Almost a decade ago, I started a newsletter about literary happenings in the Twin Cities and the surrounding areas. I was struck by two things:

1) The sheer volume of writers working here.
2) The lack of a central space–physical or virtual–for those writers to learn about, and learn from, each other.

In an attempt to fill this void, I started the Lester Literary Update. “Lester Loam” is the state soil. According to USDA: These soils are very productive and of significant importance to the economy in Minnesota.

I always felt inspired to see the great work my colleagues were doing, and I hoped others would feel the same. But while it was fun to do, it was an enormous amount of work. I wasn’t able to keep it up on a regular basis.

I wondered if I switched to a subscription model, it would make it more feasible. So I turned the Update into the Quarterly. The first issue is out, and you can subscribe here: https://lester.substack.com

The cost is $20 for four issues. If you subscribe RIGHT NOW, you’ll get a FREE CREDIT for my audio tour: IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF PRINCE: Downtown Minneapolis Walking Tour. The tour retails for $14.99, so you could argue that your subscription is only $5.01.

Here’s what’s inside the spring issue of the Lester Literary Quarterly:

A FREE PRINCE TOUR….IF YOU SUBSCRIBE BEFORE THE END OF APRIL (When code expires)
Exclusive interview with Laurie Hertzel about her new book, Ghosts of Fourth Street.
The most powerful writing about the ICE invasion.
Noteable Stories from the North
Lester Literary News & Opportunities
New Books by Minnesota (and Wisconsin) Writers!

In future issues, we’ll be talking to agents, podcasters, screenwriters, poets, publishers, novelists nonfiction writers and more. Sign up if you want to know about all the great work coming out of our northern literary scene: https://lester.substack.com/