Artist Initiative

Project Details by Fiscal Year
2018 Fiscal Year Funding Amount
$10,000
Fund Source
Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund
Recipient
Martin Lewis. Cozza
Recipient Type
Individual
Status
Completed
Start Date
January 2018
End Date
December 2018
Activity Type
Grants/Contracts
Counties Affected
Hennepin
Ramsey
Hennepin
Ramsey
Project Overview

Artist Initiative

Project Details

Cozza will complete a final draft of his fantasy novel for children, "Vincent's Lens," which explores a child's grappling with the meaning of mortality after his father's death.

Competitive Grant Making Body
Board Members and Qualifications

Ardell Brede: Mayor of Rochester, elected 2002; Peggy Burnet: Businesswoman, art collector, and community volunteer. Member of the Smithsonian National Board. Former chair of the board, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Chair, Minnesota State Arts Board.; Uri Camarena: Business consultant, Metropolitan Economic Development Association. Board chair, Minneapolis College of Art and Design.; Michael Charron: Dean of the School of the Arts, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. Officer at -Large, Minnesota State Arts Board.; Rebecca Davis-Lee: Touring pianist, piano and music theory teacher. Vice Chair, Minnesota State Arts Board.; Sean Dowse, Mayor of Red Wing, elected 2016. Former executive director, Sheldon Theatre. Board member for Minnesota Citizens for the Arts. Secretary/Treasurer, Minnesota State Arts Board.; Thomas Moss: Consultant to nonprofits and government agencies.; Dobson West: Senior advisor, Spell Capital Partners Fund; Christina Widdess: Arts organization consultant; former managing director, Penumbra Theatre. Vice Chair, Minnesota State Arts Board.

Advisory Group Members and Qualifications

Ashley Benites: Novelist, writing instructor, Arts Board grantee; Victoria Blanco: Writer and teaching artist; Arts Board grantee; Karlyn Coleman: Writer; teaching artist at the Loft; Arts Board grantee; Shannon Gibney: Author and activist; teaches in English department at MCTC; Margaret Newman: Writer and teacher; Arts Board grantee; Matthew Ryan: Writer, English professor at Concordia St. Paul; Arts Board grantee; Michele Valenti: Writer, winner of Loft Mentor Series in fiction

Conflict of Interest Disclosed
No
Legal Citation / Subdivision
Laws of Minnesota 2017 Regular Session, chapter 91, article 4, section 2, subdivision 3
Appropriation Language

ACHF Arts Access

2018 Fiscal Year Funding Amount
$10,000
Other Funds Leveraged
$292
Direct expenses
$10,292
Proposed Measurable Outcome(s)

I will complete my novel for children, developing in the process the skills needed to shape a long-form narrative into an organic whole. The final draft of the book will be finished and polished, and I will have submitted it to agents before the end of the grant year.

Measurable Outcome(s)

I completed my novel. In the process, I had to bring a long, complex narrative to an organic and complete resolution. I finished and polished the final draft and submitted it to agents. It was picked up for representation by a prominent children's lit agent, Rubin Pfeffer of Rubin Pfeffer Content, who is now submitting it to major publishers. 2: I founded, announced, promoted, and held six monthly Fairy Tale Study Group meetings in the grant year. We continue to meet in 2019. I promoted and held six FTSG meetings at Moon Palace Books (July-December). Thirty people have attended so far, plus many email and Facebook contacts. The group continues to meet and prof. relationships have formed among members.

Source of Additional Funds

Other,local or private

Project Manager
First Name
Martin
Last Name
Cozza
Organization Name
Martin L. Cozza
State
MN
Phone
(612) 666-3243
Email
martincozza@gmail.com
Administered By
Administered by
Location

Griggs Midway Building, Suite 304,
540 Fairview Avenue North,
St. Paul, MN 55104

Phone
(651) 539-2650 or toll-free (800) 866-2787
Email the Agency