• Home
  • As seen on …
    • Advocacy Work
  • About the writer
  • Contact Me
  • Portfolio
  • Get Involved
    • Bloglovin
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

Kathryn Mayer • Writing Out Loud

I write stuff down. writer • humorist • activist

No joke: you are reading a National Award-Winning Columnist

June 11, 2018 by Kate Mayer 4 Comments

Fight or flight? I chose flight after a fight with my rather attractive pain-in-the-ass husband and flew to Cincinnati.

Just for the weekend, but that’s why I left for the National Society for Newspaper Columnists writing conference. In Cincinnati. For the weekend.

That, and I was an invited guest. For reals.

A couple months back, I was informed I would receive some level of recognition – yet to be determined – at NSNC awards banquet in Cincinnati.

Me. I was thrilled to make the cut, but had no intention of attending, as the last kid’s last sports season and playoffs and didn’t want to miss a second of turf time.

Then high school lax lost, and season and my career of 20 odd years of bleacher ass was forced into retirement, so I immediately registered for the conference, in Cincinnati, but it sold out so I was outta time and outta luck. No room for me. Bleacher ass and all.

However, as a nominated finalist, all was not lost. I could still eat.

I was invited to attend awards banquet, so after the aforementioned fight with my rather-attractive-pain-in-the-ass husband, I left on a jet plane to Cincinnati thanks to cheap flight and cheaper hotel because lacrosse lost and I could.

A writer walked into a bar

I didn’t know a soul, but forced myself into an awkward meet ‘n greet at the bar with another nominee who, he too, just showed up for the awards, who happens to be an physician and popular speaker who gets $5-7 grand per speaking engagement – when he has time, because he is a doctor – and has over a million views – “OVER a million, easily” – on his columns – at the very least – and shared this with the bravado only a middle-aged white man can – and, oh yeah, this: he 100% supports the NRA and in no way is it a terrorist organization and just what do I mean when I say ban assault weapons because, “honey, you really should refrain from talking about guns until you know a little something about guns.”

Or something like that. Couldn’t hear him mansplain that clearly with all that ego suffocating my ear canals.

Perhaps I should have stayed home and fought with my husband.

Instead, I got my drink to go, left a big fat tip for the unfortunate bartender, bid a fond, fuck-you-adieu to the overpaid barfly, and wandered into the banquet hall where I found myself surrounded by real live newspaper people, writers from all over the country – Michigan, Texas, Maine, California, Rhode Island – Ohio-Ohio-Ohio (and Kentucky) – all getting paid to tell stories, in tiny towns and big ass urban cities, from sea to shining sea.

It was amazing.

Now, more than ever, is the time to write what is wrong

Pulitzer prize-winning columnist Connie Schultz took to the stage to deliver her 2018 Ernie Pyle Lifetime Achievement Award keynote and was unapologetic about using words to reveal injustice, fight atrocities, give voice to the marginalized, and promote the powerless. Give the woman a cape. And a keyboard.

Kate Mayer selfie w big time writer/thinker/doer Connie Schultz

“I won’t stop until every paper in America refuses to publish me.”

Damn.

And I felt better about the world, and also giving the side-eye to the aforementioned NRA barfly.

Then the moment arrived, and knowing I won something, honorable mention at the very least, was very honorable indeed.

The winners were announced by circulation, larger markets writing words and ideas for the likes of The Boston Globe, USA Today, and Chicago Sun Times, Philadelphia, New York Times – in-print and online with circulation way bigger than just my mother, and her friends.

Winner winner chicken dinner: Kathryn Mayer NSNC 2018

In my category, not only did I not know my analytics, I don’t even know where to find them:

Humor writing on-line, blog, and multimedia columns with under 50,000 monthly unique visitors.

This I know: I don’t have 50k visitors in a lifetime, and this past year, I wrote very little, but apparently I wrote enough because, people: I am officially a NATIONAL AWARD-WINING COLUMNIST. SECOND PLACE. They gave me this cool badge, a certificate, and A CHECK which was for real American dollars, and actually referenced by boobs in the judges’ comments. I kid you not.

National Award winning columnist is Newtown writer Kathryn Mayer

You had no idea, right? I get it, neither did I. But now I do. Signatures, upon request. And thank you for reading, sharing, and laughing when warranted. I so appreciate your eyes on my words.

Writer Kate Mayer received NSNC award from Connie Schultz and Lisa Smith Molinari

 


What do you want to drive into the next chapter?
The Lucky Bastard on Purple Clover

Comments

  1. Tracy Moreno says

    June 30, 2018 at 7:39 am

    So happy and proud of you my friend????.

    Reply
    • Kate Mayer says

      June 30, 2018 at 8:56 am

      thx love. congrats on your 2/2 successful humans!

      Reply
  2. DOUGLAS A PUGH says

    July 1, 2018 at 11:02 pm

    This business about this lady being an award-winning columnist – it’s true.
    I was at The National Society of Newspaper Columnists banquet sitting at a table with my wife and others – including this gal Kate – when the announcement was made that she – that Kate – had won an award. The National Society of Newspaper Columnists is a national association. I know that too because I’m a member – so it was indeed, a national award she won.

    Anyway, the Kate who got the award is the same Kate whose picture appears above. I found out later her name is Kathryn Mayer.

    Reply
    • Kate Mayer says

      July 2, 2018 at 8:41 am

      Awww, Doug. Was a honor and a pleasure to sit with, eat, and chat with you and your smart, funny wife! Thx for making it such a fun event.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Never Miss A Post!
Enter your email address below to receive updates in your Inbox.
No Spam. Promise.
Rams hubbard
Follow @kathykatemayer Tweets by @kathykatemayer

kathykatemayer

Writing out loud. Storyteller. Humorist. Activist. Newtown, CT #insidethoughts #humor #emptynest #midlife #endgunviolence #binders

Instagram post 2196712687793111127_3465815 It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.
•
•
#newtownct #showoff #backyardbeauty #getoutside #freshairtherapy #winterwonderland
Instagram post 2195382354598502797_3465815 Off the towering to-be-read pile and onto the read and loved stack. Snuck an hour on the couch with Lola, Rita, and Elissa this rainy day.  Highly recommend to everyone except my mom, who is nothing like Rita, except for the not so small similarity that she will remind me 1000x that she is nothing like Rita. •
•
#bookshelf #tobereadpile #amreading #writersread #greatwriter #betterdaughterthaniam #memoirsofmotherhood #mothersanddaughters #connecticutwriters #agingparents #caregiver #caregiving #lovehate #saveyourself
Instagram post 2194770824244926789_3465815 Maaaa!!! Brooklyn goes to Maine. Real life reported in real time. This is way better then my weekend wrap up feel good bullshit. Way better.
Instagram post 2182800025514454810_3465815 Hitting snooze again and again. And again. Sleeping in. Lola having a super tough time getting up ‘n at ‘em this morning and wants to know why can’t the weekend start now?
•
#lazydays #dogdays #10moreminutes #earlymorningthoughts #muttsofinstagram #spoileddog #luckypup
Instagram post 2170798090661998884_3465815 Wrote an essay comparing functioning government to vaginas. Healthy vag vs notsomuch. Got a lotta love for it, and a little bit of hate, but this text right here is the best!Did you vote? You better cuz a healthy government counts on it!
•#vote #voting #electionday #localelections #beheard #municipalelection #votingissexy #bethechange #electionday #resist #thinkglobalactlocal #ctpolitics #gotv #getoutthevote #createchange #writingoutloud
Instagram post 2170492134581379823_3465815 Wearing RGB and Lola to the polls. •
#Newtown #SandyHook #RBG #newtowndems #civicduty #vote #voting #electionday #localelections #beheard #bethechange #electionday #thinkglobalactlocal #ctpolitics #gotv #getoutthevote #createchange #writingoutloud
Instagram post 2169954884605058029_3465815 Voting is the #1 way to fix what’s broken, send a message, and give you platform of credibility to comment on future community decisions.Also, my sister got a llama. His name is Tina. •
•#vote #voting #electionday #localelections #beheard #bethechange #electionday #thinkglobalactlocal #ctpolitics #gotv #votelikeyouhaveayeastinfection #getoutthevote #createchange #writingoutloud #ctdems #newtowndems
#gunlawssavelives #votegunsense #enough #honorwithaction
Instagram post 2167811177147690811_3465815 Newtown: put in your calendar — don’t forget to vote Tuesday. Local elections keep out community afloat. Don’t know who to vote for? Ask some you respect. Or ask someone you don’t, and do the opposite. There’s incredibly talented candidates running. Amazeballs. •
•
#vote #thinkglobalactlocal #ctpolitics #Newtown #SandyHook #imvotingalldems #ctdems #newtowndemocrats #electwomen #electmenwhoempowerwomen
Instagram post 2166442946000370589_3465815 Why can’t we have nice things?? Beto came to Newtown for #endgunviolence round table courtesy of @newtownactionalliance. The questions, especially from the students in the audience, were smart, multi-faceted, thorough, tough, and inclusive; his answers personal, smart, educated, vulnerable. He’s the real deal.Even TrumpHumper disrupter couldn’t dampen an extraordinary evening.
•
•
#endgunviolence #futureisbright #ctdems #newtowndtc #ctagainstgunviolence #momsdemand #banassaultweapons #gunlawssavelives #votegunsense #enough #honorwithaction #supercutetoo #whycantwehavenicethings
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Categories

Lucky Me!

Archives

About Kathryn Mayer

CT writer humorist activist kathryn mayer

An irreverent storyteller with a foul mouth and big heart, Kathryn Mayer (also known by Kathy and Kate), is a writer, humorist, and activist writing out loud with humor and grace about the little moments of life with big ripples, including parenting, social issues, midlife, and, sigh, gun violence prevention. Sometimes a big deal, sometimes notMayer is national award-winning columnist, according to the National Society of Newspaper Columnists, and her essays have been recognized as Voice of the Year from SheKnows/BlogHer, named Best … Read More Here...

Never Miss A Post!
Enter your email address below to receive updates in your Inbox.
No Spam. Promise.
75 kate[at]kathrynmayer[dot]com
xo Kate
  • Home
  • As seen on …
  • About the writer
  • Contact Me
  • Portfolio
  • Get Involved

Copyright © 2019 Kathryn Mayer Designed By: J9 Designs