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Public Information and Communication

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
March 24, 2015 

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Mary Ellen Ducey, Nebraska Center for the Book President
402-472-5076

Book Fest Highlights Nebraska Authors

The 2015 Nebraska Book Festival, April 25 at the University of Nebraska Omaha’s Weitz Community Engagement Center, will feature ten Nebraska authors. Public admission is free.  

The festival begins at 9:30 a.m. with writing workshops:
  •          Lucy Adkins: “Poetry and Inspiration: Imaginative Ways to Write Your Best”
  •          Mary Avidano: “Poems by You.” Attendees are invited to bring a poem they’ve written.
  •          Traci Robison: “From Draft to Digital: How to Prepare and What to Expect as a Self-              Publisher”
  •          Laura Wiseman: “You’re No Body Until Some Body Loves You: Writing the Body”  
Workshop seating is limited and early arrival is recommended. Advance registration is not necessary.  

Readings, book sales, and book signings will take place from noon to 3:30 p.m. Authors will read and discuss their work, allowing time for questions. Scheduled authors include:  
  •          Mark Langan, Busting Bad Guys: My True Crime Stories of Bookies, Drug Dealers and Ladies of the Night
  •           Marsha Davis, One Man’s Voice
  •           Sydney Olson, The Curse of the Fates
  •           John Price, The Tallgrass Prairie Reader
  •          Timothy Schaffert, The Swan Gondola: A Novel
  •           Karen Shoemaker, The Meaning of Names  

Prior to a 3:45 p.m. reception, the Nebraska Center for the Book will announce the 2015 recipient of the Mildred Bennett Award, recognizing an individual who has made significant contributions to fostering literary tradition in Nebraska.  

The festival concludes, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. with the NeBooks Project Student & Teacher Showcase. The NeBooks Project is a partnership between schools, state agencies, and non-profit organizations across Nebraska to provide quality instructional materials. Nebraska students and teachers developed eBooks this school year, with the goal of becoming published authors in the NeBooks Project eBook Library. Attendees will spend the evening learning from these newly published authors, along with special guests. Hear directly from Nebraska students and teachers how they created their iBooks, the struggles that they faced, and what it means to be a published author.  

The Bookworm and University of Nebraska Press will offer books by Nebraska authors for sale throughout the event. The Nebraska Book Festival is presented by the Nebraska Center for the Book, Humanities Nebraska, and Nebraska Library Commission. Visit http://bookfestival.nebraska.gov/2015/index.aspx for a complete schedule of free readings and workshops and other information.  

The Nebraska Center for the Book is housed at the Nebraska Library Commission and brings together the state’s readers, writers, booksellers, librarians, publishers, printers, educators, and scholars to build the community of the book, supporting programs to celebrate and stimulate public interest in books, reading, and the written word. The Nebraska Center for the Book is supported by the Nebraska Library Commission.  

As the state library agency, the Nebraska Library Commission is an advocate for the library and information needs of all Nebraskans. The mission of the Library Commission is statewide promotion, development, and coordination of library and information services, bringing together people and information.

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The most up-to-date news releases from the Nebraska Library Commission are always available on the Library Commission Website, http://nlc.nebraska.gov/publications/newsreleases.