Topic: A Tribute to Annie Proulx!

[shakestheground]

Some friends and meself have come together with the intent to see Annie Proulx nominated for a Nobel Prize in Literature for her body of work. If you are interested in this, please feel free to visit your yahoo group site:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nominate_annie/

I Quixotean task no doubt, but we may learn something yet.

 

[tpe]

Some friends and meself have come together with the intent to see Annie Proulx nominated for a Nobel Prize in Literature for her body of work. If you are interested in this, please feel free to visit your yahoo group site:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nominate_annie/

I Quixotean task no doubt, but we may learn something yet.

 

Thanks shakestheground.

Alhough I don't think AP would need a Nobel to validate the worth of her work, it is a nice idea to work for it. 

[shakestheground]

Thank you, I don't know how far we will get with this, we have to find someone amongst those who are eligible to nominate her. Everything can be a learning experence, I hope it will be good.

[tpe]

Thank you, I don't know how far we will get with this, we have to find someone amongst those who are eligible to nominate her. Everything can be a learning experence, I hope it will be good.

Whatever happens, I know that she is a marvelous and evocative writer.

[The Artifact]

Me too, I've no idea if Proulx would need a Nobel or how difficult is to work for it. But, sure, that's fascinating!

[Lynne]

This is my initial post as an EnnisJack user - so please bear with me!!

I think we're finally getting this project off the ground - wish us luck!!!  I just sent this message to our nominate_Annie yahoo group.  I added bold type to the parts where we could really use input!  If you have input, post here or PM me or Truman (shakestheground)!  Much obliged.

Friends,

During the last few weeks, we have put together a terrific group of people interested in this project from the different major Internet groups - BetterMost, Dave Cullen, EnnisJack, and Yahoo.  We now have an impressive cross-section of folks coming together for the worthy cause of lobbying for Annie Proulx to win a Nobel Prize - the only major literary prize she has not yet been awarded.

Here are my ideas - my 'three-pronged plan' - of what we need to do to realize our goals.  Clearly, absolutely nothing is cast in stone, so please feel free to comment, interject your own views, opinions, or criticisms.

First, we need to build a database of potential nominators, which will include College/University, Department Director, and contact information.  I do not mind taking the lead here because building databases is my current career (translate - easy).  I've done some cursory queries of renown English/Creative Writing departments - the potential list is in the hundreds, if not approaching 1,000!  I would like each of our alma maters, or those of our parents, or others where we have personal connections, where applicable, to be included in this database.  Please send me these college and/or university names (lynne_steele@yahoo.com), and I will be sure they are included and annotated appropriately.

Next, we obviously have a large body of information at our disposal regarding Annie Proulx and Brokeback Mountain.  However, the Nobel is awarded for a 'body of work.'  There is a definite hole in (at least my own knowledge base) regarding her other works, although I have read most of them.  Consequently, we need to gather resources (literary criticism and commentary) of Annie Proulx that are not BBM-centric. And we need someone to volunteer to take the lead in accumulating these additional resources.  Email me if you have interest, please!!  This is going to be a most challenging part, IMO.

Finally, we need some real-life BBM-testimonials to include as part of our nomination package.  I'm not envisioning hundreds - more like 5-15 poignant stories about how BBM made a significant difference to an individual life, ruthlessly culled (by necessity) from the thousands we know are out there.  Truman (shakestheground@yahoo.com) has expressed interest in accumulating these stories.  (Obviously, we will need the permission of the original posters to duplicate their [edited] posts in our package.)  The first order of business should be for each of us to identify a few (5?) personal stories (our own or others we've read about) that touched us deeply.  Please post or send Truman and/or me the pertinent links.  We can go from there.

Now - a timetable...

Some of us are planning to be in Denver (Estes Park) for Memorial Day weekend.  This date would make an excellent goal for reviewing our progress.

My goal is to have the potential nominator database completed by 5/1/2007.  This would give me the opportunity to send it to the group for review before Mem Day and to solicit additional input at the gathering.

It would be awesome to have a draft of the nomination package completed before Mem Day.  I envision this as an ongoing work in the coming months as we gather information and testimonials.  I imagine we will be through several drafts before 5/1.

Perhaps we should set intermediate goals of
Draft 1 - 4/1
Draft 2 - 4/15
Draft 3 = 5/1
Draft 4 = 5/15

We could then have the latest draft to distribute to a wider group at the Mem Day gathering for additional input.  This means that most input regarding literary criticism and analysis references and testimonials should be in place ASAP to 4/1 to give us time to write.

Ultimately, we will have through mid-July to make revisions and finalize our nomination package and distribution list.  We should be ready to mail our nomination package NLT 8/1/2007, which is when the Nobel committee starts soliciting nominations.

Please mark your calendar with these important dates and respond with feedback and any information you can gather (including if coming to Denver/Estes Park for Memorial Day is in your plans)!!!

Thank you in advance for all your hard work!!!

Best,
Lynne

P.S.
The general website for the Estes Park gathering:
http://www.brokeback2007.com/

The BetterMost link to the Estes Park gathering (registration required):
http://bettermost.net/forum/index.php/topic,5791.msg156368.html#msg156368

[septuaginarian]

The following link is to a good, scholarly critique of Accordion Crimes:

http://www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/AHR/archive/Issue-Sept-1996/smith.html

[lamusica]

As individuals, is there anything we can do to promote this cause?  Anyone we can write to, or contact in any way?  I have the time and inclination to help in any way I can, so please let me -- us-- know how to do that.  It is not an issue whether or not Annie needs a Nobel, but it the rightness of the idea at stake here.  Her writing is the voice of a section of this country that is not always visible to the rest of the world, but integral to the history and total picture of the United States; therefore, her work is enormously important sociologically, as well as outstanding in the total field of American Literature.  Long live Annie Proulx!

[Romeo164]

This is probably for the record as I don't think the author of the first post is with us in this forum anymore. I have to agree with what what he/she said...an almost unwanted intrusion into your life. I've never thought of that but it is true. Ennis said, "Because of you Jack, that's why I'm like this." In some way I suppose we could paraphrase it to say this about Annie, "Because of your story (which led to the magnificent film), that's why we're like this.

Thanks Seb for seconding the opinion.

[tpe]

And thank you, Romeo164, for sharing thios with us.

Years have passed since the initial post, and we still feel very much the same way.