Members Cathy Callen, Lawrence, and Julie A. Sellers, Atchison, had books selected this year as a "recommended title" by the Kansas National Education Association's Reading Circle Commission.
District 6 welcomes Rob! To introduce myself: I grew up in Dodge City, where my father's family has farmed and ranched since the 1920s. Before that, the family farmed near Ellinwood. My mother's people are originally from Maple Hill, on the eastern edge of the Flint Hills, and I have a lot of family in the Salina area, as well. I attended KU as an undergraduate, majoring in English, and Washington University in St. Louis, where I earned my MFA. I also have a PhD from SUNY-Buffalo and an MA from Exeter University in England. My books include a forthcoming debut novel, The Last Rancher, which will be published by Meadowlark Press this summer. I've also published two memoirs, Dragging Wyatt Earp: A Personal History of Dodge City (Swallow Press, 2013) and Headlights on the Prairie: Essays on Home (U P Kansas, 2017); and a work of criticism, Hicks, Tribes, & Dirty Realists: American Fiction after Postmodernism (U Kentucky P, 2001, 2009). Both Dragging Wyatt Earp and Headlights on the Prairie were named Kansas Notable Books, and Headlights was a finalist for the High Plains Book Award in the Creative Nonfiction Category.
I live in Indiana with my wife Alyssa Chase and a pair of ornery beagles. I teach creative writing at Indiana University in Indianapolis. Contest opens April 1, 2024, and closes June 15, 2024
Submit online at kansasauthorsclub.submittable.com Say hello to Jeffrey D. (J.D.) Cole, new member in District 6!
A writer of fiction in Harper, KS, he has published two novels with a military bent: Shadow Guard (2017) Enemy Crossing (2020) ...and he is working on a third, which he hopes to have in final draft by early summer. He is looking forward to meeting people in the KAC, and we're glad to have him join us! Congratulations to the following Kansas Authors Club members who will be published in the next issue of 105 Meadowlark Reader, shipping in May 2024.
“The Middle of Nowhere” by Alicia Troike “Between the Dead and Me” by Amanda L. Little “Friendship Forged over Fetal Pig” by Amy D. Kliewer “Last Letter” by Ann Christine Fell “A Second Meeting in Manhattan” by Barbara Waterman-Peters “Can You Tell Me How to Get to Oklahoma City?” by Beth Gulley “Waves of Intersection” by Boyd Bauman “A Retirement Revelation” by Chuck Warner “Getting Pregnant at My Age?” By Errin D. Moore “A Love Story” by James Kenyon “At the Intersection of Kansas and Anywhere in the World” by Cynthia Mines “Families and Fates of Robert Parks” by Jim Potter “The Town at the Crossroads” by Julie A. Sellers “The Sparrow’s Whistle” by Julie Stielstra “Intersecting with the Mob” by Linda Cook “Double Cousins and the Carnival Keepsake” by Roger Heineken “Not in My Plan” by Sandee Lee “Crossroads” by Thomas Holmquist “Lessons from the Intersection of Tallgrass and Tabor Valley” by Tim Keane Member Roger Heineken, of Emporia, gave his third program for the residents of Sunflower Care Homes. He talked about the development of the William Allen White Bust and Memorial in Peter Pan Park.
The recording of the March program is now available for viewing by members at this link. (Member sign-on required.) This video will be available until replaced by the March program recording. Join Us in AprilWhile creative nonfiction is oriented toward fact, there are many ways that it borrows on fiction. A “true story” still requires plot, which is organized more meaningfully than actual events. If memory fails, the author invents the truth: picturing what clothes Mom was wearing or how the kitchen smelled or what "exactly" Dad said. The best writers aren’t shy about this creative necessity. Annie Dillard depicts an insect-poisoned frog skin on the bank of Tinker Creek when, in fact, she discovered the phenomenon in a book. James McBride takes on his dead mother’s point of view, letting her speak as if she is the narrator. In this presentation, I will describe the unique relationship of fact and imagination in memoirs and personal narrative essays. Tim Bascom is the author of a novel, two collections of essays, and two prize-winning memoirs about years spent in East Africa as a youth: Chameleon Days and Running to the Fire. His essays have won editor’s prizes at The Missouri Review and Florida Review, also being selected for the anthologies Best Creative Nonfiction and Best American Travel Writing. His short fiction has appeared in journals such as Zone 3, Front Range Review, and Briar Cliff Review, where he won the 2021 Fiction Prize. Bascom received his MFA from the University of Iowa. He taught creative writing for 20 years at a college level, and he continues to teach workshops at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival. He currently directs the annual Kansas Book Festival. Topeka poet and novelist Ana Wilkins will be the featured poet at Kansas Authors Club District 1's open mic next Wednesday, March 20, at Round Table Bookstore, 826 N. Kansas Ave. in Topeka. Sign-up begins at 6 p.m., and we will start at 6:15.
Anamarie Davis-Wilkins is a birth doula, writer and poet who loves to travel as well as to read and write. Her work has been published in numerous anthologies and online magazines. She has published two collections of poetry, Reminiscence and most recently, To See My Own Words. One of her poems has been selected for publishing by the Poet Laureate of Kansas. She is currently putting the finishing touches on her second novel. Of her most recent book of poetry, Ana says, "This book of poetry describes the pain of growing up an African/American female. It questions the unsolved problems of today's society and voices poems from thoughts, experiences and afterthoughts. "They will take you through a gamut of emotions, with (the) hope you will find some connection." TLAN is hosting our first in person conference since 2019 and we would love to your feature your creativity, wisdom and experience in a conference workshop or performance.
From now until April 1st, we invite you to submit a proposal for a workshop and/or a small performance that focuses on writing, storytelling, spoken word, theater, songwriting and composing, etc. as well as bringing in other arts such as visual arts, music, dance and movement. (Don't ponder too long—our call for proposals really does close April 1, 2024). Here are 10 reasons to send us your proposal: 1. You're a writer, storyteller, musician, performer, educator, leader, or healer who knows firsthand how words save and change lives. 2. You have (or are ready to develop) a joyful, meaningful, life-enhancing workshop or performance you're ready to share with a deeply appreciative group of humans. 3. Presenting is a great way to build the kind of meaningful relationships that grow your reach. 4. You love witnessing others finding and sharing their truest words in writing or out loud. 6. Your work resonates with our conference tracks: Narrative Medicine/ Healing Stories, Social Transformation, Engaged Spirituality, Eco-TLA, and/or Right Livelihood. 7. There's no other conference quite like the Power of Words, and you want to be part of building and sustaining the community of transformative language artists. 8. You're ready to be part of a vibrant group of presenters, including writers, storytellers, performers, musicians, educators, activists, healers, health professionals, community leaders, and more from throughout (and perhaps beyond) the U.S. 8. You've been presenting workshops or performances for a while and you're ready to bring one to the Power of Words. 9. Your body and soul tell you this is the time. 10. We are your people, and you are ours. Click the text links here or the buttons below to find out more about our Sept. 26-29, 2024 Power of Words conference at beautiful Unity Village in Kansas City, MO and more about submitting a conference proposal. We look forward to reading your proposals! Kitra Cooper and Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg Power of Words Conference Co-Chairs Hazel Hart, member from Emporia, is running a free eBook promotion for Uprooted, the first book in the Hannah True series from March 17-March 20. Here is the link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09QFH6QVQ
Overcoming, the third book in the series, is up for preorder on Amazon and will go live on March 20. Overcoming: The Adventures of Hannah True, Book 3 Ann Vigola Anderson, D2 member, and artist, Sara Long, had a wonderful event for The Adventures of Bottle Calf at Volland-the place for art and music, in the Flint Hills, Sunday, March 3. Kids and grown up of all ages enjoyed the story and the art! The March program will be available to all members via Zoom and members are also invited to attend the presentation live at Emporia State University, Plumb Hall, Room 406. The Zoom link has been delivered to members via the monthly news email OR can be accessed here. (Member sign-on required) You've written and book and it's being published. Do you have a plan for what happens after you open that first box of books? Ann will take us through practical and fun ways to market your book. She will cover launch events, the day after, using Facebook, watching out for those scam emails, and having fun. Ann Vigola Anderson is a native Kansan and author of Posts of a Mid-century Kid and The Adventures of Bottle Calf. She is grounded in her sense of place and is committed to the preservation of mid-century memories, open spaces and family stories. Her writing has appeared in 105 Meadowlark Reader, a National Geographic article by Sara Smarsh (Heartland), Tennis Pro Magazine, Itty Bitty Writing Space, and she is a contributor to Facebook sites 'Topeka History Geeks' and 'Friends of the Flint Hills'. Her Facebook sites are Ann Vigola Anderson and Posts of a Mid-Century Kid. Ann is a tennis coach at Jayhawk Tennis Center. She and her husband live in Lawrence with their three rescue kitties. www.annvandersonwordpress.com Meet Larry Toerber, new member from District 5! I'm new to authoring books, with a focus on history, memoir, and nonfiction. In June of 2023, I published my first book: Exercise Tiger: The Silent D-Day “Link” of World War II. The book is a "never been told story" of how the Toerbers, an Iowa farm family in the 1940s, lost a member: son, brother, husband, and soldier, and how their families were influenced by their "Missing in Action" loss. The truths of an eerie nighttime practice before the D-Day invasion known as "Exercise Tiger" were never told to the affected families. The exercise went horribly wrong when seven German E-Boats savagely attacked the undefended American Forces aboard amphibious Landing Ship Tanks, killing my uncle Mearl and at least 749 troops. The Supreme Commander of Allied Forces, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, decided to cloak the terrible event as a National Security issue, and make sure all the information on the episode was buried with the 749 bodies. There were more American soldiers killed during Exercise Tiger than on D-Day! To this day, over 80 years later, there is speculation that the government deliberately falsified information forwarded to the next of kin. My parents and grandparents went to their graves not knowing the true story. On April 14, 2010, two military historians researching the first Naval officer fatality of WW II contacted me and set my investigative energies on an 11-year mission to explore this very secret military event. These two historians who discovered the Toerber link suggested I write the "untold story" of this secret military event. I accepted the challenge and never looked back. A link to preview the book is here: https://issuu.com/mennonitepressinc./docs/toerber-exercise_tiger; more details are here: https://www.amazon.com/Exercise-Tiger-Silent-D-Day-World-ebook/dp/B0CK2Z5H69. During my Exercise Tiger journey, I was employed by the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Railroad Administration, traveling throughout the continental United States conducting investigations into railroad accidents, incidents, and safety concerns. I and my beautiful bride Zelma raised our family and still reside in rural Harvey County near Newton, Kansas. Glad to have you join us, Larry!
Meet District 1's Anamarie Davis-Wilkins (Ana Wilkins for short): a proud mom, grandmother, Birth Doula, writer of fiction and short stories and poet, who lives in Topeka, Kansas. She has enjoyed reading, writing, and art since childhood and continues to do so. She has published three books, one novel and two books of poetry, the recent one released 2024, entitled To See My Own World. She recently had a piece published by the Poet Laureate of Kansas and numerous anthologies and online magazines. She is an active participant in Speak Easy Poets of Topeka, The Sunflower Poetry Society of Kansas, National Federation of State Poetry Societies. We're glad to have you join us, Ana!
Save the Date! March 16, 1:30 PM CST The March program will be available to all members via Zoom and members are also invited to attend the presentation live at Emporia State University, Plumb Hall, Room 406. The Zoom link will be delivered via the monthly news email OR can be accessed here. (Member sign-on required) You've written and book and it's being published. Do you have a plan for what happens after you open that first box of books? Ann will take us through practical and fun ways to market your book. She will cover launch events, the day after, using Facebook, watching out for those scam emails, and having fun.
Ann Vigola Anderson is a native Kansan and author of Posts of a Mid-century Kid and The Adventures of Bottle Calf. She is grounded in her sense of place and is committed to the preservation of mid-century memories, open spaces and family stories. Her writing has appeared in 105 Meadowlark Reader, a National Geographic article by Sara Smarsh (Heartland), Tennis Pro Magazine, Itty Bitty Writing Space, and she is a contributor to Facebook sites 'Topeka History Geeks' and 'Friends of the Flint Hills'. Her Facebook sites are Ann Vigola Anderson and Posts of a Mid-Century Kid. Ann is a tennis coach at Jayhawk Tennis Center. She and her husband live in Lawrence with their three rescue kitties. www.annvandersonwordpress.com February 2024: An interview was posted on Spillwords.com where I answered questions about my writing. Carrot Ranch and the Adirondack Center for Writing posted four of my responses to their weekly writing prompts. Poetry Super Highway posted my poem: 'Grass Knows,' along with my designation of Poet of the Week for Feb. 12-18. MasticadoresUSA posted, 'Original Homestead,' an account of my trip last summer to find my great grandfather's homestead in South Dakota, the very last paragraph of which mentions the Baha'i position on agriculature being the basis of civilization. All during the month, in a dozen towns across northeast Kansas, in various public places, free copies were available of the February issue of Kaw Valley Senior Monthly, with the headline on the cover that I research history of the Baha'i Faith in Kansas. https://seniormonthly.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SeniorMonthly-February2024.pdf Congratulations, Duane!
Of Interest to Kansas writersLocation: Downs, Kansas Date: April 26-27, 2024 Submitted by Kansas Authors Club Member Sheryl Brenn.
The Intimacy of Spoons, my newest book of poetry, is now out—wahoo! It’s been sixteen years since Burning Heaven, my previous book of poetry, was published, so I’m thrilled to hold this new one in hand and share it with you. And the cover is gorgeous, thanks to Suzanne Stryk.
Here’s a description: The Intimacy of Spoons explores the many metaphors of the spoon: from love and marriage to the spoon of a grave that holds our bodies; from the darkness of loss and night, where “the Big Dipper is nothing but / the oldest spoon pointing us home”; to the darkness of lungs transformed into art. The poems cover a wide variety of topics—cultural, political, familial, and natural—and always, underlying these poems is the song of birds—with broken wings or clear voices, avian muses filling our forests now or long gone. Like the spoons we use every day, the poems of The Intimacy of Spoons return us to everyday stories and objects, common yet profound. Nickole Brown author of To Those Who Were Our First Gods says this and more about it: “…each poem a spoonful of medicine to administer healing to our broken world.” For more early reviews, as well as event details and other information, please visit www.jim-minick.com. To celebrate, I’ve lined up a slew of events. Come if you can—it’d be grand to connect. Events: (All events are free and open to the public unless stated otherwise.) --Feb 29, 6:00 PM Wytheville Lib. Wytheville Lib FOL. --March 6, 6:00 PM City Lights Bookstore, Sylva, NC. Joint reading with Darnell Arnoult and Bernard Clay. --Appalachian Studies Conference, March 7-9, at Western Carolina U. (Registration required). --March 14, 7:00, Blacksburg Books. --March 26, 2:00, Augusta University, Without Warning Reading/Lecture. --March 26, 7:00, The Book Tavern, Augusta, GA, The Intimacy of Spoons Reading. --April 4-6, Tennessee Mountain Writers Conference. I’ll be teaching 3 workshops. (Registration required). --April 7, 3:00. Abingdon, VA, Washington County Library Sunday with Friends. With Linda Parsons and others. --July 13, 2:00-4:00. Online. Poetry Society of Tennessee, Reading and Workshop. Annual membership of $25 to PST required. Join for this and many more benefits. --Sept 6-7. Carolina Mtns Lit Fest. --Oct. 26-27. Southern Festival of Books. Recent News and Media: --Without Warning: The Tornado of Udall, Kansas, my most recent book of nonfiction came out in May 2023. Last fall, it won the Martin Kansas History Book Award from the Kansas Authors Club, a huge honor. --Without Warning also was reviewed favorably by Chapter 16. --The literary journal from East Tennessee, Appalachian Place, featured several poems from Spoons. --This fine magazine also published an interview about Without Warning. --Several other poems from The Intimacy of Spoons have been published online. These include: --The Beat Podcast featured a few of my poems along with “The Oven Bird,” a favorite Robert Frost poem. --“Why Birds?” – Salvation South --“Good Dirt” (and other poems) - Cutleaf --“Whale Light” - The Ekphrastic Review --“Jim and James Ponder Enough” and “Spangled” – Still: The Journal. --“To Spoon,” “Earth Diving,” “Ode to a Basket,” and “Hawk Says Finally”--New River Review And I’m super honored to have poems included in several anthologies: --The Southern Poetry Anthology, Vo. IX: Virginia from Texas A&M University Press. --Wanderings I and Virginia, both anthologies published this coming year by NatureCulture in support of land conservation. --Southern Voices: 50 Contemporary Poets from Lamar University Literary Press, again coming out later this year. More Miscellaneous News --Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel, a literary magazine I help edit, is open for submissions. Our website is down, so for more info contact me at this email. --On June 21, Wytheville’s Chautauqua Creative Writing Day will feature the great writer, David Joy. It’ll be a fine time so come if you can. 10:00 AM at St. Paul UMC. Gratitude and Help: The Intimacy of Spoons has been in the making for 16 years, which also means that many people helped in its creation. A huge thanks to all. The acknowledgements section is rightfully long, and hopefully I didn’t miss anyone. There are still many ways you can help in the book’s success. Specifically: --If you’re on social media, spread the word and post about the book. Reviews on Goodreads, Amazon, and elsewhere make a difference. --If you’re a writer, podcaster, journalist, reviewer, radio/TV host, etc. interested in this book, let’s talk. --If you are part of a school, bookstore, library, museum, etc. and interested in hosting an event like a reading, conversation, slideshow, etc., again, let’s talk. --Same with book clubs. If you’re part of one, suggest this book. I’ve had terrific conversations via Zoom with book clubs all over the country. --Ask your local libraries (public and/or university) to order the book. Lastly, these email newsletters are very occasional, but even if they still clog up your inbox too much and you no longer want to receive them, I understand. If so, please respond by adding REMOVE to the subject line, without deleting the rest of the subject line. For all your kindness and help, thank you. The hepatica, one of the first signs of spring here in Virginia, are just leafing out in the woods—I wish you a life full of such beauty. All best, Jim
D6 Secretary and Treasurer Karis Ens worked recently with D6 President Melody J. Cole to help bring her newest book - the latest installment in her A Girl and Her Cat series - to the world. Cole worked as an editor for Ens, who shared more about their working relationship and experiences in a recent YouTube video.
An Invitation to Volland: Ann Vigola Anderson and Sara Long, The Adventures of Bottle Calf2/21/2024
Upcoming at Volland _________________________________ Ann Anderson & Sara LongThe Adventures of Bottle Calf Sunday, March 3, 2024 Doors open | 1pm Reading & Presentation | 2pm Admission | Free Reservations appreciated. Artist Sara Long and author Ann Anderson, a long-time friend of Volland, come to Volland on March 3rd, 2024 to share their latest work The Adventures of Bottle Calf, published by Meadowlark Press! Anderson, a specialist in warming hearts and delightful fun, will present a reading from her new book and Long will share a few of her paintings that were created especially for The Adventures of Bottle Calf. Rumor has it there will be a special Bottle Calf song for all to enjoy! In 2020, Anderson teamed up with local artist and dear friend Sara Long to share the story of Bottle Calf, who was born during an early spring blizzard at Anderson’s grandfather’s farm. For two years Anderson and Long worked in tandem, writing and illustrating a read-aloud book for all ages to enjoy. The Adventures of Bottle Calf builds off the success of Anderson's Posts of A Mid-Century Kid, a book of short stories written her childhood, which included time in Volland. Prints, puzzles, kids’ tees and kids’ activity kits will be available at the gallery and at saralongart.com. Conversation and refreshments will round out a most pleasant afternoon. Bring your kids, grandkids, and neighbors and come join Ann Vigola Anderson, Sara Long, and Bottle Calf at Volland! Ann Vigola Anderson is a member from District 2 and currently serves as our state secretary. If you have news of writing events that would be of interest to all Kansas Authors Club members, or if you are a member (dues current) who would like to announce an achievement, please submit your news via this form. |
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