December was a busy month for Laotian American writer, Bryan Thao Worra who was officially selected by the National Endowment for the Arts as a 2009 Fellow in Literature for Poetry to continue his work as a Laotian American writer.

NEA Literature Fellowships are awarded to published creative writers of exceptional talent in the areas of prose and poetry to advance the goal of encouraging and supporting artistic creativity and preserving our diverse cultural heritage. The NEA was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government, and the Endowment is the nation’s largest annual funder of the arts.

This year, out of over 1,000 applications received from across the country, only 42 were awarded after being judged by 10 of the country’s leading poets. The award for poetry comes only once every 2 years. The award also comes with $25,000 for Bryan Thao Worra to travel, study and advance awareness of Laotian American poetry and to finish his next book. He considers the honor both a great personal victory and a community victory.

In addition, Bryan Thao Worra celebrated the release of his latest book of poetry, Winter Ink, in collaboration with the acclaimed Minnesota Center for Book Arts. Every year, the Minnesota Center for Book Arts gathers the finest book-making artisans from across the state to produce the Winter Book, and this year was the 20th anniversary of this important project. Thao Worra’s work was selected for the artists to respond to. The book was released in very limited editions and are highly sought after and sells between $30 to $475, depending on the edition.

Under the direction of MCBA Artistic Director Jeff Rathermel,Winter Ink is available in three editions, each letterpress printed under the supervision of master printer Paulette Myers-Rich. The frontice illustration of each edition is by Cathy Ryan, with additional illustrations by Georgia A. Greeley, Scott Helmes, Harriet C. Lievan, Sara Parr, Elizabeth A. Riggle and Patrick Vincent. 

The chapbook edition is limited to 150 copies but is also the most affordable. It is composed of French-folded kozo paper pages between linen cardstock covers. Indigo Moriki and Navy Orgura Lace papers serve as end sheets. The Chapbook Edition was designed by Paulette Myers Rich and Jeff Rathermel and bound by MCBA staff and volunteers under their supervision. At the other end of the spectrum, the $475 deluxe edition is lettered A through Z and signed by Thao Worra, and designed and bound by Jana Pullman.

The deluxe edition is composed of French-folded kozo paper pages with tipped in frontice illustration on gampi paper, bound in green silk and presented in a threefold wraparound case covered in poppy Asahi bookcloth. A suite of three additional prints by Cathy Ryan and Original sumi ink work by Michael Waltz are presented in a similar case. An additional poem of Thao Worra’s, the classic, “Wisdom” is presented with accompanying illustrations by Michael Waltz. The two components of the Deluxe Edition are presented in a green Asahi bookcloth-covered slipcase.

The release party was held on Saturday, December 13th, from 6 to 9 PM with a reading at 7:30 PM at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts at 1011 Washington Ave. S, Minneapolis, MN.  It was an occasion marked with great festiveness and a significant milestone for Bryan Thao Worra, who is now traveling across the US to visit Laotian American communities and their writers and artists.