Stop what you are doing this instant, Nerds, and listen up to the newly crowned, Louie Award-winning Writer of the Year! Alyson O'Connor is one half of the decade-old Rust Belt Love Paperie (RBL) team — husband Nick is the other half — but she shapes our stationery community in a big way, all on her own.

RBL's greeting cards spotlight the centuries-old letterpress medium exquisitely, and as such are gorgeous, artful creations in and of themselves — but their messaging elevates them into modern communication tools that hit you (and those you love) squarely in the feels.

It's an enormous challenge to communicate emotions that most people can't fully articulate until they see them staring back at them from a shelf, but Alyson spills on her process. We also touch on inclusion and multi-occasional versatility, which are both incredibly trendy topics in our community.

Finally, fresh off her win and this Louie awards program, Alyson is now officially the Greeting Card Association's Louie Chair. As a fellow Louie Committee member, I cannot pass up my chance to see where she wants to take the awards program during her two-year tenure. Don't miss my audience with this award winner!

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