Meet Kelly Dahlen

Posted on April 8, 2012 by

We’d like to introduce you to Kelly Dahlen, our newest person to be profiled.   

Tell us a little about yourself:
I’m from all over the United States. Moving so much throughout my life, books were my companions. Not that I retreated into them, but more that I was having so many real-life adventures and new experiences that I was eager to continue them.  Books gave me the ability to continue to sate my desire for adventure. As long as I can remember,

I’ve always scribbled on scraps and kept dozens of notebooks around. I love writing; it’s a craving in me that I have to fulfill. I would love to be published someday, but the fulfillment for me comes from getting the words on the page. In all my writing and reading, I’ve become very aware of how words work and how they don’t (work). I love playing with ‘what if’, and helping mentor authors in bringing out the fullness of their work. Developmental/content editing is something I’ve just always done, in my circles of influence, and now I can finally put a name to it.

 
What has your experience been thus far (interacting with other writers?):
I grew up reading John Bunyan, C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, and Hannah Hunard; so I have been steeped in allegory all of my life. That is where I have found my niche as a writer. As a mentor and developmental editor, I enjoy sitting down with authors and looking at their work.  Asking “what are you trying to say”, and “how are you trying to say it.”  These are strengths that I enjoy working using to help fellow writers.

How have you participated in Minnesota’s literary community thus far?
I had a to-do list when I moved up here a year ago – stock up on groceries, get a P.O. Box, get a library card. :) Additionally, I just finished a nine month marketing internship at Consortium Book Sales and Distribution. The mentoring and editing I currently do is mostly long-distance, so I am looking to expand my local network and see where I can plug in and use my strengths to help others in the community up here.

Why do you attend the tweet up?  
Rachel Zugschwert and Heather Hart brought me to the Tweet Up, so that I could expand beyond the role of “Marketing Intern” and get to see a bigger slice of the industry. I’ve loved the experience, and want to continue to learn from and meet people who share the same passion that I have. 

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Just a reminder our next Tweet Up is this week!

April 11th, at Bin Wine Bar!  We’re excited to be back in St. Paul for this next literary get-together.   We’ll be there from 5 pm to 7 pm. 

Also note that we’re taking our tweet up is going to hosted by Common Good Books!  The Common Good Publishing Tweet Up is on May 5th, from 9:30 am to 11:30 am.  Come check out the new bookstore location for this special Saturday morning gathering.

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Meet Matt Mauch

Posted on February 21, 2012 by

Why you should meet Matt Mauch: “I am a guy who comes from a place where there was no poetry (like, literally), who discovered it in college. I’m a guy who hates the way we discourage study of the humanities on a national and economic level nowadays, because post-secondary study in the humanities literally saved me from a sucky life, “sucky” meaning “one in which I had no passion that supplanted what one usually thinks of when one thinks of a ‘successful’ life in the U.S.”

I’m a guy who wouldn’t be comfortable if I belonged to the 1 percent, but still think we the 99 percent need to rise up Wellstone-style. I’ve always loved to read books. Being part of the 99 percent means I don’t have as much disposable time as the 1 percent to read them.

I’m a guy who’s written a lot—nonfiction and poetry mostly. I used to make children’s books for school libraries and came away from scared as hell for what’s being done to the kids of the U.S. We lie to them, and as kid if I hated anything it was being lied to. Children’s publishing is a racket. I both got into it and out of it because of that. Poetry is where is spend much of my reading and almost all of my writing time now.

I don’t know that it’s new, idea-wise, but I think the Great Twin Cities Poetry read, which I organize and host, brings together a lot of poets and poetic schools and influences, etc., who/that wouldn’t otherwise be brought together. I hope that happens anyway. I also like how the GTCPR poets, whose work is published in the Poetry City, USA series, select their own poems rather than having them selected by an editor. That’s a dynamic I’m glad to champion.”

Who is Matt Mauch?: “I teach and write and read and host and encourage in it. I like the musician Tom Morello’s ‘whatever it takes’ motto; that’s pretty much how I approach all things ‘poetry’ in the Twin Cities.”  One of his well-known contributions is the the The Great Twin Cities Poetry Read (GTCPR) - returning a 3rd year on April 21, 2012.  It’s a live reading event featuring poets from in and outside the Twin Cities and beyond.  Afterwards, the poems read are anthologized in the Poetry City, USA series.

Thoughts on the the soon-to-be Leap Year Tweet Up: Why not come to the Tweet Up? It’s a place where I’ll find as like-minded people as I’ll find anywhere. I think that’s a good thing. Plus I like Joe’s Garage.

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Thanks so much Matt!  And I hope that everyone who wants to continue to support our local writing community will pencil in the date for The Great Twin-Cities Poetry Read.  Otherwise, we’ll see you at the Tweet Up Next week!

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Meet Hazel & Wren

Posted on February 20, 2012 by

Who are you? Where are you from, what is your interest in books, writing  & publishing?

We are Amanda Wray and Melissa Wray, sisters and cofounders of Hazel & Wren, a website full of resources for writers and readers in all types of literary mischief. We grew up on a sheep farm in the bluffs and forests of southeastern Minnesota in a house stacked with books.

Melissa has always wanted to be a writer, a poet specifically. She spent many angst-y teenage years finding her voice, did the whole English major thing, and found her passion for publishing through her editorship of the U of MN’s undergrad lit mag, Ivory Tower, and later, as an intern for Milkweed Editions. She still writes for pleasure, in addition to gads of reading along the way.

Amanda wanted to be a writer growing up, but then she got sidetracked by art and graphic design in college. She still writes (short fiction is her genre-of-choice), and reads when she isn’t working (which feels like never these days).




What is a new perspective, discussion, idea, etc…you’re adding to the figurative melting pot?

Hazel & Wren is founded on the idea of community, and fostering conversations within that community. We host monthly online writing workshops that we call “Open Mics” that are a unique way to engage writers and give feedback from writers all over the region and country.

How have you participated and/or contributed (or want to) in Minnesota’s literary community?

We want to create a safe community for writers to get feedback on their work, inspire them through weekly writing prompts and interviews with other writers and editors, provide resources for furthering the publication (or whatever their end goal may be) of their work, and curate deadline calendars and other sources to help. We’re based in the Twin Cities, so everything we do has roots here in Minnesota. Our upcoming first-ever in-person open mic, called Words at WAM, is a direct contribution/participation in the TC literary community by providing a mic and an audience with whom writers can share their work.


Why do you come to the Tweet Up?

Because we love Dawn. Like, a lot. And because Dawn has created, again, a space for a community of literary-minded people to get together face-to-face (WHOA!) and shake hands, start conversations and relationships, and support each other. It’s a splendid thing.


Any future events we should know about?

COME TO WORDS AT WAM FEBRUARY 22!!! (But seriously. Please do.) Details here. 


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Thanks so so much Amanda and Melissa! I believe many of us from the Tweet Up will be WAM this week (Dawn can’t wait to see you too!) – For anyone who’s on the fence about attending, all of us at the MN Publishing Tweet Up can’t emphasize enough that the WAM event is going to be a special experience.  So come and check it out!

Last but not least, the Leap Year MN Publishing Tweet Up almost here.  2/29/12 – Joe’s Garage, 5 to 7 pm. 

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Meet Linda White

Posted on February 20, 2012 by

Linda White is a true book lover and enthusiast with years of experience and insight into the publishing world. She ”loves the chance to read a book before it is out” and encourages reading no matter the platform. When giving a review Linda believes “it is important to mean what you say and to be straightforward.”  For aspiring authors Linda offers this advice: “Match your expectations with your efforts and research your competition. Find out the similar titles that exist.”

Linda has reviewed books since 1992 and takes it very seriously, describing the process as working with an author’s “baby.” Linda path began with acquisitions and promotion at a small publishing house in Saint Paul, shortly after completing her degree in English from St. Thomas. Since then, Linda has been a production manager at a publishing farmhouse in Texas (which also had sheep,) a communications director, teacher, proctor, and publicist.

She considers herself a “lifelong learner,” which led to the launch of BookMania  in 2010.  “I didn’t want to promote things I didn’t like” and “I wanted to be engaged in the community.”  This work of love was the direct result of a desire to not necessarily promote books she didn’t like, as well as a desire to futher engage the reading (and writing) community.  Though self-employment and freelance work can be challenging, it is because she is self-employed that Linda has the freedom to choose the books she reviews, the events she promotes, and the projects she manages while being active in the Twin Cities literary scene. One of Linda’s favorite projects in the Twin Cities is the Minneapolis Books Examiner column.

What is a new perspective, discussion, idea, etc… that you’ll be adding to the figurative melting pot?

“I am hoping in the coming year to get more serious about my own writing. I’ve got a series on book tourism that I’m working on for another blogger, but I would also like to publish – at long last – some of my own essays and poems. That’s always been a goal but somehow it always gets shoved to the back burner.”

Why do you come to the tweet up? “The tweet-up, well, that’s something I liked the sound of the first time I heard about it, and I’ve known several people who’ve gone and they always have good things to say.  Then I started getting to know Dawn and Eric writing blog entries, and I thought, well, I would like to meet them face to face, especially if I’m going to be writing for them. So it became kind of a top priority for me, although I am trying to stay home more lately to actually get some work done. But the Tweet-ups are a great idea, and I had a blast at the last one!”

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Thanks so much Linda!  Just a reminder to everyone that the next Tweet Up is 2/29/12 at Joe’s Garage  in Minneapolis.  We hope to see you there! 

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Meet Amanda Lavoie

Posted on February 12, 2012 by

Amanda Lavoie is a newcomer to the MN Tweet Up. Amanda shared the perspective on being a literature major, and her love of doing comic art.   And of course how the world of literature is being impacted by the internet.  

Comics: I’ve always liked to draw. Last year I started reading a webcomic called Questionable Content (HIGHLY recommend it too, but beware as it’s a major time-sucker) and since I graduated I’ve had a little spare time and a notion to give cartoons a try myself. The only one [comic] I’ve completed is a political cartoon inspired by the MLK Jr Day debate and Mitt Romney’s above-the-rules attitude. The actual comic and characters I’m trying to develop are based on the tattoo shop where I work. It’s taking much more time than I’d expected, trying to get consistency as well as different points of view.
 

English Literature Major: I had a great time at the U (of Minnesota). There is obviously a great deal of literature to learn about, but what I found more interesting were the living, breathing debates that underlie everything I learned. Some of the discussions were about “literature” itself. It has been a hot topic for the last twenty years or so. It’s what people call a “problem”: we are trying to teach and learn a discipline whose object is becoming increasingly difficult to define.

Is literature Yeats and Shakespeare and Williams? To what extent should we modify the English canon to include women writers, writers of color, authors from colonial or post-colonial nations, oral stories, etc. It’s said we’re living in a postmodern, post-colonial, post-structuralist literary world, where definitions flop over and circumscription is less and less acceptable. Everything just seems to be up in the air, including “genre”, which I find endlessly intriguing.

My interest in this discussion and many, many others led me to take many classes having to do with literary and cultural theory; and help found an Undergraduate Theory Reading Group. We paired with the Graduate Theory Reading Group and put on a series of seminars last semester. Someone dubbed them “Skypinars” because we got professors from around the world to discuss their work with us via Skype. That was pretty rad.

Now that I’ve graduated, I have more time to interact with the people who are making language happen in exciting ways. The book launch I went to with Matthew Gold and Douglas Armato hit a few points that I think are up-and-coming for the literary community. The book is sort of a snapshot, essays written by people who are active in discussions on and about the internet, via blog posts, Twitter, and other venues.

I say “snapshot” because due to the very nature of the internet those discussions are constantly in a state of becoming and development. A central point is the bringing-into-question of traditional scholarship, which is a slow-going process involving scholarly journals and blind-peer reviews, and eventually (with skill and luck) publication in some print journal, which may eventually get scanned into an online database. It is a debate to be heeded for anyone interested in the future of scholarship.

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Our next gathering is  on Feb. 29th!  If it’s not evident already, we have an interesting, smart group of folks in who attend the MN Publishing Tweet Up.  And we always love meeting new faces. 

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A Leap Year Tweet Up

Posted on February 5, 2012 by

Yes, your eyes are reading those words.  It seems our next tweet up is on Feb. 29th this month.  We hope to see you there! 

The likelihood of another MN Publishing Tweet Up occuring on Leap Day won’t happen for another 4 years, so come and join us. 

Time: 5 to 7 pm (swing in anytime)
Place: Joe’s Garage
Date: Feb. 29th

 

 

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Meet Patrick Nathan

Posted on January 12, 2012 by

Patrick Nathan is a local writer with a habit of stretching himself thin. In addition to writing fiction, he maintains Mill City Bibliophile–a blog on all things local and literary–and wears the hat of Managing Editor at Xenith–a literary webzine originally launched in 1997.

The hat, it should be said, is quite stylish. In the summer of 2011, while having drinks at Psycho Suzi’s a friend asked Nathan about this “mentorship thing,” to which he replied, “Oh, the Loft Mentor Series. I only applied to that because I could. I won’t get in.”

Two days later he received a congratulatory phone call.  Today he barely recognizes the writer who made such self-depracating denials. Follow him on Twitter at @patricknathan.

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And of course. . . .

A reminder too that the 1st MN Publishing Tweet Up of 2012 is next week!  Bin Wine Bar, Jan. 18th,  5 to 7 pm.  We look forward to reconvening with everyone, and kicking in the new literary year together in style.

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Meet Rob Callahan, and of course Jan 18th (We’re back!)

Posted on December 26, 2011 by

by Dennis ZerwasOne of the prime reasons the MN Publishing Tweet Up was established surrounds the need for anyone who makes publishing happen – to be able to convene casually.   A chance to be surrounded by fellow writers and publishing types sans the confines of a business or writing conference set up.  To simply enjoy being in the presence of other creative, bookish types.  Our next tweet up is Jan. 18, 2012, at Bin Wine Bar.  We’d love to see you there!

In the meantime, we have new goals for 2012.  The 1st is to share the stories of many the interesting folks who attend the bi-monthly tweet up.  Our hope is that this will inspire new people to attend, as it’s always a pleasure meeting new folks – and a chance to build an even stronger network in our local writing community.  Our first profile (a few days before the  new year starts) is Rob Callahan. Enjoy!

 
Rob’s Bio (from the  Rockstar Storytellers):
Rob Callahan is a handsome Minneapolis-based writer whose work has appeared in Cracked, l’etoile Magazine and Secrets of the City. His published works of fiction include the 2008 novel Hellbound Snowballs and the 2011 chapbook Grave Whisperer. When not slinging idioms with the Rockstar Storytellers, he can be found posing as a professional science fiction writer and humorist. A local newspaper article once called him a “nerd icon” while referring to a popular local musician as “crushworthy”, but that was probably just a print error. They clearly meant it the other way round. (The Rockstar Storytellers do not endorse Rob Callahan’s interpretation of certain facts, namely these.)

“Sci-Fi Tuesdays predates me. Beth Hammarlund and Kate Iverson of l’etoile started it at some point in 2008, I think. I heard about it and started attending in 2009. At the same time I was attending Dessa’s pub quiz on Mondays.

Two important things happened that made me want to run a pub quiz: First, Dessa quit doing hers to go tour, or record an album, or write a book or whatever the devil it is the kids are doing these days… Most of the other bar trivias in town were cookie cutter stuff at the time, so there was an open niche.

In 2010 I quit working at a miserable job because, frankly, I was making enough to pay my bills as a writer. Still, I had some doubts about the long-term prospects of that, so I talked the folks who run Clubhouse Jager into giving me a trivia night that would keep some regular cash in my pocket, just in case. Since the crowd who were already coming in on Tuesdays were pretty cool with me, we started scheduling the quiz for every Tuesday before the film.

After a while, I started suggesting films based on how easy they were to write a night’s worth of bar trivia around, and eventually Kate just offered me the reigns. I’ve thought about quitting before, but there isn’t another gathering like it. To be honest, most of the patrons don’t even watch the movie unless it’s something that really stands out. Say, a classic that was never released on digital media or is out-of-print.

I have a book to get out by March, and Allegra has managed to talk me into doing a Fringe Festival show again, but after the book is out I would really like to settle down and work on a fantasy RPG for mobile devices. I’ve been outlining some code here and there, just tinkering with simple digital world building, and I like what can be done there.

I’ll probably just end up writing some more, though. I seem to have this need to write. As is evident, I’m sure.”

More information on Sci-Fi Tuesdays can be found HERE
Rob author page: Banthanese Books
The Rockstar Storytellers – Learn more HERE

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SAVE THE DATES!

Posted on October 13, 2011 by

If anyone even managed to attend 50% of the book events in the Twin Cities in September, all of us from the MN Publishing Tweet-Up want to give you a high-five.  As one of our members stated (at the 3rd event I saw him at in 1.5 week timespan) “there’s something almost every day this month” – and he was correct.

Now that all of us have recovered from such a fun, energetic start to the Fall – here are two events that we’d love to see you at.

October 25, 2011 – WORLD PREMIERE SCREENINGS by Motionpoems, Inc. 

Location: Target Performance Hall, Open Book, 1011 Washington Ave S., Minneapolis

Times:  Two free public screenings at 6 pm & 8 pm

Hosts: Special guest David Lehman will join Todd Boss and Angella Kassube to host.

Sponsors:  The Minnesota Center for Book Arts, Loft Literary Center, Friends of the Hennepin County Library, The Twin Cities Film Society, Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, and Rimon: The Minnesota Jewish Arts Council.

Motionpoems will be releasing the film companion  to Best American Poetry 2011, a new, interactive model for sharing poetry in short-form digital content.  There will be a dozen short film adaptations of poems from Best American Poetry 2011 (published by Scribner); therefore making these adaptations a free digital companion to “poetry’s most popular annual anthology.” It’s hoped that these short films will take a life of their own in the social media realm.

Motionpoems, Inc., is a 3-year-old nonprofit poetry film initiative in Minneapolis, co-founded by Kassube and Boss.  The mission is to broaden the audience for poetry by turning great contemporary poems into short films.

“Poetry has a reputation that makes people less likely to sample it,” says Boss. “But when a poem is presented in film, people can bypass their assumptions about poetry and adopt more fluid expectations.”

Some interesting facts:

·         Motionpoems completed a $15,000 Kickstarter.com fundraising campaign in June 2011, and received its first grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board this year.

·         Motionpoems has plans to expand its capacity and reach, with major publishing, education, distribution, and library partnerships in the works.

·         As far as we’re concerned, this is beyond cool.  In this day and age, taking poetry to a new interactive level is a great way to expand the reach and power of this creative art.

Here’s a little snippet of what to expect. . .

The poem “Andrew Wyeth, Painter, Dies at 91” by L.S. Klatt was published in BELIEVER the November/December 2010 issue.  It will put into motion by video artist Tom Jacobsen.  Here’s a sneak preview of one of the images you’ll be seeing.

 

For more information on the Motionpoems Screenings: Contact Todd Boss 651/644-1566 or Angella Kassube 952/943-1711

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And as for the other must-attend event:

THE MN PUBLISHING TWEET UP – It’s Back Nov. 9th 

We’re all very excited about it, as last month’s was one of the best by far.  We’ll be back in Minneapolis this time, at Joe’s Garage.  So please try to come by.   

Time: 5 pm to 7 pm (swing in anytime!)

Location: Joe’s Garage, Minneapolis, MN

Please try to RSVP on Facebook!

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Publicity for Authors class is suitable for everyone

Posted on September 5, 2011 by

By Linda White

Many writers dream of the day when they will sign a contract with a publisher and their book will magically appear on store shelves all over the country, their publicist will field calls from producers on top shows and they will be sent on a whirlwind tour of bookstores and lecture halls from coast to coast.

Ahem. This is hardly the case any more. Unless you are Anne Lamott. Or no. Even if you are Anne Lamott. The publishers simply don’t have the manpower to field all the requests, plan the events, and get all the online stuff done that will make the book a household name, and make every bookseller buy and handsell many copies. They may do some of that, but for most titles, they will only do a small portion of those activities.

And if you are the unlucky author who ends up on the B list, you will be left wondering what, if anything, is going on with your book’s marketing. You can ask. You can find out specifically what their plans are. And then it’s up to you to fill in the gaps.

Now, if you are self-published, of course you know that you have to do all of this yourself. After all, no one wants a garage or basement full of boxes of books. And even with POD and e-books, you still want someone to read what you took the time to write.

“But what do I do?” you ask. Whether you are self-published, publishing with a traditional publishing model, or something in between, there are things you should know and things you can do to make sure your book gets out there.

An upcoming workshop will cover many of the basics, and will speak to many of the concerns you have for your specific book. It will cover the basic timelines, elements and expectations of a publicity campaign, so you will have an idea of what the possibilities are. This will cover broadcast, print and online media, including some tips on social media, websites and blogs.

This is a very hands-on workshop, which will take into account the books (or authors) in the room. It will speak to the specific needs of those titles and the experiences of those authors. This will include a popular brainstorming session at the end, which everyone finds very exciting. Authors get tons of ideas for what they can do for their book that they can use as soon as they walk out the door.

One thing is certain: it is never too early to start. So even if this book is still merely an idea, a twinkle in your eye, get the scoop on publicity and find out what to do when, so that you can be sure all the bases are covered.

For anyone interested in working in the publishing field in the area of publicity, or who just wants to know more about how that function operates, this is a good workshop to attend. One will will also learn what a publicist does, and the kinds of skills that are necessary and what is the most important information for a publicist to have to do the job well.

The workshop will be held on Saturday, September 17 at The Loft in Open Book, Downtown Minneapolis. The workshop starts at 9:00 am and ends at 1:00 pm.  Anyone interested in attending should sign up early; class size is limited to ten so that each author will get personal attention to their book or book idea.

Offered by:  The Loft Literary Center.
Cost: $62   You need to pre-register by September 17 with The Loft.

Register by September 10 to avoid class cancellation. Register online at www.loft.org in Adult Classes/Writing Realities.

Instructor: Linda White

Linda White brings over 15 years of experience in the publishing industry. She has worked in editorial, marketing and publicity capacities. She currently runs BookMania, www.bookmaniaonline.com, offering book services to publishers and authors. She especially enjoys talking with authors about the possibilities for their books.

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