NEW YORK (AP) — The Authors Guild has honored Nobel literature laureate Toni Morrison and James Patterson at its 25th annual gala.

Both Morrison and Patterson received Distinguished Service Awards Wednesday night in New York City.

Morrison praised the power of literature and the "community" of writers. Patterson told some jokes, and even sang.

Morrison won the Nobel literature prize in 1993. She was cited for such novels as "Beloved" and "Song of Solomon," and for her contributions as an editor and educator.

Patterson was honored not only for his extraordinary commercial success, more than 300 million books sold worldwide, but also for donating millions of dollars to librarians, booksellers and schools.

The Guild, which represents thousands of published writers, also gave a service award to the heads of the self-publishing platform IngramSpark.