For thirty years, the Minnesota Book Awards have recognized the best in writers, illlustrators, and book artists who are Minnesotans. Last Saturday evening in downtown St. Paul at the Intercontinental Hotel Riverfront, more than 800 people attended the awards ceremony emceed by Rohan Preston, theater critic for the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. With more than 250 books submitted for the annual award, a panel of judges narrowed it down to four finalists across eight categories in January. Carolyn Porter, for Marcel’s Letters, had been named a finalist in the category of Memoir and Creative Nonfiction. On Valentine’s Day, she gave a talk at the Hamline Midway Library as part of the Fireside Reading Series which highlights the work of the finalists for the Minnesota Book Awards. The awards are sponsored by Education Minnesota and presented by the Friends of the St. Paul Public Library. There are too few moments in an author’s career when you receive critical acclaim and professional affirmation. I encourage you to grab these moments when you can. When your book is a finalist in a prestigious award category, it’s appropriate to pop the champagne and celebrate. Even if it doesn’t take first place, it’s still a winner. Deeply touched to have been invited to join Carolyn Porter and her husband, Aaron, for the awards ceremony, I enjoyed the evening and the chance to meet so many literary artists in one place at one time. The full list of winners in all categories of the Minnesota Book Award can…
“Marcel’s Letters Book Launch Tonight” lit up the marquee on Washington Avenue South at Open Book in south Minneapolis last Thursday evening. The French-themed fête for the release of Marcel’s Letters exceeded all expectations. More than 300 people arrived on a hot June night to celebrate with Carolyn Porter. The reception included French pastries, books hot off the presses, and an opportunity to meet some… [Read More]
Filed Under: Carolyn Porter, Kathy Horton, Marcel Heuze, Marcel's Letters, Milkweed Books, Open Book, Target Performance Hall, Type Tuesday
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Learning how to become an editor doesn’t happen overnight. Editing isn’t a college major. Some English degree programs offer a specialization in editing and publishing, most do not. There are a handful of certificate programs in professional and graduate degree programs, but the art of editing goes far beyond knowing grammar and the basics of copyediting. A full-time job as an editor isn’t an entry-level… [Read More]
Chasing Portraits: A Great-Granddaughter’s Quest for Her Lost Art Legacy by Elizabeth Rynecki, is the story of her search for the art of her great-grandfather, which disappeared after he was killed in the Majdanek concentration camp. Moshe Rynecki’s body of work reached close to eight hundred paintings and sculptures, which he created between the First and Second World Wars in Warsaw, Poland. Recently, I interviewed… [Read More]
More than 1.7 billion people are active on Facebook. Fifty-three percent of them are female. The average Facebook user in the U.S. was 40.5 years old. These statistics help explain why it is one of the most popular social media platforms used by authors to engage with readers. But what happens when Facebook explodes with news about political scandals, natural disasters, celebrity deaths, or sports?… [Read More]
Filed Under: Best times to post, Facebook, Facebook Page, George Takei, Ira Rabois, Personal Profile
Hi. I’m Jill and I’m an editor. I enable writers. I mainline books like a junkie. I free base text into prose. I’m always jonesing for a good story. Yes, I’m hooked on grammar. I get a tremendous high when one of my writer’s books gets a starred review in Kirkus, featured in the New York Times or pops up as a question on Jeopardy…. [Read More]