Writer's Block

​57th Annual UND Writers Conference: ‘Fables & Futures’

February 18th, 2026

Mystery. Whimsy. Tales yet to be told. Join us on the UND campus from Wednesday, March 25, through Friday, March 27, for the 57th Annual UND Writers Conference, “Fables & Futures.”

For centuries, fables have been the long threads guiding us through the labyrinths of the past, the present and the future. We tell each other tales to chart a course along the turbulent seas of our times and to imagine what creatures of the deep might lurk there. And we return to stories, retelling…

Read more...


​A picture is worth a thousand words: Fargo author’s novella adapted into graphic novel

December 18th, 2025

By John Showalter

john.d.showalter@gmail.com

Almost six years ago, I interviewed local author Darrin Albert, pseudonym Blake Alb, about his debut novella “Snowcrow”, a book that explored the sinister side of snowmen. Now, as the weather grows colder and the days grow shorter, the saga of “Snowcrow” has entered a new chapter, crossing into the visual medium. Over the last three years, “Snowcrow” has been adapted into a graphic novel.

Albert describes himself as a writer with a…

Read more...


​Magic or the portrait of a skinny Dorian Gray?

June 19th, 2025

The drug that keeps re-purposing itself

By Ellie Liverani

eli.liverani.ra@gmail.com

There is a drug that is getting a lot of attention nowadays all over the world. It has various commercial names (Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus), but the common scientific name is semaglutide.

It is not a new discovery. In fact, it has been studied since the 70s. But in time, it has been more and more re-purposed, similarly to Viagra, but even more so.

The amount of content (and drama) you can find on…

Read more...


​Magic or the portrait of a skinny Dorian Gray?

June 19th, 2025

The drug that keeps re-purposing itself

By Ellie Liverani

eli.liverani.ra@gmail.com

There is a drug that is getting a lot of attention nowadays all over the world. It has various commercial names (Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus), but the common scientific name is semaglutide.

It is not a new discovery. In fact, it has been studied since the 70s. But in time, it has been more and more re-purposed, similarly to Viagra, but even more so.

The amount of content (and drama) you can find on…

Read more...


​Magic or the portrait of a skinny Dorian Gray?

June 19th, 2025

The drug that keeps re-purposing itself

By Ellie Liverani

eli.liverani.ra@gmail.com

There is a drug that is getting a lot of attention nowadays all over the world. It has various commercial names (Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus), but the common scientific name is semaglutide.

It is not a new discovery. In fact, it has been studied since the 70s. But in time, it has been more and more re-purposed, similarly to Viagra, but even more so.

The amount of content (and drama) you can find on…

Read more...


​Evansville Arts Coalition celebrates with annual Poetry Night

April 22nd, 2025

By Alicia Underlee Nelson

Evansville Arts Coalition (EAC) will celebrate its birthday with an evening of poetry at Evansville Art Center (111 Main St. in Evansville, Minnesota) on Thursday, April 24 at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The event is free and open to all.

The EAC hosted its first Poetry Night in April 1996, shortly after its incorporation as a nonprofit. Except for a pandemic pause in 2020, the event has been held every year since, making it one of longest-running annual…

Read more...


​56th Annual UND Writers Conference: Makers and Machines

February 21st, 2025

In the twenty-first century, the rapid transformation of technology has opened artistry and craftwork to new generations of writers, artists, sculptors, and creators. In the last few decades, the maker movement has modeled this through fairs and makerspaces, which platform working creators, amateurs and hobbyists. YouTube channels and TikTok feeds allow anyone with a smartphone to watch projects unfold. Basements and boardrooms, kitchen tables and community centers — with access to tech…

Read more...


A book review of ‘Dodge County, Inc: Big Ag and the Undoing of Rural America’

February 20th, 2025

By Madeline Luke

mzlnd@yahoo.com

Ferguson Books in downtown Fargo hosted Sonya Trom Eayrs in November for the release of her book about the takeover of rural southern Minnesota by large animal factory farms or CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations). She is a Minneapolis lawyer, but also the farm manager daughter of a third generation farmer, Lowell Trom, who — until he died at the age of 90 — worked his 760-acre legacy farm and fought those who would ruin it saying, “enough is…

Read more...


Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening (a MAGA response)

November 23rd, 2024

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

By Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.

His house is in the village though;

He will not see me stopping here

To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer

To stop without a farmhouse near

Between the woods and frozen lake

The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound’s the sweep

Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and…

Read more...


​New independent bookstores arrive in Fargo-Moorhead

April 18th, 2024

Alicia Underlee Nelson

alicia@hpr1.com

“I think you can tell a lot about a community by the health of its bookstore, because people make a choice,” said Danny Caine, author of “50 Ways to Protect Bookstores” and the co-owner of a bookshop in Kansas. “The people value art, community, they probably value local food and local restaurants. The human booksellers will never be replaced by algorithms or machines.”

If that’s the case, the Fargo-Moorhead community is going strong.…

Read more...


Tracker Pixel for Entry Blackbird Tracker Pixel for Entry WurstWest Tracker Pixel for Entry 7Clans Tracker Pixel for Entry UND Tracker Pixel for Entry Empire Tracker Pixel for Entry Bismarck

Recently in:

By Bryce Vincent Haugen By his own account, Edwin Chinchilla is lucky to still be in the United States. As a 12-year-old Salvadoran, he and his brother were packed into a semi with a couple dozen other people and given fake…

By Michael M. Miller Rev. Salomon Joachim, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church, Beulah, North Dakota., delivered an address to the Western Conference of the Dakota District of the American Lutheran Church in 1939. His presentation was…

Wednesday, March 25, Group lesson 7 p.m., Dance 9 p.m.Sons of Norway, 722 2nd Avenue North, FargoCare to dance? If you don’t already know how to dance, the Northern Lights Dance Club can show you a thing or two about social…

By John StrandDisclaimer: This editorial is the work of someone who’s spent most of his adult life working in the media — most of those years co-owning this very entity, the High Plains Reader, since 1996. The notion that folks…

By Ed RaymondBernie Sanders is on the world’s longest and oldest walkaboutAdolescent Australian Aboriginal males often volunteer to challenge the transition to adulthood by performing well (that means staying alive) in a…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Sabrina Hornung There’s a Bosnian saying that states simply, “It’s a sin to throw away bread,” which really resonates with me — especially growing up with grandparents who lived through the Second World War and the Great…

The Slow Death at The AquariumSaturday, March 21, doors at 7:30 p.m. The Aquarium above Dempsey’s, 226 N. Broadway, FargoThe Slow Death is a punk supergroup led by Jesse Thorson, with members and collaborators that include…

By Greg CarlsonFilmmaker Elizabeth Chatelain returned to the Fargo Film Festival with the new feature “Bigfoot Woods,” which screened on Saturday, March 21 at the Fargo Theatre. She was joined by several members of the…

Saturday, March 7, 4-8 p.m.Swing Barrel Brewing, 814 Central Ave., MoorheadEmpty Bowls is a nationwide, grassroots, artist-led movement to support hunger related organizations in their communities. On March 7, prepare to fill your…

Saturday, January 31, 6:30-9 p.m.Transfiguration Fitness, 764 34th St. N., Unit P, FargoAn enchanting evening celebrating movement and creativity in a staff-student showcase. This is a family-friendly event showcasing pole, aerial…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By Ellie Liverani In November 2025, the FDA initiated the removal of the “black box” warning from Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). The “black box” warning is a FAD safety warning for healthcare providers and patients…

January 31, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.Viking Ship Park, 202 1st Ave. N., Moorhead2026 marks 10 years of frosty fun! Enjoy sauna sessions with Log the Sauna, try Snowga (yoga in the snow), take a guided snowshoe nature hike, listen to live…

By Jim FuglieI’m feeling a little mean right now. It doesn’t happen often, but I tend to pay attention to politics and politicians and I’m pretty disappointed in one of our politicians right now. So I’m going to be mean to…