Dear Writer,
As the poets have told us, no matter what’s happening in the world, there’s always room for a ray of light (or two!). We’re happy to share some moments of resplendence below, but we also had a computer glitch that wiped out any reported kudos from the past month and a half. If you don’t see your news here, please resubmit it (with apologies for the inconvenience), and, as always, if you’re a member and something nice has happened, don’t keep it to yourself.
| |
| | THE GOVERNOR VISITS LIGHTHOUSE
| |
We're pleased to celebrate the first of many ground breakings, where Governor Polis, some Lighthouse board members, staff, and faculty lifted a shovel in honor of the new Lighthouse Writers Workshop home. We’re grateful to all who donned hardhats and withstood the microbursts to officially start the project off. Keep watching for updates on how our project is going, and if you’d like to help, please contact Jordyn via email.
| |
| | COLORADO BOOK AWARD FINALISTS
| |
|
Among the trove of talent in this fine state, we've begun to hear murmurings about Lighthousers who have made the finalist round of the CBAs. The Lighthouse community engagement anthology, All the Lives We Ever Lived, is a finalist in the anthology category; Jenny Shank's short story collection, Mixed Company, is a finalise for short story; Wendy Fox's What If We Were Somewhere Else, is a finalist for literary fiction; and Kimberly O'Connor's collection of poetry, White Lung, is a finalist for poetry. Woot woot! Despite our attempts at sleuthing, we haven't seen the entire list of finalists, so if we missed any members or faculty, please speak up.
| |
We’re happy to announce the seventh recent book deal signed by current members or alums of the Book Project: Kari Leibowitz’s How to Winter: Harnessing Your Mindset to Embrace All Seasons of Life will come out from Penguin/Random House in 2024 in the US and the UK. We need this one, Kari!
Speaking of the Book Project, we’re thrilled to be hosting Matt Bell, whose Refuse to be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts garnered this praise in the New York Times Book Review. He swoops into Denver on Friday, April 22 for happy hour, a catered meal, and his keynote talk, kicking off the Book Project’s spring intensive. A handful of spots are open for any and all to attend in person, and quite a few for those who’d like to Zoom in.
We're all excited for Book Project mentor Vauhini Vara's forthcoming novel, The Immortal King Rao, which drops on May 3. (Publishers Weekly agrees, giving it a starred review, and it's made Oprah's list of 22 anticipated spring books, along with Lit Fest author Vanessa Hua's Forbidden City.) We hope you can join us for her Colorado book launch, held on May 17 at 6 PM MDT, in collaboration with the Denver Public Library, here at the Lighthouse event space. Admission is free, but please RSVP for the event. (And don't miss her in conversation a week later on May 27 with Lighthouse favorite Sheila Heti, at this event in collaboration with MCA Denver.) Oh, and one more happy Vara tidbit: imagine everyone's glee when her unforgettable personal essay, "Ghosts," was tapped for Best American Essays 2022, edited by Alexander Chee. Banner year, Vara!
Faculty member Erika Krouse has been all over the news lately as her book, Tell Me Everything, has garnered raves far and wide—most recently, from the Washington Post, People Magazine, and The Week. She’s also got an interview up in Lit Hub, and you can catch her live, being interviewed by Colorado Public Radio’s Ryan Warner, at the Lit Fest kickoff on June 10. And click on her bio to see what else she’s up to at Lit Fest.
Longtime Lighthouse and perpetual Grand Lake Retreat muse Michele Johnson got some good news when she won the Moon City Short Fiction Award. Her debut collection, Development Times Vary, comes out later this year. Yay, Michele!
Jacqueline St. Joan's second novel, The Shawl of Midnight, is coming out soon from Golden Antelope Press. This novel follows up her debut, My Sisters Made of Light.
Three cheers for frequent Lighthouse visiting author Melissa Febos, who learned she not only won a Guggenheim Award this year, but also the National Book Critics Circle Award for Girlhood, her latest collection of essays. Check out her craft class during Lit Fest in June, and be sure to come to her reading in person or on Zoom. She’ll also be giving a toast at our 25th Anniversary Soiree at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science on June 16. Hope to see you there!
| |
Book Project alum Christine Ferris has two recently published essays. One in Literary Mama, "The Son I Have," and the other in Chalkbeat Education Magazine, "Mid-Year Teacher Turnover." Congrats, Christine!
Instructor Jenny Shank won first place in the Personal Column category in the Society of Professional Journalists' 2022 Top of the Rockies competition for Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. To add a grace note, The Rally Hotel in Denver and the Tattered Cover have selected Shank's story collection Mixed Company for the Book Lovers' Night In promotion. If you book a room, you'll get a copy of Mixed Company and a cocktail inspired by it called "Denver Sunshine." Maybe it’s time for that staycation.
Instructor Alexander Lumans has a recent short essay, “1:30 am in Taos, NM,” in off assignment.
Yours in celebration,
| |
|
|
|
|
