ArtZany Radio with Paula Granquist

On Dec. 31, Paula Granquist of ArtZany! (on KYMN radio Northfield) invited Margi to discuss the final Enchantment Lake mystery book The Silver Box.

Francie’s search for the truth about her mother—and herself—plunges her into danger during a North Woods winter. One ominous clue after another reveal that Francie possesses something so rare and so valuable that some people are willing to do anything to get it.

Everything depends on the small, engraved silver box that she now possesses—if only she can follow its cryptic clues to the whereabouts of her missing mother and understand, finally, just maybe, the truth about who she really is.

Coming Spring of 2022: Lily Leads the Way

A little sailboat has a big burst of determination when a fleet of tall ships needs assistance.

Margi’s latest picture book features Lily the sailboat, small but sturdy, in a harbor full of enormous cargo ships, speedy fishing vessels, and bossy tugboats that all have somewhere to go. And something to say—mostly, “Out of my way, Lily!” But Lily has somewhere to go, too. Out on the lake, the tall ships are coming! To pass from the harbor to the lake, Lily must blow her horn and ask the lift bridge to rise—“Meee-me?”—but the big vessels’ blasts are so much louder as they crowd her out and rock her with waves. Finally, Lily slips under just before the bridge goes down, her sails fluttering with excitement as she spies the majestic barquentine, schooner, and other grand old ships heading toward the now-lowered bridge. Silently! How will the bridge know to rise? Can Lily save the day?

This tale of plucky persistence, illustrated by Matt Myers with the splash and sparkle of a summer day on the water, is sure to empower any child to take charge when the time is right.

Matt is also the illustrator of the Infamous Ratsos chapter book series as well as the picture books E-I-E-I-O: How Old MacDonald Got His Farm (with a Little Help from a Hen) by Judy Sierra and Pirate’s Perfect Pet by Beth Ferry. See more of his work at myerspaints.com.

Margi Preus Presents: “Can I Pull This Off?"

Tuesday, June 8, 2021 from 7:00 - 8:00 PM

Margi Preus Presents, “Can I Pull This Off? And Other Questions That Drive Our Writing And Inspire Our Stories”

Questions lie at the heart of every story. Yes, “What will happen next?” and “How will this turn out?” are forefront, but what other kinds of questions do you pose to the reader? What questions do you ask yourself as you write? Perhaps more importantly, what are the questions that set you, the writer, on this path—the path of this story and the path of writing in general? How can these questions enlighten your reader—and you? As Eugene Ionesco suggested, “It is not the answer that enlightens but the question.”

In this session, hosted by the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild, we’ll ask a lot of questions! We’ll take a look at the questions we raise in our stories, the questions we ask ourselves as we write, and the questions that keep us writing. Maybe we’ll even find a few answers! And we’ll take a look at a handful of first pages (maybe yours?) to see what readers wonder about as they begin the story, and what bigger questions may lurk ahead.

Co-sponsored with the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library and the Eau Claire Community Foundation’s John and Betsy Kell Family Fund!

2021 SELCO Author Talk: Tuesday, May 25

Each year the Southeastern Libraries Cooperating (SELCO) works with local libraries to build regional author tours featuring Minnesota authors. The 2021 author tour includes:

• Brian Freeman: https://bfreemanbooks.com/

• David Housewright: https://www.davidhousewright.com/

• Alison McGhee: https://alisonmcghee.com/

• Margi Preus: https://www.margipreus.com/

Margi’s book, “The Littlest Voyageur” is a finalist in the 2021 Minnesota Book Awards. Her author talk is on Tuesday, May 25 at 6:30pm via Zoom and Facebook live. Learn more at https://legacy.selco.info/author-tour/

Minnesota Book Awards: Meet the 2021 finalists in Middle Grade Literature

Minnesota Book Award winner Kate Allen (The Line Tender, 2020) moderated a discussion between all four 2021 finalists in the competitive Middle Grade Literature category:

• Drew Brockington, author of CatStronauts: Digital Disaster (Little, Brown and Company/Hachette Book Group)

• Anika Fajardo, author of What if a Fish (Simon & Schuster)

• Margi Preus, author of The Littlest Voyageur [illustrated by Cheryl Pilgrim] (Margaret Ferguson Books/Penguin Random House)

• Kurtis Scaletta, author of Lukezilla Beats the Game [illustrated by David Sossella] (Capstone Editions)

The Minnesota Book Awards program is sponsored by Education Minnesota. Education Minnesota is also generously, specifically sponsoring the Middle Grade Literature category in 2021.