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Megan Kate Nelson 📚

@mkn.bsky.social
1 followers 0 following 50 posts

I am a Colorado-born and raised, Boston-based writer, historian, and Pulitzer Prize Finalist. I am the author of "The Westerners" (2026), “Saving Yellowstone” (2022) and “The Three-Cornered War” (2020). More details at megankatenelson.com

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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 9h
Happiest of Happy Book Days to @civilwarmemory.bsky.social! I read this book and blurbed it, and HIGHLY recommend it.
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Drafting the Past @draftingthepast.bsky.social · 16h
Ever wondered what it's like to write popular histories? Kate hosted Eric Jay Dolin, author of the WRECK OF THE MENTOR (and 16 other books!), to find out. They talked about how Eric writes so much, how he thinks about structure, and gossip a little about book advances and more. buff.ly/tk7DZ4i 🗃️
buff.ly
Eric Jay Dolin Never Wants to Be Bored
In Episode 115 of the Drafting the Past podcast, Kate talks with the bestselling author about making a career as a popular historian.
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Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 12h
Extremely exciting publishing news!
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Good lord, @nytimes.com. How do you justify your silence on this?
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Kevin M. Levin @civilwarmemory.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Wonderful to see my book in the hands of so many readers. Tuesday is the official publication day for A GLORIOUS FATE with @uncpress.bsky.social. #booksky
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cliodialogues.bsky.social @cliodialogues.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Being omitted from history can have consequences far beyond the history books. @mkn.bsky.social, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴, & what is at stake when groups are excluded from the national narrative. 🎧Link in bio
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cliodialogues.bsky.social @cliodialogues.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
What do we do with historical figures who don’t fit neatly into the hero or villain column? 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴, @mkn.bsky.social  recovers people in their full complexity on the latest episode of @cliodialogues.bsky.social . 🎧Link in bio.
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🌬Breeze @cool-summer-breeze.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
This is the Stolen Neighbors Quilt. Each of the 11,000 squares represents a person taken by ICE in Minnesota.
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cliodialogues.bsky.social @cliodialogues.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Join me and my guest Dr. @mkn.bsky.social, author of The Westerners: Mythmaking and Belonging on the American Frontier, we discuss the complicated history of the American West. 🎧Link in bio to watch or listen to The Clio Dialogues history podcast.
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cliodialogues.bsky.social @cliodialogues.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Why are Americans still so fascinated by a white frontier narrative? In this episode, historian @mkn.bsky.social  joins me to discuss 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴: 𝘔𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘉𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘳 and the remarkable staying power of the stories Americans tell about the West. 🎧Link in bio
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I'm booking flights for a research trip and a book festival and they are each over $1000. Oh, and I paid almost $7 a gallon for gas earlier this week. But hey, as long as this administration of fuckwits gets its forever war ...
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
THIS THREAD (click through the very beginning)
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
My, how I love a great book cover! Here are a few of our nonfiction history favorites, at @draftingthepast.bsky.social. What are yours?
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cliodialogues.bsky.social @cliodialogues.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
The limited frontier myth didn’t simply happen. It was crafted. In 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴, @mkn.bsky.social  explores how a complicated Western past became a much simpler national story. 🎧Link in bio, The Clio Dialogues history podcast.
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Lindsay M. Chervinsky @lmchervinsky.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I received the loveliest email today from someone who did not have to send it to me. It made my evening. Just a reminder that it costs nothing to say something nice and might mean a great deal to the person who receives it.
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cliodialogues.bsky.social @cliodialogues.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The frontier myth is a central American story. It is also a diverse story. 🎧Link in bio, The Clio Dialogues history podcast @mkn.bsky.social @scribnerbooks.bsky.social
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I might be biased because Catherine is a former student of mine, but this interview with @katecarp.bsky.social for @draftingthepast.bsky.social is fantastic. Take a listen! www.draftingthepast.com/catherine-gr...
draftingthepast.com
Catherine Grace Katz Can Just Feel It
In episode 114 of the Drafting the Past podcast, the author of Shadow Before the Flame talks to Kate about her research and writing process.
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Lindsay M. Chervinsky @lmchervinsky.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Last week I wrote about George Washington's presidential pardons. There is bipartisan support for pardon reform and these principles offer a guide for how the pardon power was intended to be used. Check your inboxes or subscribe today! imperfectunion.substack.com/p/the-four-f...
imperfectunion.substack.com
The Four Factors George Washington Used to Grant Pardons
And why they offer a template for reform today
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
It's rare that a movie ends and Dan and I turned to each other and say, "That was TERRIBLE." #DisclosureDay
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Terry Bouton @terrybouton.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The article is brutal. Great student reporting. The chef's kiss is that the reporters found that the provost's letter defending his use of AI for witting op-eds and academic papers was 100% written by AI.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
This chat was so fun, Blueskis. Check it out!
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Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
HMM I HAVE THOUGHTS
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Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Just finished reading this one for the pod, and I think it should be getting the kind of love Devil in the White City got: bookshop.org/a/80245/9780...
bookshop.org
Kingdom of Devils: A Tale of Murder in the Shadow of the American Revolution
The chilling true story of a brutal string of deaths on the post-Revolutionary frontier that reveal the violence at the heart of the young United States“In Cold Blood for the 1790s . . . Part true cri...
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Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Four weeks until book reviews (and more!) launch--help us reach new subscribers before then!
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David M. Perry @lollardfish.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Note: unlike other people in the public humanities space, they pay their writers. I recommend.* *me. I wrote a thing.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Boston and Metro West Blueskis! I will be at the Concord Museum THIS THURSDAY, talking about THE WESTERNERS with my friend, fellow historian, and fellow #BookSquader Nina Silber! Come join us!
A notice for a book talk at the Concord Museum (September 17, 7:00 pm), the green and white cover of ThE WESTERNERS, and the black and red logo of the Concord Museum appear on a background of blue and white mountains
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Lindsay M. Chervinsky @lmchervinsky.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
I had an amazing time visiting McLennan Community College and Baylor Law School last week. MCC is doing incredible work with first generation students and it was a real honor to give the Kenneth Starr endowed lecture on all things 250. You can tell from the last picture that I really hate my work. 🥰
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
I CANNOT EVEN
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Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
The Star was already a shell of a newspaper, and this is a death knell. Democracy cannot survive, especially in an era of gross financial inequality, without a functioning press.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Come join us as Founding Members of @draftingthepast.bsky.social, Blueskis! There are SO. MANY. PERKS.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Blueskis, how do we feel about square business cards? Are they cool? Or are they annoying because they often don't fit in your wallet?
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Lindsay M. Chervinsky @lmchervinsky.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Despite everything that happened after 9/11, there was an important moment of presidential leadership first. Religious freedom matters and depends on all of our leaderes. Let me know what you think of my latest Imperfect Union: imperfectunion.substack.com/p/25-years-a...
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Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 09/09/2026
Not to brag, but our product has been foldable since 1828.
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Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Results of my weekend screenprinting workshop.
Side by side prints of a drawing of black eyed Susans in front of a fence. One print is yellow, the other is green.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
This is such a lovely piece - thank you, @herberthistory.bsky.social! It was so great to see you - and meet Amy! - in C Springs. And it is a great reminder to all writers that acknowledging the fear is a first step to getting through it and start writing on the other side.
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Stan Prager @stanprager.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
A reminder that if you haven't read this book yet, get on it. It is more relevant now than ever before! Review of: The Westerners: Mythmaking and Belonging on the American Frontier, by @mkn.bsky.social Megan Kate Nelson regarp.com/2026/03/26/r...
regarp.com
Review of: The Westerners: Mythmaking and Belonging on the American Frontier, by Megan Kate Nelson
Imagine that you were brought up in a home that hosted a large extended family that was multiracial and multicultural. Your parents were white, of European ancestry, but through marriage and adopti…
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Also, we are currently accepting pitches for reviews of history nonfiction books that will be published in December 2026 or January 2027.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
FYI, aspiring book reviewers!
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
MERCH, Blueskis. MERCH. #draftingthepast #historyworthreading
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Drafting the Past @draftingthepast.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
@lucyworsley.bsky.social @colinduncantaylor.com @coaptowicz.bsky.social @witchesetc.bsky.social @yalepress.bsky.social @basicbooksgroup.bsky.social @uncpress.bsky.social @simonandschuster.bsky.social @uchicagopress.bsky.social @wwnorton.com @crownpublishing.bsky.social @scribnerbooks.bsky.social
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Drafting the Past @draftingthepast.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
We're six weeks away from publishing our first reviews, and we're already overwhelmed by the incredible books coming out. Here are 10 history books that we're excited to read in September--not including the ones we're covering in reviews/interviews! www.draftingthepast.com/books-were-l... #booksky 🗃️
draftingthepast.com
New History Books We're Looking Forward to in September
Ten history books coming out this month that caught our eye
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Karin Wulf @kawulf.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Thanks, John! Whew, you and @mkn.bsky.social are quite the bread to my slice of cheese -- but I'm really looking forward to being at the Filson, In Kentucky, and talking about the power of data. Because that's what genealogy is, and has been.
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Drafting the Past @draftingthepast.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Have you subscribed? Join us and don't miss the first book reviews in your inbox when they drop October 13! www.draftingthepast.com#/portal
Burrowing owl illustration on yellow background with text that reads "I want YOU to be a subscriber"Text: Subscribe at any level! Free: weekly book reviews direct to your inbox *first newsletter on October 13*. Member ($50/year): reviews and Friday exclusives to your inbox, ad-free podcast, newsletter and website, ability to comment on posts. Member plus ($100/year): all of the above + a logo hat and invitations to exclusive events. And for a limited time only...Text: Founding member ($300 one-time): all of the above, exclusive "founding member" logo tote bag, and invitation to a quarterly advisory conversation."
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Drafting the Past @draftingthepast.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
On the podcast, Kate talked to @richardivanjobs.bsky.social and @stevenvanwolputte.bsky.social about their genre-defying IN THE LAND OF THE LACANDON. Hear about creating graphic history, exploring what's possible in history narratives, and collaborating. www.draftingthepast.com/richard-ivan... 🗃️
draftingthepast.com
Richard Ivan Jobs and Steven Van Wolputte Figure It Out As They Go
Episode 110 of the Drafting the Past podcast
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Kate Carpenter @katecarp.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
We didn't deserve her.
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Lindsay M. Chervinsky @lmchervinsky.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Related: reach out to sites about book talks NOW. We book roughly 8 months out. If you email me about a book coming out next month, there is nothing I can do to help.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
No. Just no. I refuse to accept this news at this time.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
PSA FOR HISTORY NONFICTION AUTHORS with books coming out in the next year: This is a very good reason to get on social media and start promoting your book's publication, at least six months out.
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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Calling all nonfiction history reviewers! Write for us at @draftingthepast.bsky.social! cc: @katecarp.bsky.social
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