For Immediate Release
Contact: Nicole Hernandez
Marketing and Communications Coordinator
Aspen Writers’ Foundation
970.925.3122, ext. 2# | nicole@aspenwriters.org
Aspen, CO, February 23, 2010 –– The Aspen Writers’ Foundation, a program of the Aspen Institute, is pleased to announce the participation of bestselling debut novelist, David Wroblewski, in the 13th Annual Winter Words series. Wroblewski is the breakout author of the 2008 New York Times bestselling novel, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. The event will start at 5:30 pm on Thursday, February 25th, at the Given Institute in Aspen, CO, and will feature a public reading and talk followed by a Q&A session and a book signing. Tickets are $15 for an individual and $10 for a student or teacher with a valid school ID. As a full-capacity audience is expected for this program, early ticket purchasing is encouraged. Doors will open 30 minutes prior to the start of the event, and unclaimed tickets, if any, will be on sale at the door.
For a debut novel to receive the unbridled critical praise and widespread attention that The Story of Edgar Sawtelle has upon publication is rare. For that book to win the 2009 Colorado Book Award for Fiction, be chosen as an Oprah Book Club selection, and be heralded by critics as “the great American novel,” is exceptional. And, for literary stardom to land in the lap of a first time novelist in midlife, is almost unheard of. But that is precisely what happened to David Wroblewski. And, it happened as a direct result of his participation in the 2005 Aspen Summer Words Writing Retreat where he work-shopped this book.
“We consider David Wroblewksi to be our platinum success story,” says Aspen Writers’ Foundation executive director Lisa Consiglio. “We’re proud that this organization played a part in The Story of Edgar Sawtelle finding its way to publication, and we are thrilled to introduce Aspen audiences to this magical book, and to the fantastic literary talent that is David Wroblewski.”
David Wroblewski grew up in rural central Wisconsin on a small and somewhat ramshackle farm. His mother raised dogs in their barn and Wroblewski spent a good part of his childhood doing odd jobs and honing his puppy-wrangling skills. In time, both the barn and the land, transported 100 miles to the north, would become the setting for The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. Wroblewski lives on Colorado’s Front Range and holds a creative writing degree from the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers.
For more information on Winter Words or to purchase tickets, please call the Aspen Writers’ Foundation (AWF) at 970-925-3122, or visit www.aspenwriters.org. Tickets may also be purchased through the Wheeler Opera House at www.aspenshowtickets.com or by calling 970-920-5770.
Ticket levels include:
? Winter Words single tickets: $15 individual; $10 student/educator with current school ID.
? Author Salon (includes Winter Words reading and talk plus a reception in a private home): $40 single ticket ? for AWF members only. Annual memberships, starting at $100, are accepted at any time of the year.
Tickets are on sale now for future events. Upcoming speakers include:
March 8
Anita Shreve, critically acclaimed best-selling author of The Pilot’s Wife and A Change in Altitude
Wheeler Opera House
March 11
Tobias Wolff, PEN/Faulkner Award-winning author of This Boy’s Life and Old School
The Given Institute
The Aspen Writers’ Foundation, Colorado’s oldest nonprofit literary organization and a program of the Aspen Institute, has been bringing readers and writers together since 1976. The organization’s mission is to provide programs that encourage writers in their craft and readers in their appreciation of literature. Through its repertoire of ten year-round programs and projects, the Aspen Writers’ Foundation annually serves 100,000-plus literary enthusiasts of all ages.
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