Will Weaver (born William Weller; 1950 in Park Rapids,

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

), is an American author.

Background

Weaver was raised on a dairy farm near

Park Rapids, Minnesota Park Rapids is a city in the Heartland Lakes region and is the county seat of Hubbard County, Minnesota, United States. It is near Itasca State Park, the source of the Mississippi River, as well as the beginning of the Heartland State Trail. The ...

, where his parents, who were of Scandinavian descent, farmed 150 acres. In Weaver's youth, he enjoyed fishing and participating in sports (he was the captain of his high school

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

team). At 16 years of age, he once finished second in a

demolition derby Demolition derby is a non-racing motorsport usually presented at county fairs and festivals. While rules vary from event to event, the typical demolition derby event consists of five or more drivers competing by deliberately ramming their vehic ...

. One of three children, he attended the local country school. Weaver attended

Saint Cloud State University St. Cloud State University (SCSU) is a public university in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Founded in 1869, the university is one of the largest institutions in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. Its enrollment in 2020 was approximate ...

, 1968–69;

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, B.A., 1972;

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, M.A., 1979.

Career

His debut was ''

Red Earth, White Earth ''Red Earth, White Earth'' is a novel by Will Weaver, about conflicts between white farmers and native Ojibwes in northern Minnesota. The story follows Guy Pehrsson, a California computer entrepreneur who returns to Minnesota twelve years after ...

'', about a native Minnesotan returning to his home town due to conflicts between white farmers and local Native Americans. It was made into a

CBS-TV CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

movie in 1989. His 1989

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

collection, ''A Gravestone Made of Wheat and Other Stories'', won many awards, including the Minnesota Book Award for

Fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...

. The title story was produced in 2006 as the independent feature film ''

Sweet Land ''Sweet Land'' is a 2005 American independent period drama film written and directed by Ali Selim. It is an adaptation of the 1989 short story "A Gravestone Made of Wheat" by Will Weaver. The film stars Elizabeth Reaser, Tim Guinee, Lois Smi ...

'', featuring

Ned Beatty Ned Thomas Beatty (July 6, 1937 – June 13, 2021) was an American actor and comedian. In a career that spanned five decades, he appeared in more than 160 films. Throughout his career, Beatty gained a reputation for being "the busiest actor in ...

. Weaver has also written many stories for

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

s, including the Billy Baggs

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

novels. These include ''Striking Out'', ''Farm Team'', and ''Hard Ball''. He has also written ''Memory Boy'', ''Claws'', ''Full Service,'' and ''Defect.'' ''Saturday Night Dirt,'' the first of a series on dirt-racers, was released in 2008 followed by ''Super Stock Rookie''. He is the winner of both the

McKnight Foundation The McKnight Foundation, a Minnesota-based family foundation, advances a more just, creative, and abundant future where people and planet thrive. Established in 1953, the McKnight Foundation is deeply committed to advancing climate solutions in ...

and the

Bush Foundation The Bush Foundation was created in 1953 by Archibald Granville Bush an American businessman primarily involved with 3M and his wife, Edyth Bassler Bush. The organization awards $40 million a year to philanthropic organizations, primarily located ...

prizes for fiction. In addition to writing, Weaver became a creative-writing teacher at

Bemidji State University Bemidji State University (BSU) is a public university in Bemidji, Minnesota. Founded as a preparatory institution for teachers in 1919, it provides higher education to north-central Minnesota. It is part of the Minnesota State Colleges and Univ ...

Bemidji, Minnesota Bemidji ( ) is a city and the county seat of Beltrami County, in northern Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,574 at the 2020 census. According to 2021 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 15,279, making it ...

, he has since retired from teaching. He resides in the Bemidji area with his wife Rose, who is formerly a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

at Bemidji State, and his teenage children. In April 2014, he recorded an interview with Peter Shea in which he talked about his life and work.Interview with Peter Shea, April, 2014
/ref>

Bibliography

Novels and novellas

* ''The Survivors'' (2013) * ''Checkered Flag Cheater'' (2010) * ''Super Stock Rookie'' (2009) * ''Saturday Night Dirt'' (2008) * ''Defect'' (2007) * ''Full Service'' (2005) * ''Claws'' (2003) * ''Memory Boy'' (2001) * ''Hard Ball'' (1998) * ''Farm Team'' (1995) * ''Striking Out'' (1993) * ''

'' (1986)

Short story collections

* ''Sweet Land'' (2006) * ''A Gravestone Made of Wheat and Other Stories'' (1989) * ''WWJD''

Nonfiction

* ''Barns of Minnesota'' (with Doug Ohman) (2005)

References

External links

Will Weaver Official Website.Interview with Will Weaver
the novelist/short story writer is interviewed by Steve Burt, NORTHERN LIGHTS Minnesota Author Interview TV Series #65 (1989) {{DEFAULTSORT:Weaver, Will 1950 births Living people People from Park Rapids, Minnesota American people of Scandinavian descent Stanford University alumni University of Minnesota alumni St. Cloud State University alumni American male writers Writers from Minnesota