SDWG members, submit a free listing on our bulletin board for a reading, workshop, or service you’re offering
REQUESTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Perk for SDWG Members! Straw Dog Writers Guild is now an affiliate of Bookshop.org. If you are a current SDWG member and you have published a book, we can include your book on our members list on our Bookshop.org profile. Important instructions for inclusion: To be included, first, check to see if your book is available at: https://bookshop.org/ THEN, if it is, send your name and book title to admin@strawdogwriters.org. This platform will give greater exposure to your book. “Bookshop.org is an online book marketplace launched in January 2020. Its stated mission is “to financially support local, independent bookstores.” Bookshop, Inc., a privately held company, has been certified as a B Corporation.” NOTE: Some books may not be available on this site.
Missed an online SDWG event? Check out our YouTube channel for workshop and event recordings.
SDWG Howie Faerstein shares an opportunity: Submit 3-5 POEMS by Saturday, November 2 to Cutthroat Journal. This year, we call for poems that concerns recent controversial Supreme Court Decisions. Send ONLY your finest UNPUBLISHED/UNPOSTED writing. The competition is stiff. We are open to all styles, but we favor writing with an edge. We are particularly concerned with social issues. Each poem has a limit of 100 lines. There is a nominal reading fee to help cover Submittable fees. Include a short bio note. Give us two to six months to make a decision.
MEET UPS
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
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.
Zooming Poetry Workshop
Monthly poetry workshop on the 4th Monday of the month from 4-5pm. “We send each other a poem or two before the workshop, and we give constructive, positive feedback during the workshop.” The next workshop is Monday, October 28. Interested poets please email Phyllis at phystgeorge@gmail.com
BOOK LAUNCHES/CONCERTS/READINGS
WORKSHOPS/RETREATS/CONFERENCES
The Power of Place and Setting in Your Writing
Oct 19, 2:00pm – 3:30pm. Join this workshop with writer Cheryl J. Fish to explore how setting and place drive your poetry, fiction, or other writing. You will use writing prompts and examine short published works that emphasize place to develop conflict, voice, cultural insight, and themes. Writers of all levels are welcome. Cheryl J. Fish is a poet, fiction writer, environmental humanities scholar, professor of English at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, and docent lecturer at the University of Helsinki. She is the author of “Off the Yoga Mat,” “The Sauna is Full of Maids,” and “Crater & Tower.” Learn more about her at https://www.cheryljfish.com and @cheryljoyfish (Twitter and Instagram).
Registration is not required but space is limited. To reserve a seat at any session please register. Participants are free to attend any or all sessions. For more information, click HERE.
Election Week MASS MoCA Writing Through Art Poetry Retreat with Jan Freeman
Thursday, Oct 31, 2024 – Wednesday, Nov 6, 2024, North Adams, MA. Join renowned poet, editor, and teacher Jan Freeman for the Election Week 2024 MASS MoCA Writing Through Art Poetry Retreat, a generative-writing experience for poets at the MASS MoCA Artist Residency Center in the Berkshires. During our pivotal election week, in the supportive community of poets from near and far, we will create dozens of new drafts and poems. Together we will experience the many ways that painting, sculpture, and photography open inspiration, perception, and memory in this expansive 6-day writing retreat. Culminating in a poetry reading at The Artist Book Foundation, located on the MASS MoCA campus. Daily workshops include prompts, exercises, readings, and discussions in the galleries of MASS MoCA, the Clark Art Institute, and the Williams College Museum of Art. Included: one-hour conference to discuss your poems and writing goals; a private studio with 24/7 access at MASS MoCA; housing in MASS MoCA apartments; boxed lunches from Lickety Split; free parking; admission to MASS MoCA, the Clark, and the Williams College Museum of Art. For more details, visit www.janfreeman.net/workshops-readings or email janfreemanpoetry@gmail.com.
2024 Cultural Connections: A Celebration of Black & Brown Literature
2024 Cultural Connections: A Celebration of Black & Brown Literature, happening on November 2nd at Elias Brookings Elementary School!
Hosted by Ayanna Crawford of the Take the Mic Program and myself, this family-friendly event is all about promoting literacy and empowering youth, particularly in the Springfield area. We’re excited to welcome BIPOC authors of the African Diaspora (including Black, Hispanic, & Latinx authors), community resource vendors, and educators for a day of literacy, understanding, and the idea that we can change our community through unity and collaborative efforts! Want to join us as a vendor (author or community resource)? Fill out the form or email reginej13@gmail.com for more information.
Read It, Write It: Intro to Poetic Craft with Gail Thomas
4 weeks online, Nov. 3-24; Sundays 10-12 This class through Pioneer Valley Writers Workshops is designed for those who are new to the study of reading and writing poetry. We will read many poems by diverse authors and talk about what makes each poem effective. Important issues of craft such as form, line length, imagery, rhythm, tension, sound, beginnings and endings, and syntax will be addressed. Each week participants will generate a poem which will be shared with the group for feedback the following week. Open to beginners.
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
At PVWW, there’s definitely no better time to dive deeply into creative work and goals! They always have A LOT going on, from a full lineup of virtual workshops (one-day and multi-week) to regular readings, panels, and gatherings! And monthly Community Writing (and Community Reading events) – free and open to all – continues. Applications for PVWW’s 10-Month Manuscript Program (in all genres) open each year in the fall as well. Browse their current workshop schedule HERE!
And visit them online at www.PioneerValleyWriters.org!
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
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