March 7th, 2011

Grub Street News

Welcome to the latest installment of the Grub Street Rag, a newsletter of the Boston literary scene sent out every Monday from the nurse's office 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.

The Muse and the Marketplace: Don't Miss Out

Our Muse and the Marketplace registration has only been live for a week, but many things are already selling out. Don't miss your chance to snag a plum spot in our Manuscript Mart, where you can meet one-on-one with an agent or editor and discuss twenty pages of your manuscript, or a place in one of our ninety craft and publishing sessions with an amazing lineup of authors. Be sure to check the site because we frequently add new offerings and presenters. The conference takes place April 30th and May 1st at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel, and we urge you to sign up soon! To view all details about the conference and to register, go to www.museandthemarketplace.com. See you at the Muse!

Department of Congratulations: Do-We-Seriously-Need-a-Size Larger-Than-Venti? Edition

We dare you: try to drink an entire supersized Caramel Macchiato before reaching the end of this shockingly large Department of Congratulations. Just try it.

This month, we start off with good news from our students. Former Grub student Kara Provost attended Grub poetry classes back in the early days when Grub was based in Somerville, and now she has her second chapbook of poems coming out. Titled Topless, the book is a collaboration between Kara and two other Boston-area women poets. Grub student Carrie Normand's "Nesting Instincts" was published in the Boston Globe Sunday Magazine's Coupling column on January 23rd. Grace Talusan's student Carol Reichert let us know that she's getting a piece published in Women's Best Travel Writing 2011 (pub date: April 1st). It's called "Contratiempo," and it's about her experiences dancing flamenco in Seville, Spain. Sari Boren's essay "Escape," which she wrote in Michelle Seaton's "Tour of the Essay" class, was accepted for publication at War, Literature & the Arts. Rachel Roth published an essay about two sisters "freed" from prison on the condition that one of them give her kidney to the other. And lastly, Atinuke Diver has two pieces of news: her story was featured on Black Weblog Awards, and her essay "Why I Spank Other People's Kids" was featured on Love Isn't Enough, a blog about parenting and race.

We also have some great news from one of the teen writers in our Young Adult Writers Program.  YAWP student Sydney-Elise Washington started attending the free program last fall.  She's been creating stories and songs since she could talk and writing them down since she was five or six.  Now, she's happy to report that her poetry was published internationally in Möbius, The Poetry Magazine. Sydney's mother is as proud as we are (well, probably prouder), and said that: "YAWP helped boost Sydney-Elise's confidence and polish some of her rough edges.  Thank you!"

Our Grub members have great news too. Tilia Klebenov-Jacobs has been invited to judge the aptly-named Tilia Klebenov Jacobs Religious Essay Competition.  She says, "You can imagine how delighted they were when they finally tracked down someone with the right name for the job." The prizes will be awarded a year from now, in March 2012. Member and student  Rosie Rosenzweig's essay “My Mother’s Chicken Soup: Recipe for Perspective,” recently appeared in the Journal of the Motherhood Initiative, a Canadian publication. We Grubbies were also pleased to run into longtime Grubbie Amin Ahmad at the AWP conference last month, where he told us that he has a story in the latest issue of New England Review, and will be Narrative Magazine's "Story of the Week" on March 20th. Amin, who lives in D.C. now, said: "One of the things I miss most about Boston is Grub Street and my Grubbie writing community. AWP was great, and walking around the book fair and talking to the editors I know, I realized it's all thanks to Grub. A few years ago, I'd go to an event like this and be terrified. But now that I've been published by a bunch of lit mags, I feel like I belong." We always knew he belonged, and now we're thrilled he's getting the recognition he deserves for his fantastic writing.

And now that you're down to that drizzle of caramel at the bottom of your latte, here's the instructor news for the month. Instructor Judah Leblang's radio piece, "Deja Vu" was recorded at WAMC in Albany in January and will be broadcast on The Health Show on 150 stations around the US during the month of February. The piece deals with his recent experience of losing some of his hearing and adjusting to hearing tests and aids. Muse & the Marketplace guest author Lynne Barrett's third collection of stories, Magpies, will be published in Sept. 2011 by Carnegie Mellon University Press, and Lynne has a memoir piece in the launch issue of Modcloth's The Written Wardrobe. Instructor Elaine McArdle's feature, "Resurrection," on efforts by Northeastern University Law Professor Margaret Burnham to bring justice to two young men murdered by the Klan in 1964, has received a Silver Award in the international Mercury Excellence Awards. The Mercury Excellence Awards was founded in 1987 to advance the arts and sciences of communications in an international arena, and more than 760 entries from 21 countries were submitted for the 2010/2011 competition. Elaine's article was published in Northeastern Law School Magazine. Instructor Jenn Mattson shared her latest piece from The Atlantic with us: http://theatln.tc/gWndNw. And last but never least, instructor Becky Tuch got a story accepted by Night Train. Becky actually wrote this story during a writing exercise in one of her workshops, while doing the prompt she'd assigned to the students. Hey, those writing prompts must really work! Congratulations to all, and thanks for sending in all your inspirational successes.

Do you have writing news and want to be featured in the DoC? The first Monday of every month, we feature Grub Street members who have sent their good news to whitney@grubstreet.org. To be included, please send Whitney an email with information about your publication, award or fellowship. Limit your announcement to 60 words or less. Extra credit if the announcement is written in the third person, which is good practice for your writing anyway.

Thank you: We've Got A Mission

Thank you so much to everyone who responded to our question about our mission statement. Your feedback was invaluable, and we look forward to sharing the next (and final?) draft with you in a few weeks.

Don't Miss Your Daily Dose

Lots of great stuff on the Grub Street Daily this week: a writing exercise that's also a confession, advice for writers who feel more like turtles than hares, tips on making use of scent in your erotica, a guest post from Beyond the Margins about keeping your first novel tucked away in a drawer, and much more!

Get Answers To Your Writing Questions

If you haven't been following the advice column on our blog, The Friday Five-O, it's time to start. Our dream team of writers—Jane Roper, Stuart Horwitz, Allison Adair, Jim Scott, and Jenna Blum—answer writing questions from the community, and they do it with style, panache and laugh-out-loud humor. The comments on their posts say it all: one woman has even printed out a Five-O response and hung it in her cubicle! If you have a question you'd like answered by one of the Five-O team, please email it to whitney@grubstreet.org. Include your name and any other biographical info you feel is necessary.

Cheers,
Whitney, Sonya, Chris, Chip, and Eve

Conference Spotlight

For the next eight weeks, The Rag will be spotlighting a “Muse” (craft) session and a “Marketplace” (publishing) session that will be offered at our annual conference, The Muse and the Marketplace. We hope you’ll be able to enjoy these sessions in person the weekend of April 30-May 1st and the Park Plaza Hotel. For all details, including registration info, go to www.museandthemarketplace.com.

Muse Spotlight: Julie Wheelwright’s “How to Use Documents and Sources in Non-Fiction” (Sunday Session 4)
A first-time presenter at the Grub Street conference, Julie Wheelwright will be visiting us from London, England. Julie is the MA programme director in non-fiction creative writing at City University London, and an accomplished biographer and journalist whose books include The Fatal Lover: Mata Hari and the Myth of Women in Espionage, and Amazons and Military Maids. Her most recent work, Esther: The Remarkable True Story of Esther Wheelwright, Puritan Child, Native Daughter and Mother Superior, recounts how one of her ancestors was kidnapped by Native Americans from Maine in 1703. Julie is the MA programme director in non-fiction creative writing at City University London. Julie’s session will focus on her use of sources in her biographies about famous, and little-known, women ranging from police interrogations to convent histories to explain their importance to creating a compelling narrative. Julie will explore how to fill the gaps in narrative nonfiction where you have few sources or conflicting evidence and the value of gaps, silences and mysteries. She will also share her 'top ten tips' for writing nonfiction in a detailed hand out.

Marketplace Spotlight: Kevin Smokler’s “State of the Publishing Industry: Not as Bad as You Think” (Saturday Session 1)
Called "a publishing visionary" by the Huffington Post and Mashable.com, Kevin Smokler speaks and writes on the future of books, reading and publishing in the digital 21st century. He's the author of Bookmark Now: Writing in Unreaderly Times a San Francisco Chronicle notable book of 2005. His essays and criticism have appeared in the LA Times, Fast Company, Rain Taxi, The Believer and on National Public Radio. As a speaker, he's appeared at conferences and book festivals throughout North America addressing technology and contemporary culture for writers and readers. He has 50,000 Twitter followers (@weegee), lives in San Francisco and loves visiting Boston and Grub Street. He’s got a particularly upbeat outlook on the world of books, publishing, writing and reading  and believes that the fact they are changing rapidly is a good thing, that the opportunities for how a writer can publish, be heard and contribute to the cultural conversation are greater and more exciting than ever. The topics covered in his presentation will include: (1) Twitter, Facebook, YouTube. Friend, Foe or Big Giant Mystery? (2) To be published or publish oneself? (3) How to promote oneself without looking like an imbecile or an insurance salesmen. (4) ebooks and how they work. (5) Is anyone reading anymore? Yes, but whom? Come with questions!
 

Grub Events

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.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 7th, 6:30-9:30pm, Crafting the Pitch
In this seminar, you will learn how to write killer cover letters for submitting essays to literary magazines, non-fiction book proposals to agents, and articles to editors of magazines, newspapers and online publications. We'll look at the basic elements of a pitch, or "query," letter, explain what editors look for, talk about ways to tailor pitches to specific publications, and examine real pitch letters that actually worked. We'll also look at top mistakes that writers make and show how to leverage your background and expertise to best present yourself (even if you don't have much publishing experience). Bring 15 copies of a draft of any pitch letter for a non-fiction project you are currently working on (optional), and we'll critique as many of them as we can.
Instructor: Ethan Gilsdorf
$65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ. Register Now.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 7th, 6:30-9:30pm, You’ve Decided to Self-Publish: What Now?
So, you’ve decided to self-publish? Congratulations! But...what now? With an infinite number of options for how to proceed, this choice is difficult. It’s also highly strategic, with the potential to shape your writing career. This seminar will give you the tools to self-publish in a way that will help you meet your specific self-publishing goals. After examining those goals and the reasoning behind them, it will walk you through the various options, including budgetary considerations, and help you determine which one is the best match for you.
Instructor: Sharon Bially
$65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ. Register Now.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 7th, 6:30-9:30pm, Guided Open Mic With Steve Almond
Here’s your chance to show off your writing skills by reading your work to an eager audience and any guest authors, editors or literary agents who drop by. What makes this particular open mic extra special (and unforgettable!) is that it will be hosted by author Steve Almond, who is known for giving excellent readings. Steve will be on hand to talk about what makes a good reading – from how to pick the right excerpt to how to perform that excerpt like a professional. To participate, please bring a FIVE-MINUTE excerpt of your fiction, poetry or non-fiction to the session and sign up for a reading slot when you arrive. Please note that a five-minute reading usually consists of no more than 600 words. We will hold readers to a very strict five-minute limit.
Instructor: Steve Almond
*2 spots left*, $65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ. Register Now.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 7th, 6:30-9:30pm, Ask the Agent
In this Grub Street seminar, you will sit down with accomplished literary agent Ann Collette, of the Rees Literary Agency, to ask any question that's on your mind about the role of the agent and get an insider’s view on life inside a literary agency.
We're sorry, this class is sold out. Join waiting list.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 7th, 6:30-9:30pm, Think Small, Think Smart: How to Publish Beyond the Big Houses
For many reasons, new and established writers are moving their publications to smaller presses. Join an industry professional for an intensive discussion on alternatives to larger presses. Topics will include how to make yourself appealing to small presses, how to approach them, handle contract issues, market/promote, handle your book tour in line with your book distribution, and make your readings successful. Small press publishing has its challenges, but armed with this knowledge, you can make it work for you.
Instructor: Tara L. Masih
$65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ. Register Now.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 14th, 6:30-9:30pm, Crash Course in Guerrilla Book Promotion
If you're about to publish a book, you've probably got questions about how to best publicize and sell it -- as well as wondering what to expect. In this expanded version of his popular seminar, Ethan Gilsdorf reports on the lessons learned from his 75+ event, budget book tour and one year guerrilla effort to promote his book Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms. Whether you have a big or small publisher, or chose self-publishing, there are both traditional and non-traditional methods to identify and reach your target audience and build an audience in various potential book-buying communities. We'll discuss setting up a promotional budget; creating a book tour (and not just at bookstores but other venues); brainstorming special contests, promotions and giveaways unique to your book; establishing yourself as an expert and tying in your book to current events; using traditional media like print, TV and radio; and jumping on social media to develop a fan base and create buzz. We'll also over what your publisher should do and what you can do, and the problems that self-publishing creates. Come with questions.
Instructor: Ethan Gilsdorf
$65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ. Register Now.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 14th, 6:30-9:30pm, The Short Novel: From Sketch To Draft in 90 Days
The reading appetite for shorter novels appears only to be growing. For writers, there’s a great opportunity to write a forceful piece of fiction that takes not years, but months to draft. In this seminar we will workshop project ideas—taking into consideration: organic shape, tone and style—and also take apart several published models of the form. We will also work out a writing schedule that reasonably allows a working part-time novelist to get the job done. Please bring to class: a paragraph synopsis of the novel as you presently envision it, and the first three pages of chapter 1.
Instructor: Ted Weesner
We're sorry, this class is sold out. Join waiting list ($65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ)

SEMINAR: Monday, March 14th, 6:30-9:30pm, Funny Is the New Deep
In this informal class, we'll look at the work of Lorrie Moore, George Saunders, and others, in an effort to learn how you can be funny and break hearts while doing it.
Instructor: Steve Almond
We're sorry, this class is sold out. Join waiting list. ($65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ)

SEMINAR: Monday, March 14th, 6:30-9:30pm, Writing the Graphic Novel
Slowly but steadily, graphic novels have escaped the dimly lit confines of comic shops and found critical acclaim under the soft fluorescents of mainstream bookstores. Blending a static art form with compelling narrative and dialog, the graphic novel gives fans an engaging reading experience while presenting the writer with a unique set of creative challenges. How do you write with the human eye in mind? How do you write for two different types of audience-- the reader and the artist (your collaborator)? With graphic novels like Gene Yang's American Born Chinese being considered as a finalist in the 2007 National Book Awards, now may be the perfect time to give the comic medium another look and discover just how much it has grown. In this course, you will learn the basics of how to write a graphic novel, and get feedback on your drafts.
Instructor: Jorge Vega
*One spot left*, $65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ. Register Now.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 14th, 6:30-9:30pm, Creating Complex Characters
Through a combination of exercises and discussion, this seminar will show you how to create characters whose human contradictions make them vivid and memorable.
Instructor: Lisa Borders
We're sorry, this class is sold out. Join waiting list ($65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ)

LUNCHTIME WRITING: Wednesday, March 16th, 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. 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!
Instructor: Javed Jahangir
FREE, Grub Street HQ.

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Saturday, March 19th, 10:00am-5:00pm, Poetry Jam
Do you want to experiment with writing poetry? Are you looking to get back to those poems you wrote a while ago? Are you in a rut with your writing and in need of a jumpstart to find a fresh approach? Or are you a prose writer who needs to cross train by flexing some poetry muscles? Poets of all levels are welcome in this one-day workshop in which we'll experiment with various poetry games, collaborations, and exercises. You'll leave with some drafts of poems and with a toolbox of writing exercises to help you keep writing on your own. Be prepared to write, collaborate, and have fun.
Instructor: Rebecca Morgan Frank
There are 3 seats remaining in this class. $115.00/$95.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Saturday-Sunday, March 19-20th, 10:00am-5:00pm, Playwriting
What is it about theatre that can cause a city to riot? For centuries plays have provoked, shocked, delighted and mesmerized audiences; at its best, theatre is perhaps our most vital and transformative art form. And while successful drama is truly a collaborative achievement, the script, to paraphrase, is the thing. The process and style might differ for each playwright, but the goal remains constant: to hold up a mirror to the human condition. After all, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.”
This Playwriting workshop will help students discover the challenge and thrill of constructing a script through class discussion and writing practice. You will come to understand playwriting fundamentals and learn how best to establish dramatic imagery, maintain successful tension, develop sympathetic characters and write compelling dialogue. By the end of the workshop, students will have completed a ten-minute play, properly formatted. A useful refresher for those familiar with the genre and an excellent introduction for anyone new to it.
Instructor: Brian Arundel
There are 4 seats remaining in this class. $220.00/$195.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Saturday, March 19th, 10:00am-5:00pm, Plotting the Novel, Section B
Starting with Aristotle and working through three contemporary authors’ ideas about plotting, this course will offer several plot forms to help you rethink your novel’s structure and the vital connection between character and plot.
Instructor: Michelle Hoover
We're sorry, this class is sold out. Join waiting list ($65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ)

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Saturday, March 19th, 10:00am-5:00pm, Fiction Writer's Workout
Spend the day with one of Grub Street’s most popular instructors generating new scenes, characters and descriptions. What you write on this day can either be integrated into current stories and novels or serve as springboards for future narratives. Along the way, you’ll look briefly at some published texts and examine them as writers. By the end of the day, we’ll have made sure that you’ve produced pages of new material ready for revision or development when you get back to them on Monday morning.
Instructor: Lisa Borders
There are 4 seats remaining in this class. $115.00/$95.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Sunday, March 20th, 10:00am-5:00pm, Art of the Scene
This one-day class – an expanded version of the popular seminar -- will look at the way scenes work and strategies employed by various authors.
Instructor: Amy Marcott
We're sorry, this class is sold out. Join waiting list ($65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ)

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Sunday, March 20th, 10:00am-5:00pm, Writing the Modern Epic
Are you dissatisfied with desk jobs, Facebook and other mediated experiences? Would you rather try your luck with a broad sword against a horde of orcs than paying the Visa bill or looking for parking? If you had to journey somewhere to find or destroy an object, what would it be and where would you need to go? In this fun, intensive class, we'll try to make the epic quest narrative relevant for today. Geared for writers of both poetry and prose narrative, this class will look at classics (Homer, Dante, Beowulf, Icelandic sagas), as well as more modern examples (Tolkien, Star Wars, Joseph Campbell, Zora Neale Hurston) and other tales of quests in various genres (folk tales, western, science fiction, dystopian, mash-ups) to find inspiration (i.e., what would Dante's "Inferno" look like in the 21st century?) Then, we'll spend rough half the class diving deep into writing exercises. Bring ideas (rough or polished) for characters, themes and places for your epic; any drafts, scribbles, drawings, and maps; and excerpts of your favorite inspirational texts (optional). The goal by the end is to get you headed down the path towards your tale, fictional or poetic, of 21st century heroism, adventure, and derring-do.
Instructor: Ethan Gilsdorf
$115.00/$95.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Sunday, March 20th, 10:00am-5:00pm, How to Be a Good Public Reader of Your Own Writing
Have you ever been to a reading where the reader mumbled, read too quickly or softly for comprehension, lost the audience’s attention shuffling through a huge, dog-eared sheaf of pages, or read long past the allotted time limit? Writing poetry or prose and reading it well in public are two different skills, and unfortunately even many good writers are not effective at presenting their work for an audience. In this 6-hour interactive seminar, we’ll review the elements and skills that contribute to a good reading, and discuss how to use readings to market your publications. You’ll go home with strategies for dealing with nerves, tips for pleasing reading organizers, audiences, and—perhaps most importantly—yourself. Come prepared to read a short poem (about 20 lines) or passage of prose (one paragraph). Each seminar participant will receive one-on-one coaching, master-class style. Open to poets and prosers alike. Limited to 20 students.
Instructor: Patrick Donnelly
$115.00/$95.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

WEEKEND WORKSHOP: Sunday, March 20th, 10:00am-5:00pm, The Autobiographic Comic
“Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff.” –Harvey Pekar
What is the difference between a newspaper cartoon and a graphic novel? Put simply, the first is a one-liner, the second has depth, emotion, and storytelling chops. It is easy to assume that the most important part of comics is the art, but without a great story, it’s just another pretty picture. Harvey Pekar was an ordinary guy who wrote about his life as a file clerk, and changed a mundane existence into painfully honest comics. You will transform your life stories into works of art by learning how to write for comics, and then use professional drawing tips to push your story forward. We will discuss the theories and language of the comic book genre, and explore how to condense, intensify, and utilize your own narratives. No need to be an accomplished artist, just the willingness to give this versatile genre a try. By the end of the session, every participant will have a completed autobiographical comic, illustrated, inked and ready for print!
Instructor: Lillian DeVane
$115.00/$95.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 21st, 6:30-9:30pm, 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, editor/agent Maribeth Sanabria, whose clients include Grub’s own Beth Raisner Glass, will help you lay a foundation for getting your first publication credit. From organization and tracking tips, to how to treat your writing like a business, she will offer a nuts-and-bolts overview of the editor/agent stage of the process (submissions policies, cover letter writing, etc.) and take your questions on the burgeoning world of writing for these populations. Tuition includes editorial review of first pages of one of your manuscripts.
Instructor: Maribeth Sanabria
We're sorry, this class is sold out. Join waiting list ($65/$50 members, Grub Street HQ)

SEMINAR: Monday, March 21st, 6:30-9:30pm, Improv for Prose Writers
Improvised theatre promotes quick thinking, self-confidence, and cooperation-- all useful skills for life in general. But for writers, improv can be even more beneficial, as it's based largely on the same building blocks as good fiction-- strong characters, satisfying plot arcs, and realistic dialogue-- and it teaches you to create all of those on the spot and with minimal "inspiration", several times an hour. Students in this very hands-on workshop will learn basic exercises for idea generation and getting out of your usual thinking patterns, as well as the principles of good improvised "scenecraft", plot-shaping, and character work-- which will then be directly applied in a series of concluding writing exercises. By the end of the workshop you'll feel like your stories are writing themselves!
Instructor: Andrew Ladd
$65.00/$50.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 21st, 6:30-9:30pm, How to Write H-O-T Sex Scenes Without Even Blushing!
An intensive seminar that will aim to make sure we're exciting the right parts (our, ahem, hearts) when we write sex scenes. Check your inhibitions -- if not your clothing -- at the door. Large-group seminar, limited to 20 students.
Instructor: Steve Almond
$65.00/$50.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

SEMINAR: Monday, March 21st, 6:30-9:30pm, Creating Your Writer Identity Online
What’s your online personality? Smart? Funny? Thoughtful? Shrill? Popular? Whiny? Comforting? A writer’s online presence requires more than computer skills and ‘keywords’ to build audience (especially those promoting current and future books) it’s about voice combined with skill, structure, impulse control, and patience. We’ll concentrate on crafting your web identity in a manner that meets your mission. (Note: not a technical computer skills class!) Enrollees should bring their most recent blog post, Facebook updates, website printouts, and/or tweets, if available.
Instructor: Randy Susan Meyers
$65.00/$50.00 members, Grub Street HQ.

Be sure to check out our website for a comprehensive view of upcoming events.

Spreading the Love

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.

--READING: Tuesday, March 15th, 7-9pm, U35 POETRY: Adam Fitzgerald & Liza Katz
Adam Fitzgerald is a graduate of Boston College, the Editorial Institute at Boston University, and the Columbia MFA program. He is the editor of the Maggy Poetry Magazine, and his writing has appeared in a numerous journals. Liza Katz is a poet and translator whose work has appeared in Clarion, Exit 13, and North Central Review. She is at work on a book-length essay entitled Bridging the Gap between French and Francophone Literature. U35 Poetry is a reading series founded in 2010 by Daniel E. Pritchard to highlight the work of poets under the age of thirty five and to build a stronger, more coherent poetry community in greater Boston. All are welcome. The series was selected as one of "Boston's Ten Best Distractions of 2010" by the Boston Globe.
FREE, Pierre Menard Gallery, 10 Arrow Street, Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA.

--READING: Wednesday, March 16th, 7PM, Sam Lipsyte and Steve Almond
Sam Lipsyte, author of The Ask, and Steve Almond, who will read his short story "Donkey Greedy, Donkey Gets Punched," from Best American Short Stories 2010, edited by Richard Russo.  About The Ask: Lipsyte's pitch-black comedy takes aim at marriage, work, parenting, abject failure (the author's signature soapbox) and a host of subjects you haven't figured out how to feel bad about yet.
FREE, Newtonville Books, 296 Walnut St., Newton

--READING SERIES: 2011 Commonwealth Reading Series
The Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC) is honored to present fellows and finalists from MCC’s Artist Fellowship Program in the 2011 Commonwealth Reading Series. Every two years, the MCC awards grants to some of the most exciting and talented writers in the Commonwealth. Come hear this year’s literary fellows and finalists read their work as part of a statewide series. Thes events are free and open to the public.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011, 7 PM
Porter Square Books, 25 White Street, Cambridge MA
Featuring: Jessica Bozek, Kathryn Burak, Preston Gralla, Cathy Jacobowitz, and Anna Ross
 
Friday, March 18, 2011, 7 PM
Grub Street HQ, 160 Boylston Street, Boston MA
Featuring: Jamie Cat Callan, Cheryl Clark, Adam Schwartz, Ron Spalletta, and Marc Velasquez
 
Wednesday, March 23, 2011, 7 PM
Forbes Library, 20 West Street, Northampton MA
Featuring: Rosann Kozlowski, Nancy K. Pearson, Cynthia Morrison Phoel, Jendi Reiter, and Jung H. Yun
 
Thursday, March 31, 2011, 7 PM
Porter Square Books, 25 White Street, Cambridge MA
Featuring: John Canaday, Sharon Howell, Kathryn Kulpa, Allan Reeder, and Julia Story
 
Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 7 PM
Newtonville Books, 296 Walnut Street, Newton, MA
Featuring: Regie Gibson, David Lovelace, Tova Mirvis, Leslie Williams, and Lara JK Wilson