Golden Crown Literary Society

The Golden Crown Literary Society (GCLS)—the premier organization for the support and nourishment of quality lesbian literature—has finalized its board of directors for 2008 with the addition of MJ Lowe and Kate Sweeney. Kathy L. Smith, Executive Director of the GCLS, made this announcement to the membership: “Each of the individuals who make up this board brings to the organization an extraordinary skill set, a commitment to the present and future of lesbian literature, and a passion for the success of the GCLS. We are looking forward to introducing the board in person to the membership at the Fourth Annual GCLS Literary Conference to be held July 30 – August 3, 2008, in Phoenix, Arizona.”

The members of the board and their areas of responsibility are as follows. Biographical information for each director can be found on pages two and three of this release: Kathy L. Smith, Director of Administration and Operations; Lynn Ames, Director of Public Relations and Media; Lori L. Lake, Director of Education and Program Development; MJ Lowe, Director of Marketing; Patty Schramm, Director of Events and Special Programs; Katherine Smith, Director of Technology and Web Development; Kate Sweeney, Director of Fundraising.

The GCLS thanks departing board members Len Barot, Linda Hill, Cathy LeNoir, and Cheri Rosenberg for their contributions to the board and the organization.

The Golden Crown Literary Society was founded in early 2004. The GCLS conference, the organization’s signature event, is devoted to celebrating a unique partnership: more than a dozen publishers and distributors representing more than two hundred lesbian fiction titles, more than eighty authors, numerous editors, several book cover designers, and close to three hundred readers and supporters will attend the event, all with the goal of supporting, nourishing, and promoting quality lesbian literature. Members of the board of directors serve on a voluntary basis and receive no monetary compensation for their service.

For more information, please visit the GCLS website at: www.goldencrown.org.

Kathy L. Smith, Executive Director and Director of Administration and Operations
Kathy Smith was a founding member of the Golden Crown Literary Society in 2004 and is currently the president of StarCrossed Productions, an online bookselling company that sells lesbian books. An author, avid reader, and also a former publisher, Kathy brings a unique and knowledgeable background for the benefit of the GCLS. She has served on the board of directors of the Golden Crown Literary Society since its inception and has also served as the director of the conference every year since it began. Kathy accepted the position of Executive Director of the Golden Crown Literary Society in March 2007 and will serve on the board of directors as director of administration and operations.

Lynn Ames, Director of Public Relations and Media
Lynn Ames is a popular author of romances, thriller novels, and short stories. For more than half a decade, Ms. Ames was an award-winning broadcast journalist. She has also served stints as press secretary to the New York state senate minority leader, and spokesperson for the nation's third-largest prison system. These days she is a nationally recognized speaker and public relations professional with a particular expertise in image, crisis communications planning, and crisis management. Lynn has served on the GCLS board of directors for three years and will continue to manage public relations and media needs.

Lori L. Lake, Director of Education and Program Development
Lori L. Lake is a founding member of the GCLS. She has published six novels, a collection of short fiction, and edited two anthologies, including the Lambda Literary Finalist The Milk of Human Kindness. Lori is a 2007 recipient of the Alice B. Award, and her work has been short-listed for a number of other awards. She has a double major in English and Political Science from Lewis & Clark College and a master's degree in Literature from Hamline University. Lori teaches fiction writing courses at The Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, the largest literary center in the nation. She also presents seminars and workshops on writing topics such as dialogue, plot, the writing process, point of view, character building, and form and structure in the modern novel. Lori has served as director or co-director of programming each year for the GCLS Literary Convention and has served on the board of directors since the GCLS inception. Lori brings her wealth of experience to the GCLS as director of education and program development.

MJ Lowe, Director of Marketing
MJ Lowe is a Southern Dyke transplant to the Rocky Mountains. She first discovered lesbian lit at the university library when she was a young thing sneaking over to read the books shelved at HQ 76.3. That was over 25 years ago and she hasn't stopped reading it since. She has an MA in U.S. History from Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, and a Masters in Library Science from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. She researched and presented “Outing the National Register: Historic Sites Related to Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals” at the 1997 annual meeting of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. She's reviewed lesbian lit for Midwest Book Review and history titles for professional library journals going back over the past decade. MJ works in a public library in the metro Denver area. She is very proud to join the board of Golden Crown Literary Society as director of marketing, bringing her perspective as a long-time lesbian fiction reader, spanning both the good old days and the great new ones.

Patty Schramm, Director of Events and Special Programs
Patty Schramm has been a steady and reliable volunteer with the Golden Crown Literary Society since its inception. She has served the past two years as the volunteer director for the GCLS Literary Convention and has also edited The Crown Newsletter, which is currently in hiatus. Patty will be serving as director of events and special programs.

Katherine Smith, Director of Technology and Web Development
Katherine Smith has served on the GCLS board of directors for two years. She is the owner of Byte Size Media, located in Toronto, Canada. Katherine has served as the GCLS webmaster since its inception, and her expertise in web development and technology makes her
the perfect choice as director of technology and web development for the GCLS.

Kate Sweeney, Director of Fundraising

Kate Sweeney is the author of the Kate Ryan Mysteries series. She won the GCLS Debut Author Goldie in 2006 for She Waits, the first in this series. An advocate of marketing and promotion, Kate was a sponsor for the Gay Olympic Games held in her hometown of Chicago in 2006. This is Kate’s first year as a board member and she understands the importance of networking and working together for a common goal: The promotion of lesbian literature. For this reason, Kate will serve as the director of fundraising.