Welcome to 2010! Here's the NEW info for the Wine Writers & Song, scheduled for April 23th thru 25th, in Brownville....

( for the actual webpage, see: http://www.brownville-ne.com/main.taf?p=1,3 )

Wine, Writers & Song 2010
Thanks for your interest in Brownville's Wine, Writers & Song Festival!
Every year, we spend the last weekend in April celebrating wine, literature, food, music and history with a program of fun events for all ages.

Friday, April 23 – Sunday, April 25
Find out more about our Authors & Musicians...

Schedule of Events

Friday Evening
(At the River Inn, a floating Bed & Breakfast, on the 2nd deck)
5:00pm-6:00pm Social Hour
Cash bar featuring music by The Ember Schrag Trio
6:00-7:00 Dinner catered by The River Inn
Buffet featuring a variety of pasta dishes, salads and breads. Dessert & coffee following, to be enjoyed during the evening program.
7:30-9:00 Poetry
Special Guests from Creighton University's Asian Writers' Conference
Jinmei Yuan & special poem by Ms. Luye
2010 Omaha Healing Arts Slam Poetry Team, hosted by Nebraska Writers Collective
Members will be selected for this unique slam poetry team in April, just before the festival. They will compete at the national level in August, 2010. The festival is their debut event, kicking off a busy summer.
9:30 Open Mic hosted by Nebraska Writers Collective
Bring your poetry or short-short fiction and sign up for a slot to read your work during the Festival Open Mic!

Saturday Morning
9:00 Bright & Early Guided Walk through the Furnas Arboretum
9:00-11:30 Weekend Writers' Workshop First Session with Kelly Madigan Erlandson
(Pre-registration required.)

Children's Program
(Brownville Concert Hall, 126 Atlantic Street. Book/CD signings to follow each segment.)
10:00-10:45 Music by Mike Mennard
10:45-11:00 Scene change
(Bubbles outside if it's nice. “Making Rain” inside if weather isn't cooperative.)
11:00-11:30 Storytelling by Linda Garcia
11:30-12:00 N. L. Sharp, Childrens' Book Author

Non-fiction Program
(Schoolhouse Art Gallery on Main Street. Book signings to follow each segment.)
10:00-11:00 Jeff Barnes
Jeff Barnes is the author of Forts of the Northern Plains, he has done extensive research in and around Nebraska. His presentation includes a slide-show. Jeff Barnes appears at the festival courtesy of the Nebraska Humanities Council Speakers' Bureau.
11:00-12:00 Paul Johnsgard
Paul Johnsgard is a world-renowned ornithologist and has published over 50 books.

Lunch on your own. The Lyceum Cafe and T.J.'s are open!

Saturday Afternoon & Evening
2:00 Cruise the Missouri River on the “Spirit of Brownville”
$9.95 per person, ages 5 and under free
Music by Manny Coon

The Art of Fiction
(The Antiquarium Bookstore, Fourth & Water Streets)
2:00-3:00 Beef Torrey & Kevin Simonson
3:00-4:00 Amy Knox-Brown

Songwriter's Roundtable
(The Lyceum, 231 Main Street. CD signings to follow.)
2:30-4:00 Robin Harrell, Todd Brown & Emily Dunbar
A salon-type conversation in which the songwriters discuss their writing process, play snippets of music, and entertain questions from the audience.

Young Adult Writing Workshop with Andrew Ek
(Schoolhouse Art Gallery, 427 Main Street)
3:30-6:30

4:30-6:00 Weekend Writers' Workshop Second Session with Kelly Madigan Erlandson
(Pre-registration required)
(The Brownville Lyceum, 231 Main Street.)

Pairing Food & Wine Program
(Whiskey Run Creek Winery, second level)
$8 per person, space is limited
Presenters include Ron Heskett, Sean Carmichael and Maggie Pleskac
Hosted by Barbara Bond
Vintner Ron Heskett and chef/authors Sean Carmichael and Maggie Pleskac will team up to show participants which wines best complement which flavors. Each chef will offer an appetizer to be paired with a Whiskey Run Creek Winery wine. Sean & Maggie will sign copies of their cookbook, Dueling Chefs: A Vegetarian & A Meat Lover Debate the Plate.
Session 1: 4:30-6:00
Session 2: 6:30-8:00
The first half hour of each session will be a tour of the historic Whiskey Run Creek cave.

Dinner on your own. The Lyceum Cafe & T.J.'s are open!

Evening Revelry
(Whiskey Run Creek Winery deck and grounds)
8:00-10:00 Music by Jumpin' Kate
CD signings on breaks

Sunday
9:30-11:00 Weekend Writers' Workshop Open House
(Brownville Village Theatre Residence, on Richard Street)
The Weekend Writers' Workshop invites you in for coffee, rolls and a reading.

Book Arts Program
11:00-11:30 A Collection of Science Fiction Books, presented by Julie & David Humphrey
(A Novel Idea Bookstore, Chapter Two 117 Main Street)
11:30-12:00 Book Binding, presented by Kevin Oliver
(Chaney Gallery, 123 Main Street)
Ongoing “Art of the Book” Mini-Sculpture display by Harry Andersen
(Gallery 119, 119 Main Street. Sculptures and art for sale.)

1:00-4:00 Free Range Readings, hosted by Rex Walton
(The Brownville Lyceum, 231 Main Street)
Sponsored by Chaney Gallery
Join us for a laid-back afternoon of poetry – with some fiction and nonfiction tossed in the mix. We'll enjoy a range of readings!
Art Homer, Twyla Hansen, Amy Plettner, Roy Scheele, Katie F-S, Karen Shoemaker, Shelly Clark, Char Neely, Paul Fish, JV Brummels, Greg Kosmicki, Writers' Guild & others.

2010 Authors & Musicians

Jeff Barnes, a freelance writer and fifth-generation Nebraskan, is a former newspaper reporter and editor, past chairman of the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission, former marketing director for the Durham Western Heritage Museum and present board member of the Douglas County Historical Society.
Barnes is with the speakers bureau of the Nebraska Humanities Council, and has presented at the Fort Robinson History Conference and the Mountain-Plains Museum Association annual conference. He presents frequently to museums, historical societies, libraries and civil organizations on the forts.

Barbara Bond offers culinary services and is the owner of The Cooking School of Brownville, which focuses on culinary technique. Classes offered include: Fresh Pasta & Sauces, Meats: Roasting, Braising & Smoking with Tea Leaves, Tarts: Sweet & Savory, Sauces: Reduction, Emulsion & Starch Based, Summer Appetizers, Fall Appetizers, & Bistro Cooking.

Todd Brown strives to be a designer, carpenter, artist and musician. He has performed on several stages throughout the United States solo and with his wife Cody Carson-Brown. His songwriting has won regional competitions and his guitar playing is ok. He can be found at the Listening Room as a performer and volunteer in Hastings, Nebraska where he resides.


Sean Carmichael is the executive chef of Chez Hay Catering. He attended the University of Nebraska Art College and in 1996, graduated from the Colorado Art Institute with a degree in Culinary Arts. After college, Sean returned to Lincoln and worked as a chef for Inn Harms Way and helped open restaurants DiNapoli and J. Finnegan's. He has been featured on two local television programs: “10-11 News: In the Kitchen” and “Time Warner Cable: Now We’re Cookin”. Sean is also the co-author of Dueling Chefs: A Vegetarian & A Meat Lover Debate the Plate, published by University of Nebraska Press.

Shelly Clark Geiser was born and has spent most of her life in Imperial, Nebraska. She moved to Omaha in 2005. She taught English and Journalism for 17 years at Chase County High School and for two years at Midlands Lutheran College. She now owns a small business with her husband, Jack. In 2003, Shelly and Marjorie Saiser co-edited an anthology of Nebraska writers, Road Trip: Conversations With Writers, published by Backwaters Press and winner of two Nebraska Book Awards. Shelly’s poems have been anthologized in Times of Sorrow, Times of Grace, and Nebraska Presence. Other poems have appeared in Nebraska Territory, Nebraska English Journal and Plain Song Review.

Andrew Ek was raised in Colorado Springs, but arrived in Nebraska by way of the university in Lincoln. He is a published author of several short stories, and was an opinion columnist for UNL's student newspaper. Along with that, he is a regular presence at Nebraska's poetry slams, and was a member of the 2008 and 2009 poetry slam teams from Lincoln, the highlight of which was a 12th-place team finish at the 2008 National Poetry Slam in Madison, Wisconsin. In addition to his writing, Andrew teaches high school English and is a curriculum advisor and member of the Nebraska Writers Collective's board of directors.

Robin Harrell has taught guitar for 26 years. In 2004, she was awarded Hastings' YWCA Tribute to Women Award for her teaching and musical mentoring to children and adults. She has been a featured performer at: Rocky Mountain Folk Festival, Wildflower Stage (Lyons CO), North American Folk Alliance (2002 with Paul Reisler, Nashville TN), City Stages, (Greensboro, NC), Cottonwood Festival (Hastings, NE), Flatwater Folk Festival (Hastings, NE), LAFTA Concert Series (Lincoln, NE) and Birdhouse (Manhattan, KS). She has also performed many times on Nebraska Public Radio's “Friday Live” and has been featured on nationally syndicated “River City Folk” with Tom May. She is the founder/ producer of The Listening Room, (www.thelisteningroom.org )a non-profit concert series founded in 1991. She also started "The Song School" as part of Prairie Loft Center's Flatwater Folk Festival in 2008. The school is a three-day intensive seminar on songwriting. To learn more, please visit: www.prairieloft.org.

David and Julie Humphrey have been collecting books for over a decade, amassing an impressive library of nearly 1200 titles. David got his start in college by collecting Stephen King 1st editions. After meeting Julie, who thought collecting books was a great idea, the collection spread to include fantasy, science fiction, and mystery titles. The Humphrey's have taken several trips around America and up to Canada to attend conventions and book signings for their favorite authors. There are two things that make them smile: the thrill of finding a first edition and getting to meet an author they admire.


Paul Johnsgard is by far the most prolific writer of non-fiction or fiction books in Nebraska’s history, and correspondingly is the world’s most prolific author of ornithological literature. Nearly all of Johnsgard’s monographs deal in part with conservation of groups, species, or habitats. His 51 published books total about 3 million words, and occupy nearly five linear feet of shelf space.
Retiring in 2001 after 40 years at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Prof. Johnsgard taught ecological and ornithological science to more than 5,000 undergraduate students, and directed the academic programs of over 20 graduate students. His humanistic and creative writing interests are indicated by his receipt of the Loren Eiseley Award in 1988, given for writings that attempt to blend science with humanism, and the Mari Sandoz Award in 1984, for contributions to the literature of Nebraska. He was listed by the Lincoln Journal Star (July 15, 1999) as one of “100 people who have helped build Nebraska...the past 100 years.” He was also chosen by the Omaha World Herald (Nov. 29, 1999) as one of 100 “Extraordinary Nebraskans” of the past century. Only 30 persons (only six of whom were then still alive) were included in both these lists. In 2005 he received the National Conservation Achievement Award in Science from the National Wildlife Federation.
Wind through the Buffalo Grass is Prof. Johnsgard's most recent book, several of his more popular titles have been translated into other languages. He was the first University of Nebraska professor to win three major faculty honors, the Distinguished Teaching Award, the Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Award, and a University Foundation Professorship.

Amy Knox Brown is a fourth-generation Nebraskan currently living in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where she is assistant professor of creative writing at Salem College and director of the school's Center for Women Writers. Her story collection Three Versions of the Truth was a finalist for the 2008 Shenandoah/Glasgow Emerging Writers Award, and she is also the author of a poetry chapbook, Advice from Household Gods. She and her husband John McNally, share their home with three dogs and seven cats.


Katie Logan is a singer/songwriter who plays lead and rhythm guitar covering a variety of rock, reggae, blues, folk, country, and good ol’ American pop, as well as, performing and recording dozens of her own original songs. She’s been writing songs for twenty-five years and has recorded eleven albums. Katie has earned her position in the music scene playing her originals and covers all over Las Vegas, the Midwest, and points beyond. She has recently relocated to her hometown of Lincoln, Nebraska with plans to tour the Midwest and busy working on her twelfth album. Her dynamic stage presence is evidenced in the upbeat dialogue, the stories, and the easy rapport with audiences, and of course, the jumpin’ energy, therefore, the well deserved nickname--Jumpin' Kate.

Kelly Madigan Erlandson is the author of Getting Sober: A Practical Guide to Making it Through the First 30 Days (McGraw-Hill). Her poems and essays have appeared in Best New Poets 2007, Crazyhorse, The Massachusetts Review, and Prairie Schooner. She was awarded the Distinguished Artist Award in Literature from the Nebraska Arts Council in 2006, and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in 2008. Visit her website at www.KellyMadiganErlandson.com.

Matt Mason has won 2 Nebraska Book Awards as well as had his poems published in over 150 magazines and anthologies. His first full length collection, Things We Don’t Know We Don’t Know (The Backwaters Press, 2006), besides winning a Nebraska Book Award, was a Contemporary Poetry bestseller. He has done poetry programs for the United States Department of State in Minsk, Belarus, colleges and universities around the country, and dozens of high schools in Nebraska,Iowa, and Missouri. Mason earned his MA in Creative Writing from the University of California at Davis, then, of course, moved to Omaha where he now lives with his wonderful wife Sarah and baby daughters Sophia and Lucia. He also edits PoetryMenu.com, a listing of every Nebraska poetry event (and, yes, there are a lot, see for yourself)and is the Executive Director for the Nebraska Writers Collective.

Mike Mennard has been performing throughout Nebraska, California, West Virginia, Illinois, Oregon, and Montana since 2004. He has produced four albums, Something’s Rotting in the Fridge, When Mother Goose Laid an Egg, Night at the Whaler’s Inn, Pirates… do the Darnedest Things, and We've Got It All In Nebraska. In 2010, he will release his first complete collection of kids' poetry entitled, To the Ledge at the Edge of the Universe. “Mike is a creative genius,” says Cindy Johnson of Hill Elementary School. “Few poets and songwriters have so effectively captured what it is to be a kid. And few have done so as compassionately and humorously as he has. He is a treasure.” Mike lives in Lincoln, Nebraska with his wife, Michelle, and son, Ramsey. He teaches English and Communication at Union College.

Charlene Neely plays with words like a three-year-old plays with blocks -- shuffling them around, stacking up, knocking down and rearranging them until they suit her. She likes the sound, feel and look of words. She has lived in Lincoln and several small towns in Nebraska and Iowa. Charlene is a member of Lincoln Chaparral Poets, Nebraska Chaparral Poets, Nebraska Writers Guild and several other smaller and more informal writing groups which all keep her muse on alert. Her poetry has been published in Plains Song Review; Songs For The Granddaughters; Dreams For Our Daughters; Times of Sorrow, Times of Grace; Nebraska Presence; Perceptions from Nowhere and many other magazines and anthologies.

Kevin Oliver, a classically trained hand bookbinder, has been applying his trade in Lincoln, Nebraska since 1995. Mr. Oliver sees his work as the finishing touch on the many trades and crafts which come together to produce a book. A student of Daphne Beaumont-Wright, one of the finest British bookbinders in the last hundred years, Kevin primarily produces fine bindings and performs restoration work. His specialty is 16th and 17th century period style bindings. He is the owner/operator of Signature Bindery, and as a traditional bookbinder, he only makes use of hand tools and finds simple pleasure in applying gold leaf to fine leather and vellum bindings. Kevin often teaches bookbinding classes and workshops from his home studio.

Maggie Pleskac is the owner of Maggie’s Vegetarian Café and the co-author of Dueling Chefs: A Vegetarian & A Meat Lover Debate the Plate, published by University of Nebraska Press. She is on the board of directors of Open Harvest Natural Foods Grocery and the vice president of Slow Food Nebraska.




Amy Plettner is a student in the University of Nebraska MFA writing program. She lives south of Denton Nebraska where she enjoys the wind, native grasses, fireflies, and moonlight. Her poetry has appeared in the anthologies Nebraska Presence and Times of Sorrow, Times of Grace both from Backwaters Press. Other publications include Plains Song Review, The Omaha World-Herald’s “Everyday Poetry” series, Nebraska Life, Celebrate: A Collection of Women’s Writing, and Bill Kloefkorn’s, radio broadcast, Poetry of the Plains.


Roy Scheele is Poet in Residence at Doane College,where he has taught since 1982. His collection Pointing Out the Sky (Sandhills Press, 1985) was a finalist for the William Carlos Williams Award of the Poetry Society of America in 1986, and in 1993 he won an Individual Artist Award from the Nebraska Arts Council. His latest collection of poems is A Far Allegiance from Backwaters Press. 1993 he won an Individual Artist Fellowship from the Nebraska Arts Council.


Ember Schrag lives in Lincoln, Nebraska, where she curates a vibrant house concert venue and arts community called “Clawfoot House”. She has shared stages with Jake Bellows (Neva Dinova), Lowry, The Bruces, Shelley Short, Mal Madrigal, Samuel Locke Ward, Bill Hoover, You & Yourn and The Chiara Quartet. After performing all around the Midwest for almost eight years, Schrag released her debut album, A Cruel, Cruel Woman, in June of 2009 on Lone Prairie Records. She has a solo EP and second full-length album in the works, and her band appears (along with Jad Fair of Half Japanese) on the LoFidelity Living 5 compilation released by Workerbee in December 2009. She was recently nominated for Best Alternative Singer-Songwriter in the 2010 Omaha Entertainment Awards.

Nancy Sharp Wagner, aka N. L. Sharp, loves to share her enthusiasm and knowledge about writing and the writing process with writers of all ages. A native Nebraskan, Nancy is the author of four picture books. Today I’m Going Fishing with My Dad was a 1995-1996 Nebraska Golden Sower nominee. The Ring Bear was selected by Nebraska’s Center for the Book as the 2004 winner in the children’s category. Effie’s Image was named a 2006 Teachers’ Choice Award Winner by Learning Magazine and a Nebraska Golden Sower nominee for 2007-2008. Her newest picture book, The Flower Girl / The Ring Bear: A Flip-Over Book was just released in January, 2010.
Nancy has presented at schools and libraries, and at reading and writing conferences at the local, state, regional, and national level. She has a Bachelor’s Degree and a Master’s Degree from UNL and a Library Media endorsement from UNO. Nancy has been a classroom teacher in Gretna and Fremont, and a classroom teacher, a READ (Reading, Enrichment, and Development) teacher, an Instructional Facilitator, and a Library Media Specialist for the Millard Public School District in Omaha, Nebraska. She is currently working as an educational writing consultant while she works on two middle-grade novels for children aged 9-12.

Kevin Simonson, an Omaha-based writer, was friends with Hunter S. Thompson, and his interviews with the notorious gonzo journalist have appeared in the pages of Spin, the Aspen Daily Times, Hustler, and the Village Voice. Simonson has also written for Rolling Stone, Thrasher, and Boys' Life. He coeditied Conversations with Hunter S. Thompson (University of Mississippi Press, 2008) with Beef Torrey.


Beef Torrey lives on a small farm near Crete, Nebraska. He is the editor of Conversations with Thomas McGuane (University Press of Mississippi, 2006), senior editor of Conversations with Hunter S. Thompson (University Press of Missiissippi, 2008) and coauthor of Jim Harrison: A Comprehensive Bibliography, 1964-2008 (University of Nebraska Press). His articles, essays, and reviews have appeared in Firsts Magazine, Foreword, Independent Publisher and numerous scholarly and professional journals.

Rex Walton has been writing poetry for nearly twenty years, beginning in the mid 80s as a student of UNL English professors Greg Kuzma, Marcia Southwick, Mordecai Marcus and Warren Fine. He co-edited the English Department's LAURUS undergraduate annual magazine with Season Harper. His poems have been published in literary magazines such as Plainsong, and the Plains Song Review. A poem of his was used as the lyics for Color of Silence, a musical piece by Anthony Lanman (http://www.thenewstyle.org/catalogue.php?id=54). He has hosted The Crescent Moon Reading Series since 2005 and operates “Rex’s Writerly List,” a literary email list with hundreds of subscribers.