Marty Essen is an American naturalist, author, photographer, and professional speaker. He has written seven books, ''Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents,'' ''Endangered Edens: Exploring the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Costa Rica, the Everglades, and Puerto Rico,'' ''Time Is Irreverent,'' ''Time Is Irreverent 2: Jesus Christ, Not Again!'' ''Time Is Irreverent 3: Gone for 16 Seconds,'' ''Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer,'' and ''Doctor Refurb.'' Marty Essen 2015 1 MB

Early life

Essen was born in

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

, United States. He attended

Duluth East High School East High School is a public secondary school in Duluth, Minnesota, United States. It educates students in grades nine through twelve. It first opened its doors in 1927 as a junior high school. In 1950, it became a senior high school to serve the ...

and

University of Minnesota Duluth The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) is a public university in Duluth, Minnesota. It is part of the University of Minnesota system and offers 16 bachelor's degrees in 88 Academic major, majors, graduate programs in 25 different fields, and a ...

Career

Essen worked as a radio announcer at WEBC-AM and

KQDS-FM KQDS-FM (94.9 FM, "95 KQDS") is a classic rock music formatted radio station located in Duluth, Minnesota. Established in 1976 as KAOH-FM, the station is owned by Midwest Communications, and follows a format similar to that of the well-known ...

. In 1982, he moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he ran two music talent management agencies, National Talent Associates and Twin City Talent. In 1996, Essen moved to

Victor, Montana Victor is a census-designated place (CDP) in Ravalli County, Montana, United States. The population was 745 at the 2010 census. History Victor is named for Chief Victor of the Bitterroot Salish, whose proper name was Xweɫxƛ̣ ̓cín (Many Ho ...

to found Essen Communications Corporation, a local telephone company, and later became an author and a college speaker. His first book, ''Cool Creatures, Hot Planet'', became a ''

Minneapolis Star-Tribune Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

'' Top-10 Green Book. He performs a live college show, ''Around the World in 90 Minutes,'' based on ''Cool Creatures, Hot Planet''. One adventure, documented in both his first book and his live show, is surviving a hippo attack in Zimbabwe. Essen's nature photography is featured prominently in his books and live show. His outdoor photographs are also in Deb Essen's book, ''Easy Weaving with Supplemental Warps: Overshot, Velvet, Shibori, and More''. Magazines publishing his photos include ''

Reptiles Magazine ''Reptiles'' magazine is a North American magazine devoted to the reptile and amphibian pet hobby, specializing in the keeping and breeding of these animals. It is based in Irvine, California History Fancy Publications, later BowTie Inc., i ...

'' and ''Handwoven Magazine''. Essen's three nonfiction books advocate for protecting endangered species and the environment, and his four fiction books are science-fiction political-comedies that advocate for the protection of human rights and the environment.

Personal life

Essen resides in Victor, Montana and is married to weaving designer and author Deb Essen.

Book awards

* 2006 Foreword Reviews' INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award Winner (Bronze) * 2007 Benjamin Franklin Award for Travel/Essay * 2007 Ippy Award for Travel/Essay (Bronze) * 2009 Green Book Festival Award for Animals * 2016 Nautilus Award for Animals & Nature (Silver) * 2016 Nautilus Award for Middle Grades Non-Fiction (Silver)

Books

* ''Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents'' * ''Endangered Edens: Exploring the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Costa Rica, the Everglades, and Puerto Rico'' * ''Time Is Irreverent'' * ''Time Is Irreverent 2: Jesus Christ, Not Again!'' * ''Time Is Irreverent 3: Gone for 16 Seconds'' * ''Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer'' * ''Doctor Refurb''

Live Shows

Essen has been touring the United States, performing ''Around the World in 90 Minutes'', at hundreds of colleges since 2007.Marty Essen website, http://martyessen.com/schedule.html, Retrieved 06-12-2016

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Essen, Marty American travel writers American non-fiction outdoors writers American naturalists Living people American male non-fiction writers Writers from Montana Nature photographers American photographers People from Duluth, Minnesota People from Victor, Montana Year of birth missing (living people)