UMD News Releases

Duluth, MN – UMD’s writing studies department will host a Writing Studies Showcase on Tuesday, October 22 from 12 to 2 p.m. The event will be held in the Kirby Rafters, across from the Kirby Ballroom, 1120 Kirby Drive. The event is free and open to the public.

The Writing Studies Showcase is designed to introduce UMD students to people who are professional writers. Guests from the community include:

Tony Dierckins – Dierkins has written nearly two-dozen books, publishes Duluth's Zenith City Online, and Zenith City Press.

Chris Monroe – Duluth writer and illustrator Chris Monroe may be best known for her beloved Monkey with a Tool Belt series. She recently collaborated with storyteller Kevin Kling on My Little Big Brother and continues her weekly comic strip Violet Days, which is published in the Star Tribune and Duluth News Tribune.

Tom Olsen – Olsen is the crime and courts reporter for the Duluth News Tribune.

Margi Preus – Author of 2011 Newbery Honor Book Heart of a Samurai.

Molly Solberg – Known to many as “Duluth Pack Molly,” Solberg specializes in social media as the director of sales and marketing at Duluth Pack.

Jenn Walch – A UMD grad, Walch is a news anchor at the Northland’s News Center

Naomi Yaeger – Yaeger is the editor of the Duluth Budgeteer News.

Julie Zenner – (’87) Zenner has more than 25 years experience as a professional writer, enjoying careers in broadcast journalism, video production, and advertising/public relations before starting a home-based writing and editorial services company.

Elizabethada A. Wright, the event organizer, hopes to inspire students considering writing as a profession, “The commonality between all of our guests is that writing is fundamental part of their careers. By allowing our students to get to know them, we’re showcasing the variety of job options that writers have.”

There will be a scavenger hunt designed to facilitate interaction between guests and students and information tables so that students can learn about writing opportunities at UMD.