Please join us for the following event hosted by the MFA Program

submitted by matthewk@augsburg.edu

Panel: Awarding Value
Julia M. Brown, Sherrie Fernandez-Williams, and Shannon Gibney
Co-Moderated by Alayne Hopkins and Lindsay Starck
Saturday, July 20, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Hagfors 150

From the Pushcart Prize to the Pulitzer Prize, from the “Best American” series to the Minnesota Book Awards, it’s clear that literary communities are constantly comparing, judging, and awarding value. What does it mean to evaluate a text or a writer? How do we determine which book, fellowship application, script, or screenplay is the best? To what degree is literary appreciation subjective, and what criteria do we use to make these judgments? After we hear from a panel of writers who have judged and/or been judged, Jim Cihlar, publisher of Augsburg’s Howling Bird Press, will provide an overview of how the MFA student editors choose our annual prize winner and do the work of publishing and promoting the resulting book.

Julia M. Brown is Artistic Programs Administrator at the Playwrights’ Center.

Shannon Gibney won the 2019 and 2016 Minnesota Book Award in Young Peoples’ Literature.

Alayne Hopkins is Assistant Director of Programs & Services at The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, overseeing the statewide activities of the Minnesota Center for the Book, which include the Minnesota Book Awards program and other initiatives.

Lindsay Starck is associate director of Augsburg’s MFA program.