Look for her book, Torment (The Dragons of Tenghua, Book One), in paper or as an e-book, HERE or HERE.
Say hello to Mari Dietz, new member from Dodge City (District 7)! Mari teaches full-time, so writes when she has the spare time. She mainly writes fantasy, and just had a book release this week. "After a long writing dry spell," she says, "it is wonderful to finally publish again." Look for her book, Torment (The Dragons of Tenghua, Book One), in paper or as an e-book, HERE or HERE. Welcome to KAC, Mari! We're happy to have you.
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Frog Joy is a collection of free verse and micro poems that point to the beauty in everyday moments. Beth Gulley is making her own world without a fence. Sometimes readers join her as she stains her fingers on low hanging mulberries. Other times the readers chase her along the trail and try to escape the rising flood waters. Underneath it all, a chorus of frog calls, like fingers running along the edge of a comb, echo in the damp night. Beth Gulley is a Kansas City based poet. In addition to Frog Joy, (2024 Anamcara Press) she has published two chapbooks and three full-length collections of poetry: Since Corona Ruined Our Trip to the Library (Finishing Line Press), Little Fish: Tiny Meditations on Freedom (Flying Ketchup Press), Dragon Eggs (Spartan Press), The Sticky Note Alphabet (Alien Buddha Press), and Love of Ornamental Fish (Alien Buddha). She teaches English at Johnson County Community College. Beth serves on the Riverfront Reading Committee and the Writers Place board. She likes to volunteer, trail run, and drink coffee. More information can be found on her blog at https://timeeasesallthings.wordpress.com/. “Few brief, gem-like poetic meditations shine like Beth’s. Part diary entry, part koan or prayer, these new poems sparkle with wit and wisdom. I treasure them. You will too.”—Kevin Rabas, Past Poet Laureate of Kansas (2017-2019), Improvise
Dive into “Frog Joy,” where Beth Gulley’s verses paint everyday magic. From mulberry-stained fingers to a heart-pounding escape from floods, hear the chorus of frog calls serenading life’s simple wonders. AVAILABLE NOW!Jacketed Hardcover, Paperback, EBook “Beth Gulley does it again with her latest collection, Frog Joy. Present is all of Gulley’s trademark wit, heart, and insight. She instantly grabs the reader in the first poem by comparing watching a televised fight to reading Basho. ... The book as a whole could be Beth Gulley’s most rounded and profound collection yet, and that is quite an accomplishment considering her impressive back catalog.”—James Benger, author of The Park “Beth Gulley takes readers on a journey that, on its face, seems to be a trip through the mundane. In reality, readers are transported through observations of daily life into a world that could be theirs. With beautifully relatable simplicity, Frog Joy reminds us that we all travel this life together, just on parallel paths.”—Curtis Becker, author of My Second Act and Greetings from Topeka. Saturday, April 20, 1:30 PM CST The April program will be available to all members via Zoom and members are also invited to attend the presentation live at the Topeka & Shawneee County Public Library. The Zoom link will be delivered via the monthly news email OR can be accessed here. (Member sign-on required) While 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. Jet Dreams Take Flight
Imagine the sleek Learjet streaking across the sky in this high-flying adventure! Picture yourself zooming through the clouds as young readers discover the trailblazing history of the world's fastest business jet. This book's about talented people who had big dreams and just knew they could make them real. Meet inventor Bill Lear and engineer Dr. Hans Studer. These visionary founders combined creativity and expertise to make the impossible possible. Their Learjet could rocket across the country in a mere 4 hours! Follow their journey from sketching jet wing designs to witnessing their innovative dream take flight. But it wasn't easy. Yet they never even thought about giving up! Nope, they kept on working, figuring things out step-by-step. Finally, their hard work paid off big time! They made the Learjet, the quickest business jet in the sky. It's so speedy and smooth, it changed the way people think about flying! Readers will take off on an exciting ride through decades of Learjet's boundary-pushing innovations. Learning about the daring pilots who pushed the limits will ignite their own willingness to soar. The Age of Learjet will inspire the next generation of innovators to dream big, believe in themselves, and let their bold ideas take wing!" Aviation experts Dr. Peter Hamel, former Director of the Institute of Flight Systems, and Gary Park, aerospace engineer for over 50 years, stand alone as the definitive Learjet historians. Their insider engineering experience paired with exhaustive research resulted in the comprehensive 456-page book "The Learjet History: Beginnings, Innovations, and Utilization." Dr. Hamel brings decades of leadership in aeronautics programs and research. Mr. Park provides an insider perspective from directly working on Learjet certification. For this adaptation, nobody provides more authority and passion for bringing Learjet's untold stories to young readers. So, why should you read this book? Because it shows that when you've got a dream and you stick with it, amazing things can happen! Ready to make your own dreams fly? Tuesday, April 9, 2024, 7:00 PMGet to know members from across the state and beyond at Kansas Authors Club Open Mic (a monthly virtual event on Zoom).
Members may access the link for Open Mic at this link. (Member sign-on required.) Meet Abbi Lee of District 5! Abbi says: I'm in Wichita and I write for young readers. The first book in my debut middle grade series, Geocache Club: Ghost Town Treasure Hunt, will be released October 1, 2024 with Chicken Scratch Books. It's a contemporary adventure story about eleven-year-old Layton Clark. When his best friend moves away, Layton doesn’t know if he’ll ever have another adventure again. Then he meets Sherry who introduces him to the treasure-hunting world of geocaching. The thrill of adventure sends them hunting in an abandoned Kansas ghost town where they find deserted shacks, unmarked geocaches, an old diary, and more. Layton and Sherry must work together to unlock these mysterious geocaches, solve a century-old mystery, and convince Layton’s father not to move the family away. I'm also published in Kansas Country Living magazine and Spider magazine. Currently, I work as a copywriter for a local marketing agency. Prior to that I taught high school English and Social Studies. I also worked at a local museum as the Education Manager conducting tours, creating programs, and using stories to bring history to life. I'm happy to be a part of KAC and can't wait to make connections with fellow local authors. And we're glad to have you join us! Check out her website too: https://abbileebooks.wordpress.com/
District 1 welcomes Abby Bayani-Heitzman! Abby sends us this introduction:
I am a Filipino American writer born and raised in Northeast Kansas. I’m currently based in Topeka and working as a grant writer. My main passion is short fiction, and I primarily draw from magic(al) realist influences — I’m particularly inspired by Nick Joaquin and his “tropical gothic” stories. I’ve also got a novel in mind and hope to start writing it soon! Apart from writing, I enjoy making visual art and playing bass. I’m also a very active member of Malaya Kansas, a Filipino American community organization that focuses on political education and legislative advocacy for the Philippine Human Rights Act. My most recent writing success has been my essay on Bienvenido Santos for The New Territory magazine (forthcoming) as part of Humanities Kansas’ “Literary Landscapes in Kansas” project. An audio version will air on High Plains Public Radio, along with the other essays that were selected. Welcome to KAC, Abby - and do let us know when the radio piece airs! Please note that individual authors should wait for email approval before sending in payment.
April 20, 2024 Necessary Lies in Essays and Memoir Presenter: Tim Bascom Location: Attend in person at the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library or join us via Zoom Presentation Category: Nonfiction While 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.
For the past three years, Sandee Taylor has judged 4th grade poetry for the annual writing and art contest at Circle Benton Elementary. This is the 24th consecutive year for this contest. It is open to 3rd through 6th grades. She enjoyed helping principal Rob Leis and art judge Alex Kessler pass out awards. She spoke a few minutes encouraging the students write and enter contests. Organizers Erika and Jason Kirk are sitting at the table.
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 |
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