Tuesday, December 8, 2020
6:30 – 8:00 pm (Central Standard Time via Zoom)
Please join longtime writing buddies, Carolyn Holbrook and Diane Wilson, for a reading and a discussion of their friendship and their newest books: Carolyn’s essay collection, Tell Me Your Names and I Will Testify; and Diane’s forthcoming novel, The Seed Keeper.
TELL ME YOUR NAMES AND I WILL TESTIFY is the compassionate and redemptive story of a prominent Black woman in the Twin Cities literary community.
In a haunting novel spanning several generations, THE SEED KEEPER follows a Dakota family’s struggle to preserve their way of life, and their sacrifices to protect what matters most.
COST: $20.00
The session will be held via Zoom and has a total contact time of 1.5 hours.
Online Course Expectations + Details:
- Register as individuals.
- After registering and prior to the date of this program, you will receive an email from Wisdom Ways with the Zoom link and other information. Generally, this email is sent 24-48 hours before the program.
- Have the technology and internet connection that allow for stable video and audio connection through a computer or a hand-held device (e.g., tablet or smart phone).
- This Zoom session will include a facilitator from Wisdom Ways who will help navigate any small groups as well as the questions and comments that are shared through the chat function.
Facilitators:
Carolyn Holbrook is a writer, educator, and longtime advocate for the healing power of the arts. She is the author of an essay collection, Tell Me Your Names and I Will Testify (University of MN Press 2020), a chapbook, Earth Angels (Spout Press 2020), and is co-author with Arleta Little of MN civil rights icon, Dr. Josie R. Johnson’s memoir, Hope In the Struggle (University of MN Press 2019). Her personal essays have been published widely, most recently in A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota (MN Historical Society Press 2016) and Blues Vision: African American Writing from Minnesota (MN Historical Society Press 2015). She has received awards from the Minnesota State Arts Board and a MRAC Next Step grant. In 2016, she was awarded a 50 over 50 award from AARP/Pollen Midwest. She was the first person of color to win the Minnesota Book Awards Kay Sexton Award (2010). She is Founder and Artistic/Executive Director of More Than a Single Story for which she won a MN Women’s Press Changemaker award in 2015. She teaches creative writing at the Loft Literary Center and other community venues, and at Hamline University, where she won the Exemplary Teacher award in 2014. Learn more at https://www.carolynleeholbrook.com/.
Diane Wilson (Dakota) is a writer, speaker, and editor, who has published two award-winning books, as well as essays in numerous publications. Her new novel, The Seed Keeper, will be published by Milkweed Editions in March 2021. Wilson’s memoir, Spirit Car: Journey to a Dakota Past (Borealis Books), won a 2006 Minnesota Book Award and was selected for the 2012 One Minneapolis One Read program. Her 2011 nonfiction book, Beloved Child: A Dakota Way of Life (Borealis Books) was awarded the 2012 Barbara Sudler Award from History Colorado. Her most recent essay, Seeds for Seven Generations, is featured in the 2016 anthology, A Good Time for the Truth (MN Historical Society Press). Wilson has received a 2013 Bush Foundation Fellowship as well as awards from Minnesota State Arts Board, the Jerome Foundation, and the East Central Regional Arts Council. Wilson is the Executive Director for the Native American Food Sovereignty Alliance, a national coalition of tribes and organizations working to create sovereign food systems for Native people. In 2018, she was awarded a 50 Over 50 Award from Pollen/Midwest. Wilson is a Mdewakanton descendent, enrolled on the Rosebud Reservation. Learn more at https://www.dianewilsonwords.com/.
