SDWG members, submit a free listing on our bulletin board for a reading, workshop, or service you’re offering
REQUESTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Missed an online SDWG event? Check out our YouTube channel for workshop and event recordings.
SDWG member Anne Pinkerton shares about her new book: Were You Close? A Sister’s Quest to Know the Brother She Lost challenges the cultural notion that the bereaved can or should simply “get over” their losses, illustrating that integrating these experiences can actually help a mourner not just heal, but move forward with clarified purpose. Read more about the book at annepinkertonwriter.com/the-book
SDWG member Ellen Evert Hopman shares happy news: “Once Around the Sun – Stories, Crafts and Recipes to Celebrate the Sacred Earth Year” is a Coalition of Visionary Resources (COVR) Gold Winner for 2023 in the category of children’s books.
SDWG member Corinne Demas reports, my new novel, The Road Toward Home will be published June 1 (Lake Union) and I will be doing at book launch at the Odyssey Bookshop May 31st at 7pm. My new picture book, Once There Was was published May 1.
Straw Dog member Cheryl J. Fish’s debut novel OFF THE YOGA MAT has been featured on Kerry Freeman’s blog Books and Bevies which pairs a book with a beverage that has meaning in the book and/or to the author. Read the blog HERE. AND Cheryl J. Fish’s novel OFF THE YOGA MAT and the influence of rock music on her characters is featured on the Podcast “Rock Is Lit,” hosted by Christy Alexander Hallberg. Listen to the podcast HERE.
Congratulations to SDWG member Richard Michelson on his brand new Poetry collection, Sleeping as Fast as I Can. Visit his work HERE.
MEET UPS
Prose Writing Group
Prose writers: Are you looking for an inspiring and supportive weekly writing group this fall? SDWG member Melenie Freedom Flynn, through Pioneer Valley Writers Workshop is offering Prose Writing Group Thursdays, November 2 – December 28 (6 – 8pm EST on Zoom). Visit PVWW for more information and to register.
Valley Society Black Writing Group
Valley Society, a SDWG committee, is open to new writers for our AWA writing group. We meet Sundays from 2-5 virtually. Visit valleysociety.org/about/writing-group/ to sign up.
Forbes Library Writing Room Wednesdays at 9:00am-12:30pm
This is a free, structured, facilitated drop in community writing group. We check in at 9:30, then write together for two hours, followed by the opportunity to read what you wrote (5 minutes). Follow the link for ZOOM meeting
BOOK LAUNCHES/CONCERTS/CONFERENCES/READINGS
Poets at Large with SDWG member Suzanne S. Rancourt as Featured Reader October 8, 2023, 2-4pm at 205 Roseland Park Road, Woodstock, CT
email Karen Warinsky karen.warinsky@gmail.com for more details or check out FB event listing.
You’re invited to a Dramatic Reading of SLIM AND SLAM A three-act play by SDWG member Stephen Billias and Phillip Lenkowsky on Sunday, October, 15th, 2:00-4:30pm at 60 Graves Street, South Deerfield, MA. Questions? Contact Stephen Billias: sbillias@comcast.net, 413 773-1926
SDWG member Suzanne S. Rancourt & Judith Prest Writing workshop, reading, book launch and more! October 28, 2023 Saturday, 12 – 4:30pm Mocha Lisa’s Caffe, Clifton Park, NY Join local Authors Suzanne S. Rancourt and Judith Prest in celebrating the release of their 4th books! Two different writers, books, and styles! Writing workshop: 12 – 2pm $35. (workshop attendees receive a 10% discount on food, merch, BOOKS); book signing, eat, shop: 2-3pm; Featured Authors read: 3-3:30pm; Open mic: 3:30 – 4:30pm.
SDWG member Regine Jackson shares an opportunity for black and brown authors to participate in Cultural Connections: A Celebration of Brown and Black Authors on Saturday, November 4 in Springfield, MA. “I’m excited to announce I will be partnering with the Take the Mic Program to bring “Cultural Connections: A Celebration of Black and Brown Lit” to the city of Springfield on November 4th! While the venue is TBA, we will have room for about fifteen (15) authors, maybe a bit more to be a part of this positive celebration. This is a family-friendly event, and while there will be books for everyone, we want there to be a focus on literacy and the youth! Literacy and reading are important because they set up the foundation of confidence, self-esteem, and a deeper understanding of self that youth today must equip themselves with in a world that tries to tell them otherwise! Knowing they are worthy of being and doing better is a great start in opening up the endless possibilities of the lives they could lead and allowing them to unlock their potential and talents. Thank you to Ayanna Crawford for sharing this vision with me and allowing it to come to fruition!”
SDWG president Jacqueline Sheehan, a presenter at the yWrite Conference, shares: The yWrite 2023 Writers Conference: Let Your Inner Writer Free is a full-day in-person conference in Agawam, MA on November 4. Angela Grout, conference planner/producer writes, “A one day conference to get your pen flowing with guidance from experienced professional facilitators. With small breakout rooms, your writing will begin with prompts and provide you with tools to write your story. Select your morning and afternoon session, and then get your questions ready for the Published Authors Panel!” Save $20 with E-BRD9- code will be applied at checkout! Only $59 now until Sept 24, 2023. For more information and to register go to yWrite2023WritersConference.
SDWG member Suzanne S. Rancourt is featured reader for Calling All Poets Series on Thursday, November 9, 2023 6:30pm Live stream and zoom. CAPS – Green Kill Gallery, 229 Greenkill Ave., Kingston, NY 12401. Contact Mike Jurkovic mjpj55@gmail.com for more details.
BLOW THE DOORS OFF readings by 4 blasting writers! Carol Graser, Mike Jurkovic, Judith Prest, & SDWG member Suzanne S. Rancourt! Spotty Dog Books and Ale, November 10, 2023 Friday, 7pm BOOK LAUNCH, reading, and signing: Suzanne S. Rancourt, Carol Graser, Judith Prest and Mike Jurkovic! The Spotty Dog Books & Ale, Hudson, NY 440 Warren St., Hudson, NY 12534. Amy or Kelley spottydogbooks@gmail.com 518.671.6006
SDWG member Jay Sefton has his solo show “Unreconciled, A priest exploits a young boy’s love of theatre: A true story” at the Blue Room Theatre in Easthampton on November 30. Set in the whiskey-soaked Catholic suburbs of Philadelphia in the 1980s, UNRECONCILED is available as a production in your season, or a special event at your theatre. Unreconciled is the true story of an adolescent actor cast as Jesus in a school play directed by a pedophile priest. Unreconciled originated from Jay Sefton’s experience participating in a victims’ compensation fund that was set up by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and a subsequent op-ed written for a newspaper in Harrisburg. This solo play chronicles a survivor’s journey as he confronts his past and discovers the courage to use his voice and redefine what reconciliation means. https://www.cityspaceeasthampton.org/all-events/#/events/79105
WORKSHOPS
New Voices: Expanding the Poetic Canon with Gail Thomas
Gail Thomas’s three-week PVWW workshop “New Voices: Expanding the Poetic Canon” will be offered on Zoom Sept. 11-Oct. 2 from 6-8 p.m. For more information and to register click HERE.
Dreaming on the Page Writing Circle with Tzivia Gover, Author and Certified Dreamwork Professional
First Tuesday of each month, 11 am-2 pm US Eastern Time, on Zoom.
Combining dreams and writing helps to increase self-awareness, reinvigorate your creativity, and supercharge your writing. Each workshop includes information and inspiration for combining dreams and the imagination, plus writing prompts and time to write and share your work.
$55 with accessible pay-what-you-can options for those with low/limited incomes. Learn more and register at: thirdhousemoon.com/event/dreaming-on-the-page-writing-circle/
Miss T’s No Bull Writing Workshops
Miss T here and I’m developing a series of two-hour $10 workshops on various writing topics. Cool, right? The first will be backstory. I call it “Don’t Put the Backstory in the Front.” Future topics include dialogue, show don’t tell, an editing cheat sheet, personal essay, cutting down on adverbs, using power verbs, etc. And, of course, I am open to your suggestions. For the workshop, I’d like you to bring a doubled-space page 12 pt font – about 250 words. It would be best if you could bring in the beginning of your story, or somewhere where you think you may be having an issue with backstory.
To indicate your interest in this or future $10 workshops, click on the link DON’T PUT THE BACKSTORY IN THE FRONT!
Pioneer Valley Writers Workshop
Pioneer Valley Writers’ Workshop is a Northampton MA-based literary arts organization, now completely online for the foreseeable future, offering a wide array of one-day and multi-week writing workshops for experienced and aspiring writers of all levels, genres, and backgrounds. Founded by Joy Baglio in 2016, PVWW has a team of over 30 professional writers, authors and editors and a constantly changing lineup of workshops and events. All our workshops are limited to a small number of writers (8, 10, or 12, depending on the particular class) and are held live on Zoom. In addition to seasonal workshops, PVWW runs a Year-Long Manuscript Group Program for writers working on book-length projects, open for applications every year October – January. In addition to our classes and workshops, we host a FREE twice-a-month generative Community Writing gathering open to writers everywhere and frequent virtual author readings. For writers looking for more direct hands-on help with their projects, we offer professional one-on-one manuscript consulting and editing services. Our focus is on a rigorous understanding of craft and technique, while also creating a supportive and fun environment for writers of all levels. As Ursula K. Le Guin says: “Skill in writing frees you to write what you want to write. Craft enables art.”
Writers in Progress
Writers in Progress, the Valley’s Literary Arts Studio, is excited to re-open our gorgeous physical space this September, launching our Fall Session with a huge variety of weekly, half day and one-day generative and craft workshops. We will also continue to offer many workshops online. Some of our many offerings this fall include: Morning Jumpstarts, with Dori Ostermiller, Writing From Life with Emily Lackey, the Craft of Memoir with Cathy Luna, the Blueprint Your Book Series, with Susanne Dunlap, Fiction Essentials with Jacqueline Sheehan, Poetry Workshop with Sarah Browning, Word for Writers, Tarot for Writers, and many more. We also host a monthly community writing workshop, the first Sunday of each month, open to all. Founded in 1992 by author Dori Ostermiller, WIP has been supporting writers and creating community for three decades and has ‘midwifed’ dozens of published books. Our workshops are limited to 8 participants and emphasize writing time, community and craft development, nurturing voice, giving and receiving constructive, encouraging feedback. We believe that the writing process calls for both rigor and playfulness, both craft and inspiration. We also offer our legendary year-long manuscript intensive for writers working on book-length manuscripts, a six month revision intensive, as well as one-on-one coaching, editing and consulting. Our published alums include Ellen Meeropol, Steve Bernstein, JoAnne Jones, Dusty Miller, Ruth Lehrer, Dinah Mack, Kris Holloway, David Lovelace and many, many more. We host a seasonal Live Literature reading series in our studio and online. Check out our amazing lineup of fall workshops and events at www.writersinprogress.com. Hope to see you soon!
SERVICES
Manuscript Consultations and Editing Services with Jan Freeman
With 40 years of editorial experience, I am available to review works of prose and poetry, including full-length manuscripts, chapbooks, and selected collections. Through multiple readings, I evaluate literal and emotional narratives and a manuscript’s organization, texture, shape, tension, and emotional flow. I am author of 3 books of poetry and co-editor of Sisters: An Anthology; from 1995–2018, I directed Paris Press (now an imprint of Wesleyan University Press), which published critically acclaimed books by Emily Dickinson, NBCC award winning Ruth Stone, Virginia Woolf, and many others. Jan Freeman, janfreemanpoetry@gmail.com
Terianne Falcone
Terianne’s specialty is comedy. She can help you inject laughs, humor, or just a dash of levity into your comic or more serious pieces. Bringing readers a smile in the middle of a heavier work can deepen the power of your writing. Promise! She recently held a successful “Writing Funny” workshop for Straw Dogs Writing Guild. Here are two of her stories, the first rather somber and the second decidedly comic. You’ll see how some lightness works in that first piece. misst@teriannefalcone.com.
Mentoring and Editing Services with
Michael Favala Goldman
I know how difficult it is to be objective about one’s own writing. Having skilled readers and mentors helped me gain the skills to publish16 books of prose translations, poetry translations and original poetry. I have been leading poetry critique groups since 2018. I give direct, compassionate feedback, to help clarify and magnify the author’s voice. I am happy to look at a few short pieces or an entire manuscript. hammerandhorn@gmail.com.
Dreaming on the Page Writing Consultations with Tzivia Gover
This one-on-one consultation is appropriate for writers at all stages of the journey, from journalers to published authors and anyone in between.
More of a coaching session than a critique, our time together will be spent setting goals and intentions for your writing in general, or specific projects. Sessions may include:
* Reviewing your goals, habits, and rituals as a writer, and exploring ways to tap into dreams, imagination, and the subconscious to support and sustain your creativity.
* Identifying the big dream for your project and setting intentions and next steps to help you get there.
* Implementing Dreaming on the Page techniques, tips, and prompts as appropriate.
* Receiving guidance on up to 500 words of your writing or a project summary submitted in advance of the session.
Mentoring Services with Lesléa Newman
Lesléa Newman has created 75 books for readers of all ages and mentored hundreds of writers including Newbery Award-winner Kwame Alexander (The Crossover), novelist, Leah Henderson (One Shadow on the Wall) and poet Floyd Cheung (Jazz at Manzanar). If you are working on a manuscript, I’d love to take a peek and see how I can help you make your book the best it can be. Whether you write for kids, teens or adults, whether you write poetry or prose, whether you write fiction or non-fiction, you name it, I can critique it. I will mark up your manuscript in purple ink, write you a long, editorial letter, read one revision, and if appropriate, offer publishing suggestions.
Consultation w/ Gail Thomas
I am available for individual consultation on your poetry submissions, manuscripts and residency applications. With more than 40 years of publishing and teaching experience, I offer feedback that not only focuses on your writing goals, but also strengthens your craft. If you are assembling a chapbook or full-length manuscript, I will work with you to organize and present your best work for publication. Gail Thomas, gailthomaspoet@gmail.com
Straw Dog Writers Guild YouTube Channel
Having your events and other writing notes on this Bulletin Board is one of the many benefits of SDWG membership.
- We ask that events be in or within driving distance of the Western MA area.
- Text of up to 100 words
- Link to website or email where further information is available.
- Please send at least six weeks before the event to be placed in our newsletter.
Click here to Submit to the Bulletin Board