North Shore Readers and Writers Festival | Day 3: Saturday, Nov. 9

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View a printable schedule for the full festival (.pdf)

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Class | The Beauty of Diversity for Children and Teens

with Shannon Gibney & Marcie Rendon
Saturday, November 9 | 9:00 — 11:30 am

Every child benefits when exposed to books that represent people and families from diverse communities. When children see a mirror image of themselves, their families, and communities it increases self-esteem and self-actualization. Children who read books about someone other than themselves develop greater understanding of the larger world and more compassionate ways of being with people different from themselves. These award-winning authors of color will speak about the importance of writers of color writing these books.

Class | Elements of Poetry: Image and Metaphor

with Matt Rasmussen
Saturday, November 9 | 9:00 — 11:30 am

Explore the foundations of poetry and add to your poetry tool kit. Students will read and discuss a selection of mostly contemporary poems as well as perform in-class writing. Discussion will focus on the elemental concepts of image and metaphor, but will also broaden into larger deliberations such as, “What makes a good poem?” In-class exercises will be collaborative as well as individual and will serve to ignite students’ imaginations.

Class | Choosing a Form in Fiction

with Julie Schumacher
Saturday, November 9 | 9:00 — 11:30 am

Most writers are people who have fallen in love with words. They create quirky characters, describe marvelous settings, and invent intriguing dialogue. Most writers don’t fall in love with structure or form — which can lead to problems when they discover that those 80,000 words won’t arrange themselves. Thurber Prize-winning author Julie Schumacher will show students how to play with form in fiction, putting the cart of structure in front of the horse. Bring pen and paper and a willingness to experiment.

Craft Seminar | Getting into the Head of Your YA Character

with Geoff Herbach
Saturday, November 9 | 9:00 — 10:15 am

The most memorable characters have strong voices and specific perspectives. During this seminar, students will go deep into the heads of their YA characters to develop their particularity, their way of processing the world around them, their specific way of communicating.

Craft Seminar | Talk this Way: Writing Believable Dialogue

with Lorna Landvik
Saturday, November 9 | 10:30 — 11:45 am

Dull, unconvincing dialogue means dull, unconvincing characters.  Join Lorna in a seminar that will help you bring your characters, vis a vis their words, to big, vivid life.

Author Talk | Ruby and Roland

with Faith Sullivan
Saturday, November 9 | 9:00 — 9:45 am

Faith will share from her ninth novel, Ruby and Roland (Milkweed Editions, 2019), the sixth of her novels to chronicle the lives of the citizens of Harvester, Minnesota.

Author Talk | Hazel Belvo: A Matriarch of Art

with Hazel Belvo and Julie L’Enfant
Saturday, November 9 | 9:50 — 10:25 am

Hazel Belvo: A Matriarch of Art (Afton Press, 2020), by Julie L’Enfant, is a richly-illustrated book that documents the achievements of artist Hazel Belvo, over her sixty-year career. Her body of work has centered on powerful expressionistic paintings and drawings exploring myth, spirituality, and the psyche. With a wide range of subject matter in landscape and portraiture, she is perhaps best known for her numerous images of manidoo-giizhikens, the legendary Spirit Tree on the northern shore of Lake Superior. Interviews with the artist provide first-hand information on her ideas about art and life and shed light on how feminism has shaped her view of the world.

Author Talk | The End of the Wild

with Nicole Helget
Saturday, November 9 | 10:30 — 11:15 am

Nicole’s work spans middle grade, historical fiction, and memoir, as well as global concerns such as the environment and water scarcity. She will read from her Minnesota Book Award-winning middle-grade novel, The End of the Wild (Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2017).

Author Talk | The Body of the World

with Mary Moore Easter
Saturday, November 9 | 11:20 — 12:05 pm

Pushcart Prize-nominated Mary Moore Easter’s The Body of the World (MadHat, 2018) was a finalist for the 2017 Prairie Schooner Book Prize. Her poetry collection addresses the tangled past and present of race, slavery, gender, and cruelty through narratives, lyrical free verse, persona poems, an ode, and fifteen sequenced sonnets.

Local Writers’ Lunchtime Reading Panel

with Felicia Schneiderhan, Eric Chandler & Marie Zhuikov
Saturday, November 9 | 12:10 — 1:20

Join authors Felicia Schneiderhan, Newlyweds Afloat (Breakaway Books, 2014), Eric Chandler, Hugging This Rock: Poems of Earth & Sky, Love & War (Middle West Press, 2017), and Marie Zhuikov, Going Coastal (North Star Press, 2017), as they read from their work.

Bring your lunch or registered for a catered lunch here:
Select the optional lunch ticket at the bottom of the page and the Art Colony will reach out to you to place your lunch order. Your menu options are: 

• Meat Sandwich: Turkey and provolone with lettuce, tomato, and mayo packet. Includes an apple, chips and a cookie.
• Gluten-Free: Lettuce wrap with turkey, provolone, tomato, and mayo packet. Includes an apple, chips and gluten-free dessert
• Vegan Wrap: Lettuce wrap with tomato, roasted red pepper, banana peppers and onions. Includes an apple, chips and vegan dessert; Gluten-Free dessert upon request.

Class | Developing a Unique Voice

with Matt Goldman
Saturday, November 9 | 1:30 — 4:00 pm

Emmy award-winning TV writer and New York Times Best Selling author Matt Goldman will discuss the importance of voice, show examples in published works, and lead students through several writing exercises. Students will have an opportunity to share their work and receive positive feedback, while further developing their own unique voice.

Craft Seminar | In Another’s Words: The Joy of Co-Writing and Collaborating

with Beth Dooley
Saturday, November 9 | 1:30 — 2:45 pm

Co-authoring and collaborating on a manuscript can be exhilarating and immensely satisfying.  But to craft the project well, it is important to be aware of the pit-falls and issues that may arise during the research and execution. As co-author/collaborator of four books, including The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous (University of Minnesota Press, 2017), which won the James Beard Best American Cookbook award, Beth will relay her experiences engaging with artists and editors to create work that surpasses anything she might have done on her own.

Craft Seminar | Tips for Pitching Your Book

with Katie Dublinski, Chris Fischbach, Emily Hamilton & Shannon Gibney
Saturday, November 9 | 3:00 — 4:15 pm

“Pitch,” “query,” and “submission” are publishing terms confusing for many writers, but are part and parcel of trying to find a good home for your book. What agents and publishers are looking for in acquiring new titles can seem opaque at best. This session will help demystify these activities, share resources for developing a target list, and walk through practical tips for crafting an effective and strategic query, from the perspectives of publisher, editor, and author.

Author Talk | The Shakespeare Requirement

with Julie Schumacher
Saturday, November 9 | 1:30 — 2:15 pm

Julie will discuss her novel The Shakespeare Requirement (Penguin Random House, 2018), one of The Washington Post’s 50 Most Notable Works of Fiction in 2018. Julie won the Thurber Prize in 2015 for her novel, Dear Committee Members (Anchor, 2015).

Author Talk | Hooper

with Geoff Herbach
Saturday, November 9 | 2:20 — 3:05 pm

Geoff Herbach is a Minnesota Book Award winner and the author of the award-winning Stupid Fast series as well as Fat Boy vs. the Cheerleaders. He will be discussing Hooper (Katherine Tegen Books, 2018), a finalist for the Minnesota Book Award.

Author Talk | My Life with Words

with Joan Drury
Saturday, November 9 | 3:10 — 3:55 pm

Author Joan Drury grew up in a family where the most important commodity was words – talking, arguing, telling, or hearing and reading stories, books, or other printed material. She will discuss how this informed her adult life as a writer, editor, publisher, bookseller, and lifelong, dedicated reader.

Exhibitors’ Hour

Saturday, November 9 | 4:30 — 5:30 pm

Book professionals will be set up and on hand at the Event Hub. Stop by to learn more about the festival presses and ask your publishing questions. Drinks and light refreshments provided. This event is free and open to all; no pre-registration is required.

Special Event | Reception: Literature, Laughs, and Lorna

with Lorna Landvik and Co-host: Voyageur Brewing
Saturday, November 9 | 7:00 — 8:30 pm

Join us for a brief welcome by author Lorna Landvik, followed by a time to relax and enjoy conversation with fellow writers, authors, and presenters. This event is free and open to all; no pre-registration is required.

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Before you select your tickets: Some events take place at the same time as others so please be mindful when selecting your tickets so that you do not unintentionally become double-booked.