July 11, 2018

Four well-known Michigan authors come to Midland to share their work

The Alden and Vada Dow Creativity Foundation, in conjunction with the Saginaw Bay Writing Project, is hosting the Michigan Authors' Series.

Four well-known Michigan authors will read their work Tuesday, July 24 and Wednesday, July 25 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at The Saints and Sinners Lounge at the Midland Center for the Arts. The series is free and open to the public.

“These four authors represent some of the best writers in the state of Michigan today, and their work – which includes poetry, memoir and fiction – is worth reading and hearing,” said Helen Raica-Klotz, director of Saginaw Valley State University's Writing Center and the director of the Saginaw Bay Writing Project.

Tuesday night, authors Linda Nemec Foster and Anne-Marie Oomen will read from their co-authored book, “The Lake Michigan Mermaid.”

Nemec Foster has authored 11 collections of poetry and is the first Poet Laureate of Grand Rapids. She also received a Lifetime Achievement Award for her work from the Dyer-Ives Foundation.

Oomen has authored several books of memoir and poetry, including “Uncoded Woman” and “Pulling Down the Barn.” She currently teaches at conferences around the country as well as The Solstice MFA at Pine Manor College in Massachusetts and Interlochen's College of Creative Arts.

Authors Zilka Joseph and John Mauk will read from their work on Wednesday night.

Joseph has published two chapbooks, and her first book of poems, “Sharp Blue Search of Flame,” was a Foreword Indie Prize Finalist.

Mauk currently teaches at Miami University and co-directs the Ohio Writing Project. He has written four college textbooks and is the author of a collection of short fiction, “Field Notes for the Earthbound.”

“We are very fortunate to have Oomen, Mauk, Joseph and Nemec Foster as part of our Authors' Series this year, thanks to the generous support of the Alden and Vada Dow Creativity Foundation,” Raica-Klotz said.

The Michigan Author's Series is part of the 2018 Vada B. Dow Writer's Workshop for Area Teachers, funded by the Alden and Vada Dow Creativity Foundation, to support the professional growth of writing teachers in the Great Lakes Bay Region.

The Saginaw Bay Writing Project is an SVSU organization that supports teachers throughout Mid-Michigan through professional development and workshops.