What a great and wonderful time at yesterday’s Council for Wisconsin Writers’ Awards Banquet at which the Council celebrated its 50th birthday! Our keynote speaker and Major Achievement Award recipient was the inimitable John Nichols, whose extensive credits include: author of a dozen books, The Nation magazine Washington correspondent, a pioneering blogger, and associate editor of Madison’s The Capital Times.
Other Wisconsin writers, whose works won first place and honorable mention in the Council’s eight annual contests, joined Nichols in the day’s festivities.
Seated from left: Lorine Niedecker Poetry Award 1st place Jeanie Tomasko, Zona Gale Award for Short Fiction honorable mention Margaret Benbow, CWW Essay Award for Young Writers 1st place Hannah Kinzer, John Nichols,Tofte/Wright Children’s Literature Award honorable mention Rebecca Williams Spindler and Madelyn Spindler
Standing from left: Kay W. Levin Short Nonfiction Award 1st place Craig Reinbold of Milwaukee, Tofte/Wright Children’s Literature Award 1st place A.M. Bostwick of Tomahawk, CWW Essay Award for Young Writers honorable mention Satvir Kalsi of Brookfield, Lorine Niedecker Poetry Award honorable mention Rita Mae Reese of Madison, Kay W. Levin Short Nonfiction Award honorable mention Jill Sisson Quinn of Scandinavia, Zona Gale Award for Short Fiction 1st place Matt Cashion of La Crosse, Norbert Blei/August Derleth Nonfiction Book Award honorable mention Nicholas Hoffman and Jesse Gant of Appleton, Edna Ferber Fiction Book Award honorable mention Raymond D. Schrab of Hartford, Norbert Blei/August Derleth Nonfiction Book Award 1st place B.J. Hollars of Eau Claire, Edna Meudt Poetry Book Award 1st place Amaud Jamaul Johnson of Madison
Unable to attend were Edna Ferber Fiction Book Award 1st place Jesse Lee Kercheval of Madison and Edna Meudt Poetry Book Award honorable mention Seth Abramson of Madison.
More about CWW and these writers is at www.wiswriters.org.
Congratulations to these fine and talented Wisconsin writers and a huge thank you to all who support and make possible the Council’s ongoing ability to recognize and award the many wonderful writers in Wisconsin.