A Simplified Map of the Real World, Stevan Allred’s linked short story collection, will be released this September, and advance copies are in route right now to reviewers, book bloggers, and library journals. We’ll reveal the cover of the advance reader copies soon, but for now:
It was a pleasure to hear Julia Stoops, Steve Denniston, Mary Milstead, and Sherri H. Hoffman read from their work Thursday night at the Rain or Shine Coffee House in Southeast Portland. Special thanks to Bill Cameron, host of the Thursday Night Reading Series. All four speakers contributed to Brave on the Page: Oregon Writers on …
I read a piece of my fiction in public for the first time in 2005 at the Springwater Grange near Estacada, Oregon. The selection was from the beginning of my finished novel, and I remember practicing, and worrying, and practicing some more, and all those pre-reading nerves. But then, when I arrived at the grange, …
Christi Krug is one of the most genuine, heartfelt people I know. She approaches the craft of writing with grace, shepherding her writing students through the creative process with optimism, understanding and compassion. Because sometimes getting words down on the page is hard. Really hard. Luckily for those of you who don’t live close enough …
A Simplified Map of the Real World by Stevan Allred will be published by Forest Avenue Press in September 2013. Fifteen linked stories, in the tradition of Olive Kitteridge, investigate the lives of neighbors, brothers, ex-wives, errant sons, former classmates, and the occasional stripper, revealing the complex connections and miscommunications that intensify small-town life. “Stevan’s …
We had a lovely time participating in the Artist Edge salon at the Lori Ryland.com Gallery yesterday afternoon. The three-hour event included hearing complete stories by Liz Prato and Stevan Allred. Martha Ragland read the first three pages of her cozy mystery novel, then talked about the decisions she made in those pages, which led …
What does Brave on the Page have to do with Cheryl Strayed’s Wild, Alexis M. Smith’s Glaciers and John Scalzi’s Redshirts? Those books, among others, were chosen as Powell’s staff members #1 books of 2012. The Powell’s Top Fives lists for 2012 were released this Tuesday. Staff members get the opportunity to list their top five favorite books of the …
A new writer friend, Marcia Riefer Johnston, asked if I was floating after last night’s reading at Powell’s. Absolutely. We had an overflow crowd of 150, according to Powell’s staff estimates. We ran out of chairs, so some people sat in between bookshelves or stood around the edges of the gathering. There were people I …
Wow. Wow wow wow. The Powell’s On Oregon Blog named Brave on the Page its Book of the Year for 2012! Matt Love explains his choice for the fourth annual award and then presents an interview with me in his Book of the Year post. And psst, if you go read it, you’ll get an exclusive first look …
Originally published as a guest post over at The Bookshelf Muse on Nov. 12. By Laura Stanfill In May, an Espresso Book Machine arrived at Powell’s Books here in Portland, Oregon. The machine can turn out a freshly printed book in four minutes—about the same time it takes to make the perfect cappuccino. It’s encased …
We had about 50 people attend our reading on Saturday featuring Liz Scott, Scott Sparling, Kate Gray, Jackie Shannon Hollis and Stevan Allred. A special thanks goes out to the Backspace staff for preparing great food and drinks for our audience, making us an awesome promotional poster and helping us get extra chairs set up. …
The launch party for Brave on the Page attracted so many people we needed to borrow chairs from the church across the way. (Thank you Pastor Steve!) About 90 people showed up to listen to eleven readers and to celebrate the book. We had 23 contributors attend, and at the end I asked all of them to …
I was talking to a writer a few weeks ago at a party, and she alluded to the quiet novel in her past and how she had reinvented her literary self after that quiet novel didn’t sell. “Quiet novel?” I responded. “I have one of those too.” In fact, I have two of them… but …
Forest Avenue Press recently announced its upcoming call for submissions for an Oregon short story anthology edited by Liz Prato and slated for a May 2014 release. The submission period will open June 1 and close on July 31. Here are some details about the kind and length of work we’re seeking: What are you … Continue reading »
Two minds are wiser than one. Especially when those minds belong to two successful practicing psychologists who have written short, jewel-like essays about common issues that plague many people in their relationships, at work, and in their home lives. My copy of Lies: The Truth about the Self-Deception That Limits Your Life arrived today. The newly released … Continue reading »
Forest Avenue Press is celebrating May, Short Story Month, by announcing an upcoming anthology of short stories by Oregon and Southwest Washington writers. The open submission period will run from June 1 to July 31. The collection will be edited by Liz Prato and is slated for release in May 2014. Prato, an acclaimed short story writer … Continue reading »
Registration is now open for the Portals Writers’ conference, slated for June 20-23, at Corban University in Salem, Oregon. Learn more about the conference and its many offerings, and feel free to spread the word! The conference offers full and partial scholarships, and participants can attend one, two, or three days, depending on their schedules … Continue reading »
Our search for quiet novels by Oregon writers netted an incredible number of submissions in January and February. The Forest Avenue Press team spent several months reading, conversing, and ultimately choosing two manuscripts from the rich and varied slush pile. Forest Avenue Press will publish Who Are the Gods? by Dan Berne and Skin Drag by Kate … Continue reading »
Julia Stoops, Steve Denniston, Mary Milstead, and Sherri H. Hoffman, four local authors who contributed work to Brave on the Page: Oregon Writers on Craft and the Creative Life, will read from their own work at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 25 at the Rain or Shine Coffee House, 5941 S.E. Division St., Portland. The … Continue reading »
The Estacada Area Arts Commission is sponsoring its eleventh annual Writers Night at the Springwater Grange at 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 20. The Springwater Grange is located at 24591 S. Springwater Road, near the town of Estacada. This year’s event will feature Jon Bell, author of On Mount Hood: A Biography of Oregon’s Perilous Peak. Bell will … Continue reading »
