Read Local 2014: Nancy Ann Schaefer April 9 @BettendorfLib

Read Local 2014 – Nancy Ann Schaefer

April 9^th at Bettendorf Public Library, 2950 Learning Campus Drive, Bettendorf, at 7 p.m.

Listen to local authors read from their work. Free and open to everyone. Light refreshments provided.

April’s author is Nancy Ann Schaefer, author of the poetry chapbook, In Search of Lode (2012, 918studio).

See Lode review at Story Circle.

2014 READ LOCAL kicks off with Carl Herzig 7 pm February 12 @BettendorfLib

The READ LOCAL February author is Carl Herzig, author of The Fearless Passage of Steven Kim: The True Story of an American Businessman Imprisoned in China for Rescuing North Korean Refugees.

When: Wednesday, February 12, 7 pm

Where: Junior League Room, Bettendorf Public Library

What:  A presentation featuring the book THE FEARLESS PASSAGE OF STEVEN KIM: The True Story of an American Businessman Imprisoned in China for Rescuing North Korean Refugees. Herzig, a native New Yorker and Quad-City resident since 1990,has authored and edited numerous works of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. He leads service-learning trips to India; has taught writing workshops for the Martin Luther King and Midwest Writing Centers; gives presentations on Hinduism at local churches, libraries, and schools; and is professor of English at St. Ambrose University, where he teaches courses in modern American literature, contemporary fiction and science fiction, and creative and expository writing.

READ LOCAL is a partnership between the Bettendorf Public Library and the Midwest Writing Center in support of reading local authors. Listen to local authors read from their work. READ LOCAL events are free and open to everyone. Light refreshments provided.

READ LOCAL December 4: Lyle Ernst

READ LOCAL is a partnership between Midwest Writing Center and Bettendorf Public Library to encourage people to read local authors. The final Read Local event of the year will feature Lyle Ernst. The author will provide a presentation and then sign and sell books. 

 

Free and open to everyone!

Wednesday, December 4 7-8:30 p.m.
Bettendorf Public Library, Malmros Conference Room

Call 563-324-1410 or the Bettendorf Public Library 563-344-4179 for more details.

 

Read Local to feature Trisha Georgiou August 7

Quartered Enlightenment
(Poolboy Publishing, 2013)

Poet and writer Trisha Georgiou Nelson will read from her new chapbook of poetry, Quartered Enlightenment (Poolboy Publishing, 2013) Wednesday, August 7, from 7-8:30 p.m. in the Malmros Conference Room of the Bettendorf Public Library as part of Read Local. She will also share her journey and experiences in writing the collection. Her other works include "Show Up" in the MWC Creative Writing Primer (MWC Press, 2012) and she serves as the MWC Board vice president. 

Follow her @Trisha_Georgiou     

JUNE'S FEATURED AUTHOR: LILLY SETTERDAHL

Midwest Writing Center introduces LillySetterdahl, June’s featured author of the month. Lilly is an authority on Sweden and the Titanic. She has published sixteen books, fifteen in English and one in Swedish. Her first book was published in 1981 by Augustana College and was entitled Swedish American Newspapers. She has had books published each of the past three years. Chicago Swedes: They Spoke From the Heart was published in 2010; Hero of theTitanic, the sequel to her novel Maiden of the Titanic, was published in 2011; and Not My Timeto Die: Titanic and the Swedes on Board was published recently in 2012.

Not My Time to Die is a nonfiction book about the Swedes on board the Titanic who made up the third largest ethnic group among the ship’s passengers. It was published on April 15, 2012, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Titanic’s sinking. Lilly says she decided to write the book while she was working on Hero of the Titanic because nobody outside of Sweden had written a book about the Swedes aboard the Titanic and because she was encouraged by Titanic scholars to write such a book. The book is ideal for anyone interested in the Titanic, the Swedish people, or both. It describes what happened with the Titanic, Sweden’s condition in 1912, and the reasons the Swedish passengers decided to make the trip. Profiles of each of the 123 Swedish passengers and the stories of the 34 Swedish survivors are covered through the some one hundred pages of Not My Time to Die. The work contains a wealth of new information including material previously unknown to English-speakers which Lilly translated and stories about third-class passengers who have received little media attention.

 

Lilly started writing as a new bride in Sweden in the 1950s. She was inspired by a local writer who had a first novel published which was made into a film. This led to an article published in a woman’s magazine for which Lilly won first prize. When not writing, Lilly enjoys research and travelling to visit family. Lilly offers this advice for aspiring authors: “Find a subject that will attract readers. Take classes and attend workshops. Be prepared to work long hours. Don’t forget what you have already written before proceeding. Keep notes or copies of your research. Back up your files.” Lilly also expresses appreciation for MWC who published her Maiden of the Titanic and Hero of the Titanic novels. She says she has “enjoyed the guidance of the Midwest Writing Center and the fellowship with the board, the members, and other writers.”

Please join the Lilly on June 13th at 7 p.m. at the Bettendorf Public Library where she will be reading as part of the Bettendorf Public Library's and Midwest Writing Center's Read Local series. This event is free. Not my Time to Die is availablefor sale on Amazon.com.