For the City Times

A student-run publishing company at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point will launch its newest book, a collection of short stories, with several activities the week of Dec. 4.

Cornerstone Press will release “The Appointed Hour” by Susanne Davis at 7 PM Thursday, Dec. 7, in The Encore at the Dreyfus University Center (DUC). Open to the public, the event will include live music, refreshments and featured speakers, including the author. “The Appointed Hour” will be available for purchase at the event or online at www.uwsp.edu/cornerstone. Previous publications are also available at this address. For more information, visit @uwspcornerstonepress on Facebook.

In addition, Cornerstone Press is hosting the following events:
· Monday, Dec. 4 – Ornament decorating, 6:30 p.m., Laird Room, DUC

· Tuesday, Dec. 5 – Poetry Open Mic Night, 6:30 p.m., Basement Brewhaus, DUC

· Wednesday, Dec. 6 – Cookie Swap, 7 p.m., Laird Room, DUC

· Friday, Dec. 8 – Book Signing, 1-3 p.m., University Bookstore, DUC; Book Talk/Writing Workshop with the author, 4-6 p.m., Collins Classroom Center Room 227

“The Appointed Hour,” set in rural Connecticut, includes stories about characters whose roots run deep in the land. In one story, a woman experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder finds her voice in communion with other women. In another, a Mayflower descendant wrestles with the legacy of a controversial monument that honors his ancestor. These stories shine a compassionate light on a changing rural America. In early praise for the book, Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of “Pictures of You,” has called it a “shatteringly original collection.”

Davis teaches creative writing as a visiting assistant professor at Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., and an adjunct professor at the University of Connecticut in Storrs. Her stories have been featured in numerous journals. She is a past winner of the Hemingway First Novel Competition, a finalist for the Reynolds Price Short Fiction Award and the runner-up in the University of Kentucky Press New Poetry and Prose Series competition. Davis is graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop master’s degree program and earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of Connecticut.

Cornerstone Press, established in 1984, is made up of students in the Editing and Publishing class offered each fall at UW-Stevens Point. It operates with the support of the English Department and is taught by Ross Tangedal, an assistant professor of English. Students have hands-on experiences in all aspects of publishing, from editing to marketing the finished product.

“They not only learn the practical elements of bookmaking, but they also learn how to work together, to communicate professionally and with candor,” Tangedal said. “I am proud to be a part of such a legacy.”