Wellstone Books, having lined up a distribution deal with PGW, will be publishing a new edition of Night Running: A Book of Essays About Breaking Through this fall. We’re looking for writers who run to contribute their own essays to the collection, between 2,500 and 4,000 words, with a deadline of March 15 to be considered for publication in this volume.
Our preview edition, published initially with five essays, included contributions from novelist Emily Mitchell, acclaimed author of The Last Summer of the World, ESPN anchor and reporter T.J. Quinn and Pete Danko, a former sportswriter for the Riverside Press-Enterprise and New York Times.
The enhanced version of the book, to be published on September 15, will feature a range of new essays, capturing distinct perspectives but conveying our emphasis on female voices for the collection. Anne Milligan of Portland, Oregon, opens her essay with six devastating words: “I had decided to kill myself.” ESPN writer Bonnie D. Ford launches her essay with a description of learning to hate running.
A run is always a personal journey, and a run at night even more so – the essays in this collection convey that sense of movement and discovery and they represent a great opportunity for new voices to present themselves.
To work in the collection, essays need to:
- have a strong and consistent voice, with first-person writing where needed but not an incessant drumbeat of sentences all starting with “I.”
- open with a strong evocation of a particular time and place, developed in considerable detail – a single run at night should form a major component of the essay, at least one-third to one-half of its focus, and the writer should give the reader the feeling of being along for the run – what did it feel like to be there? what did it look like? how did it smell?
- runs always offer a chance for thoughts – and emotions – to drift in many directions and these essays offer a chance to put running in a larger perspective
Wellstone Books, publisher of the collection, is a new independent publisher in California devoted to developing and publishing personal writing that is not afraid to inspire. Our first title, Holy Toledo by Ken Korach, has more than 100 reviews at Amazon and continues to inspire a passionate following. Other titles coming in 2015 include:
A Book of Walks by Bruce Bochy, manager of the San Francisco Giants, all about how taking long walks through cities or sometimes the countryside helps him keep fit and also helps clear his mind.
One Body Massage by Grace Ku, a massage therapist at Google and also an artist, which tells her own story of giving up a typical hunched-over-the-computer job in favor of a life of helping others relax and find themselves. With original artwork and a mix of practical suggestions and deeper grounding in the philosophical and spiritual foundation on which all massage rests.
Kiss the Sky by Dusty Baker, an account by the former manager of the Giants, Cubs and Reds of his unforgettable experience attending the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, the greatest rock concert ever, part of our Music That Changed My Life series.
Writers with a serious interest in being included should take immediate action. Email Wellstone Books Publisher Steve Kettmann at steve@wellstoneredwoods.org to let him know of your interest, and offer a brief description of what you plan to write. He can help you develop the idea. Deadline for final essays is right around the corner: March 15.