September 20th, 2010
"Any writer who knows what he's doing isn't doing very much."
— Nelson Algren
Welcome to the latest installment of the Grub Street Rag, a newsletter of the Boston literary scene sent out every Monday from the Institute for Inventive Vegetable Use at Grub Street's World Headquarters. As always, if you are receiving this e-mail in horror, please advance to the bottom of the page to unsubscribe yourself.
As you may know, each year Grub holds a Silent Auction at A Taste of Grub to raise funds for our programming. This year, we’re hosting the auction on eBay, so that people all over the country can bid and support Grub Street. In the past you've seen us auction off Charles Baxter's manuscript pages, weekend hotel stays, and luxury Red Sox tickets. Many of those great items were donated by Grubbies like you, so if you have connections to restaurants, hotels, salons, spas, retail stores, or want to donate an item or gift certificate, please contact Sonya at sonya@grubstreet.org. Thank you so much for your help!
It's Grub Street's first foray into full-length classes at our South Shore location, Buttonwood Books, and this class is not to be missed! Solving Novel Problems course description: Are you fifty pages in and losing your way? Do you have a first draft that doesn’t quite sing? Every novel offers puzzles for the writer to solve. Early in writing a novel, you must choose the right point of view for the story and which characters will have a voice. Along the way, you may be plagued by two-dimensional characters, stale dialogue, weak plot lines, or perhaps a setting that doesn’t support your novel’s themes and premise. In this eight-week course, you’ll learn to examine key aspects of craft to be sure your story structure is strong. Through lecture, discussion, and exercises using your own manuscript, novelist Lynne Griffin will help you dig to the heart of your story.
8 Mondays, 7:00pm-10:00pm at Buttonwood Books. Begins September 27th. Register now.
We're proud to announce our featured readers for this year's Taste of Grub! We'll hear great readings from Anita Shreve (author of 13 novels, among them The Weight of Water, The Pilot's Wife, The Last Time They Met, A Wedding in December, and Body Surfing), Marianne Leone Cooper (Knowing Jesse: A Mother's Story of Grief, Grace, and Everyday Bliss), and emcee Regie Gibson (Storms Beneath the Skin). All three of these authors are fantastic writers and wonderful speakers, so we are really looking forward to hearing them. A Taste of Grub takes place on Friday, November 5th at the State Room overlooking the stunning Boston city skyline. Tickets are available for purchase by clicking here: http://www.grubstreet.org/index.php?id=165. Hope to see you there!
Cheers,
Whitney, Sonya, Chris, Chip, and Eve
In addition to our ongoing workshops, Grub Street offers numerous writing-related events around town. See our website for a long-term view of all we do. Ready to sign up? Call us at 617.695.0075 and we'll get you on the list.
Reminder for registered students: SEMINARS tonight at Grub Street from 7-10pm:
--Think Small, Think Smart: How to Publish Beyond the Big Houses
--Writing Suspense: You Know It When You Feel It
--From Blog Post to Personal Essay
PANEL: Tuesday, September 28th, 7:00pm, So You Want to Be A Writer?
Join three of Grub Street’s instructors, each of them recently-published authors in three different genres, for a frank and informative discussion about all aspects of the writing life. Bring your questions, your concerns and your curiosity as Ethan Gilsdorf (Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks) discusses narrative non-fiction, Jill McDonough (Habeus Corpus) discusses poetry, and Michelle Hoover (The Quickening) discusses the world of novels and short stories. Moderated by Grub Street’s artistic director, Christopher Castellani (A Kiss From Maddalena and The Saint of Lost Things). Each presenting author will read briefly from their work but spend most of the time offering advice, practical tips on craft and publicity, and answering audience questions.
FREE, Porter Square Books.
SEMINAR: Monday, October 4th, 7:00-10:00pm, The Unreliable Narrator in Fiction
The unreliable narrator, with his deceits and his confessions, with his justifications and evasions, is one of fiction-writing’s most venerable traditions, and one in which we’ve all probably dabbled ourselves, whether or not we know it. This one-night seminar will deal in isolating and exploring the various ways in which a first-person narrator can be made unreliable (there are many different types besides the scoundrel in Lolita); how unreliability can be used as a tool to draw more vivid characters, weave more complex plots, and complicate the interface of reader and writer; and how for better or for worse, for evil or for good, we are all unreliable narrators of our own experience, so why should our characters be any different, inextricably linked to our selves as they are? Discover how sometimes to lie to your reader is a way to expedite the truth. Or lie, if you want, for the sheer joy of lying. Lie, because that’s what writers do.
Instructor: Adrian Van Young
$65/$50 members, Grub Street headquarters.
SEMINAR: Monday, October 4th, 7:00-10:00pm, Ask the Producer: The Craft and Marketplace of Screenwriting
Visiting Grub Street from L.A., award-winning producer and manager Marilyn Atlas will spend three hours demystifying the process of screenwriting as well as sharing her insider’s opinion on elements of what makes a good screenplay. Her focus, craft-wise, will be on how to create non-stereotypical characters. Her focus, business-wise, is on your questions and concerns. Join us in welcoming this special guest and sit back for what is sure to be an entertaining and informative evening with someone who knows the business better than just about anyone.
Instructor: Marilyn Atlas
$65/$50 members, Grub Street headquarters.
SEMINAR: Monday, October 4th, 7:00-10:00pm, The Business of Writing for Children and Young Adults
While the market for publishing books for children and young adults bears many similarities to the adult trade market, there are some major differences you should know about before you send your work out into the world. In this seminar, agent Maribeth Sanabria, whose clients include Grub’s own Beth Raisner Glass, will offer a nuts-and-bolts overview of the agent-stage of the process (manuscript review, query letter writing, etc) and take your questions on the burgeoning world of writing for these populations.
Instructor: Maribeth Sanabria
$65/$50 members, Grub Street headquarters.
SEMINAR: Monday, October 4th, 7:00-10:00pm, Provoking Thought: The Art of Science Writing
One of the most commercially successful science writers is Malcolm Gladwell, author of Outliers. One of the most intellectually acclaimed science writers is Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, author of Blank Slate. Though both authors write books about ideas, their literary techniques couldn't be more different. In this seminar, we'll discover how Gladwell and Pinker represent two opposing sides of a set of choices that every writer must make when communicating ideas from science, technology, or medicine to a mainstream audience. We'll read and discuss passages from several recent nonfiction books to learn about the benefits and pitfalls of each literary choice. You'll also take a shot at writing a short piece in both a Gladwell-style and in a Pinker-style. The goal? To help you find the best approach for writing your own nonfiction book of ideas. We'll also cover state-of-the-art topics like getting a science-savvy agent, writing a science book proposal, managing web controversy, leveraging Amazon.com, and the unprecedented opportunities of e-books.
Instructor: Ogi Ogas
*SOLD OUT*, email chip@grubstreet.org to be put on a waiting list. $65/$50 members, Grub Street headquarters.
SATURDAY SERIAL: Saturday, October 2nd, 10:00am-12:00pm The Inside Scoop On Writing Contests
San Francisco poet Eileen Malone, Founder/Director of the Soul-Making Literary Competition, will be reading prize winning poems from her new book of poetry I Should Have Given Them Water (Ragged Sky Press) and speaking about entering writing contests. Based on her 15 years experience of screening entries and working with a range of literary judges, as well as serving as a judge, Eileen will not only present tips and cautions, but field your concerns and questions about contests. She has published her poetry in over 500 literary journals and anthologies, a large amount of which have earned their own significant awards and prizes.
$3-5 suggested donation, Grub Street headquarters.
LUNCHTIME WRITING: Wednesday, October 6th, 12:30-1:15pm, Brown Bag Lunch Series
Do you work downtown and want to fit some writing into your day? Or do you have a schedule that gives you free afternoons instead of evenings? Bring your lunch and come on over to Grub Street for a Brown Bag Writing Workshop – a series recently profiled in the Boston Globe. For 45 minutes, you’ll meet fellow writers and get your creative juices flowing with some cool writing exercises. Led by one of our award-winning instructors or ambassadors. Best of all, you’ll leave lunch with some new ideas to ponder for the rest of your day, and beyond. No need to RSVP-- just come!
FREE, Grub Street headquarters.
Be sure to check out our website for a comprehensive view of upcoming events.
Grub Street wants to promote YOU! Please send events for consideration to whitney@grubstreet.org. Bonus points and undying gratitude for submitting your event info in the same format as the events below. Our apologies in advance if we cannot fit you in. Please note that we do the best we can to evaluate requests, and do privilege requests from members, but cannot be held responsible for the quality of these events and programs or the legitimacy of contests. We expect that readers will do their own due diligence before sending their work or their money to any individual or organization.
--TONIGHT! READING SERIES: Monday, September 20th, 7pm, Four Stories Boston Fall 2010 Opening Night, "The Forbidden: Tales of transgressions, secrets, and sins"
Featuring readings by: Steven Beeber, author of the book The Heebie-Jeebies at CBGB’s: A Secret History of Jewish Punk; Jennifer Haigh, author of the novels The Condition, Baker Towers , Mrs. Kimble and the forthcoming The Lost Gospel (August 2011); Carissa Halston, author of A Girl Named Charlie Lester; and two-time Pushcart-Prize nominee Randy Ross, writer with articles published in the Boston Phoenix, the Boston Herald and more. Hosted by Four Stories founder Tracy Slater. Plus mingling, eating, drinking, and the Four Stories style of literary investigation: ask the best question; win a free drink!
FREE, The Enormous Room, 567 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA.
--READING: Tuesday, Sept 21st, 7PM: Jonathan Lethem, author of Chronic City
The bestselling and beloved author of Motherless Brooklyn and The Fortress of Solitude delivers a searing love letter to the city that has inspired his finest work.
Chase Insteadman, former child television star, has a new role in life—permanent guest on the Upper East Side dinner party circuit, where he is consigned to talk about his astronaut fiancée, Janice Trumbull, who is trapped on a circling Space Station. A chance encounter collides Chase with Perkus Tooth, a wily pop culture guru with a vicious conspiratorial streak and the best marijuana in town. Despite their disparate backgrounds and trajectories Chase and Perkus discover they have a lot in common, including a cast of friends from all walks of life in Manhattan. Together and separately they attempt to define the indefinable, and enter into a quest for the most elusive of things: truth and authenticity in a city where everything has a price.
FREE, Newtonville Books.
--PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Sunday, Sept. 26, 1:00-4:30; Two Eight-Week Groups, Thursdays 7:00-9:00 pm; Fridays 1:15-3:15 pm, starting Sept. 30 & Oct. 1, "Write It Like It Is"
Experience the exhilaration of tapping in to your authentic voice and uncovering the themes and stories of your life. Writing without censoring or judging deepens our self-awareness and fuels creative energy. "Write It Like It Is" offers a supportive, fun atmosphere to do freewriting in response to specific prompts. Sharing is optional but encouraged. It’s not a therapy group, though it may be therapeutic. It’s not a writing class, though you will learn practical tools for self-expression and techniques for developing your writing practice. Grub member Debbie Sosin, LICSW, facilitator, is a writer, editor, and psychotherapist. Her essays have appeared in the Boston Globe Magazine and on Salon.com. She has facilitated dozens of groups and seminars, including at the Arlington Center and Cambridge Center for Adult Education. For details, visit www.deborahsosin.com, email Debbie at debbie@deborahsosin.com, or call 617-448-5769.
--CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: The Common
The Common is a new literary magazine based at Amherst College that publishes literature and images with a strong sense of place. We are currently seeking stories, poems, and essays for Issue 01 (Spring 2011). We accept translations for which translators hold the appropriate rights. Contributors to our prototype, Issue 00, include Ted Conover, Yehudit Ben-Zvi Heller, Honor Moore, Sabina Murray, Mary Jo Salter, Don Share, and Jim Shepard. The submissions period is September 15–December 1. Please visit www.thecommononline.org for complete guidelines.
Welcome to the end of the e-mail, where like 140-character bird calls, we offer you the chance to win a prize. What do Edgar Allan Poe and Jerry Lee Lewis have in common (other than their three names!)? Email your answer and your postal address to whitney@grubstreet.org. First correct respondent wins a J.P. Licks gift card.
Last week's answer: In Tom Perrotta's Little Children, the adulterous affair of Emma Bovary becomes a point of argument for two female characters. Winner: Carol Mitchell in Albuquerque, NM!