak Bay Writers’ Conference, June 12-16. 2015’s keynote speaker is Andre Dubus III, and there are a host of amazing writers on the faculty this year (as there are every year). This year’s post-conference workshop at Tutka Bay Lodge, Finding the Geography of Our Work, will be led by 2014 Kingsley Tufts Award winner Afaa Weaver, June 16-18,

SOUTHEAST

Bestselling author Kate DiCamillo, the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, will visit Juneau on June 9-10 to help the Juneau Public Libraries kick off their Summer Reading Program. A wide range of free events have been planned. More information can be found on the JPL website at www.juneau.org/library or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/libraryevents.

INTERIOR

The Art of the Essay, June 26-28, with Frank Soos, is a three-day intense class in reading and writing personal essays. The essay as practiced from the beginning of the form up to the present day is the most open to experimentation and innovation of all the commonly practiced forms. They will explore that range by discussing a variety of essay forms to consider how an essay can be made. Details and registration info at Northern Susitna Institute, Talkeetna AK.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR WRITERS

CONFERENCES, RETREATS & RESIDENCIES

The Achievement and Assessment Institute (AAI) will be holding two writing workshops in Alaska this summer, one in Anchorage in June and the other in Fairbanks in July. They develop material for the Alaska Measures of Progress as well as other reading assessments, and participation from Alaskan writers helps ensure quality passages that relate to Alaskan students. Writers can apply to either workshop by filling out a brief survey. They’d like to have a mix of educators and established writers as well as students in these workshops and will be selecting applicants based on the strength of their writing samples and background.

The Tutka Bay Writers Retreat is half full. Don’t miss out on a fantastic retreat featuring two outstanding guest instructors, Ann Eriksson and Gary Geddes! September 11-13 at the fabulous Tutka Bay Lodge.

Kachemak Bay Writers’ Conference, June 12-16, 2015 in Homer: keynote speaker is Andre Dubus III, and there are a host of amazing writers on the faculty this year (as there are every year).

Last Frontier Theatre Conference, June 14-20, in Valdez, features new work by playwrights from around the country. There are evening performances, 10-minute play slams, even a fringe festival. The deadline is past for play submissions, but they may still need actors.

Wrangell Mountains Writing Workshop presents RiverSong with Frank Soos, Michelle McAfee, Robin Child, and Nancy Cook, July 22-27, McCarthy to Chitina. The Wrangell Mountains Writing Workshop is pleased to partner with McCarthy River Tours & Outfitters to host a six-day, five-night adventure in the fabulous Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. This year’s workshop will feature poet and essayist, Frank Soos, who is currently serving as Alaska’s Writer Laureate, joined by accomplished singer-songwriter Michelle McAfee, backcountry banjo-diva Robin Child, and workshop director Nancy Cook. Together they will explore the ways wilderness can help inspire songs, stories, poems, and essays. Activities include an opening reading/performance and craft sessions in the comfort of the Wrangell Mountains Center’s facility in McCarthy, followed by three nights and four days of creative inquiry along the Kennicott, Nizina, Chitina, and Copper Rivers. Space is limited to eight student writers/ songwriters.

Alaska Writers Guild & SCBWI Annual Writer’s Conference, September 19-20, Anchorage. Early registration starts May 2015. www.AlaskaWritersGuild.com