Adirondack Center for Writing

👏 to the Young Writers Club in Keene!

Do you have an imaginative teen (age 12+) in your life looking for community, consistency, and creative inspiration? The Young Writers Club, started by the parents of kids from our Story Publishing Camp this summer, will meet weekly on Thursdays from 3:30 to 5:30 at the Keene Public Library. Participants will try new kinds of writing, create collaborative projects, and have their voices heard.

Please call/text founder Emily Kutz at 610 742-9157 with questions.

This Thursday! Join us at ACW for a workshop designed to make you a more critical listener and a more effective speaker. It is free and open to all experience levels; teens are welcome alongside adults.

“To get our vote, today’s politicians give speeches almost every day. How can we judge the truth of what they say? In this workshop, we’ll explore the principles of rhetoric which give us the tools to analyze these speeches and find the truth.”
- Jerry McGovern

Jerry McGovern was an instructor in the SUNY Plattsburgh Communications Department for more than 30 years. He taught Public Speaking, Argumentation/Critical Thinking and Small Group Communication. He also writes reviews of books relevant to Adirondack audiences for the "Read in the Blue Line" column for the Adirondack Daily Enterprise.

Learn more + register (for free!): adirondackcenterforwriting.org/event/its-called-rhetoric

“I am reading ‘Fifty Beasts to Break Your Heart’ by GennaRose Nethercott, featuring mysterious tales of fierce love and connection.” - Brian Gardam

Check your local library or independent bookstore for a copy!

TONIGHT! Stop by ACW from 5-7:30 for the final Saranac Lake ArtWalk of the year. We'll have fun, accessible writing activities for all ages inside, and outside we'll have local authors Suzanne Weirich and Pamela Merritt selling their books.

Picture: Caitlin Freibel selling books at the August ArtWalk

Calling all history buffs and diary enthusiasts! American Diary Project’s mission is to honor the diversity and depth of the human experience by providing a free public resource that preserves, archives, and digitizes handwritten diaries from everyday Americans. They are currently seeking volunteers to write blog posts, donate diaries, transcribe diaries, and spread the word!

For more info, visit americandiaryproject.com

ACW’s High School Writing Retreat is back for its 20th year at Smith's College!

In addition to poetry, this year we're excited to introduce fiction and nonfiction writing to our line-up of creative writing workshops! Students will enjoy performances and learn to supercharge their writing with literary rockstar instructors:

1. Omar Holman, author of the essay collection Black Nerd Problems, will show students how to write passionately about their obsessions.
2. Roya Marsh, author of the poetry collection Daylight, will inspire students to write confidently about who they are.
3. GennaRose Nethercott, author of the novel Thistlefoot, will teach students how to build worlds with words.
4. Jon Sands, author of the poetry collection It’s Not Magic, will help students explore the humor and heart of poetry.

Thu, Oct 24 & Fri, Oct 25 | 9 AM - 3 PM | FREE | @ Paul Smith’s College
Open to any high school students and classes, including homeschool students. No experience necessary, and no fee to attend.

Visit adirondackcenterforwriting.org/highschool to register or email Tyler with any questions at [email protected]

Since 2005, the Adirondack Center for Writing has hosted its annual High School Writing Retreat, and each year brings in more talented local teen writers. Thanks to Stewart's Shops, Cloudsplitter Foundation, Charles R. Wood Foundation, and the Saranac Lake Public School Education Fund for supporting the 2024 High School Writing Retreat!

The Howl Story Slam is coming to 1844 House (6885 State Route 11, Potsdam) this Wednesday, September 18, at 7 PM. This is your chance to tell a story with the theme “Close Call.” Anyone can sign up to tell a story at the beginning of the night! Join us for an evening of suspenseful stories and lots of laughs.

No tickets needed. Admission to each slam is a $10/pay-what-you-can donation split between ACW and our Howl partner, North Country Public Radio.

ACW is on a mission to connect with you all, our amazing (and far-reaching) audience, so we’re coming to a town near you! Starting next Spring, ACW will travel around the Adirondack Park to host several meetups, but — we need your help to find the perfect community venues! These get-togethers will include our super popular non-romantic “speed-dating,” featured at our Kickass Writers Festival, and plenty of opportunities to chat up ACW staff and connect with awesome, like-minded people in your community.

So, where should we meet up? Tell us in our survey: bit.ly/ACWmeetupsurvey

We can’t wait to hangout!

“It was inspiring to watch Michael Hart's stark, lyrical, and spooky short films and craft poems based on what I was seeing and feeling. If you can make it out to ACW this Friday (the 13th!), you'll hear a few new poems along with those I wrote for Moving Stills: one about my personal tragedy of having missed this spring's solar eclipse , and another that lambasts both the film Oppenheimer and the very idea of fireworks . See you Friday!” - ACW’s Tyler Barton

Register (for FREE) here: adirondackcenterforwriting.org/event/moving-stills-film-poetry

More info:
Moving Stills: Film & Poetry is a presentation of 12 short films and the poems they inspired.
THIS Friday, Sept 13, at 7 PM | FREE @ ACW

Earlier this year, filmmaker Michael Hart enlisted six North Country writers – Sylvia Karman, jim bourey, Erica Kelso, Ethan Shantie, Isabelle Bohl and ACW’s own Tyler Barton – to create new work inspired by his short, experimental films. Hart composed music and used recordings of the poems to create an expansive, interdisciplinary art collaboration which premiered in Malone this past April as part of National Poetry Month.

ACW’s former Anne LaBastille Resident, Jane Boxall, is an adventurous percussionist, working across diverse musical genres. She has performed in concert halls, art galleries, cafes, castles, kindergartens, hospitals, universities, forests and festivals from Cyprus to San Francisco, India to Quebec, Manhattan to France, and even a few times here at ACW in Saranac Lake!

Jane is currently hiking the entire 211 mile John Muir Trail in California and recounting her journey along the way.

Check out Jane’s "Trek" blog series about her journey at thetrek.co/author/jane-boxall

“I have been reading ‘The God in the Woods’ – a great adult mystery read for anyone who has ever been to sleepaway camp (especially in the Adirondacks where this novel takes place). But at Camp Emerson between 1961 and 1975, two campers have gone missing! Liz Moore is also the author of 'Long, Bright River,' 'Heft,' and 'The Unseen World' – all excellent reads.” - Mary Sanders Shartle

Check your local library or independent bookstore for a copy of “The God in the Woods” by Liz Moore.

Join us at ACW on Thurs, September 26, at 6:30 PM for a free public speaking workshop with Jerry McGovern.

To get our vote, today’s politicians give speeches almost every day. How can we judge the truth of what they say? The principles of rhetoric, the art of persuasion, give us the tools to analyze these speeches, to find the truth. This workshop is designed to make you a more critical listener and a more effective speaker. Open to all experience levels and teens (13+) are welcome alongside adults.

Register for free: adirondackcenterforwriting.org/event/its-called-rhetoric

Our Creative Aging Workshop begins this week and though this workshop is full, we're working on opening a new one soon! If you’re interested, please join the waitlist here: adirondackcenterforwriting.org/event/legacy-writing-2024

What I Want You to Know is a free, 8-week (one day per week) creative writing workshop for adults ages 55 and older. Legacy writing, sometimes referred to as an “ethical will,” encompasses what we wish for our loved ones to know about us and how we have navigated our lives. Legacy writing preserves our values, stories, opinions, history, and experiences through a creative lens. Students in this workshop will be introduced to engaging prompts, inspiring texts, and a warm, supportive community dedicated to getting words on the page. No prior experience with creative writing is necessary. At the end of the workshop, participants will be invited to contribute a piece of their own writing to a class anthology produced and distributed by Adirondack Center for Writing.

The Howl Story Slam is coming to the Ciderworks taproom at Prairie's Orchard (111 County Rt. 24, Malone, NY) this Thursday, September 5, at 7 PM. This is your chance to tell a story with the theme “Close Call.” Anyone can sign up to tell a story at the beginning of the night! Join us for suspenseful stories, lots of laughs, and delicious cider by Mountain Miss Ciderworks.

No tickets needed. Admission to each slam is a $10/pay-what-you-can donation split between North Country Public Radio and ACW 😊

Can’t make it this week? Check out the schedule for the rest of the season on our events page at adirondackcenterforwriting.org/events

Thank you, National Book Foundation!

ACW recently received a $5,000 grant from the National Book Foundation for capacity building! We’re beyond thrilled to be among the 49 nonprofit literary arts organizations in the US selected for this opportunity.

Read more about the grant and view a list of 2024 recipients at nationalbook.org/national-book-foundation-to-award-capacity-building-grants-to-49-literary-nonprofits-across-the-us

Congrats, Patricia Spears Jones!

As part of The Academy of American Poets Poet Laureate Fellowship, Patricia Spears Jones will develop and implement a series of intergenerational workshops that will foster conversations about social justice, environmental degradation, systemic oppression, and cultural resistance, and what beauty means. The workshops are based on a statement in Walt Whitman’s “Democratic Vistas” essay: “a new Literature [. . .] a new Poetry, are to be, in my opinion, the only sure and worthy supports and expressions of the American Democracy.”

Patricia Spears Jones kicked off ACW’s 2024 Kickass Writers Festival back in June. Read more about the festival at adirondackcenterforwriting.org/recap-2024-kickass-writers-festival

"Teenagers often receive a lot of bad press. Fortunately, in the pages of Wild Words, these young authors promote hope, optimism, thoughtfulness, and a little bit of well-earned cynicism."
- Erena Fulton, in a recent review of Wild Words 2024 in the Adirondack Daily Enterprise

Photo: Olivia Broadbent, who’s piece, “Failure” is featured in Wild Words 2024 and discussed in the second paragraph of the review.

You can read the review at adirondackdailyenterprise.com/opinion/columns/read-in-the-blue-line/2024/07/wild-words-is-fun-read-for-teens-and-adults-alike
Copies of Wild Words 2024 are available at ACW for a $5 donation (plus $4 for shipping).

Rachel R. Baum is re-reading "The English Patient" by Michael Ondaatje.

"There is a reason the novel won the Booker Prize. The main characters, the countryside and setting of Tuscany, Italy during and after World War II, the multiple plots and time lines, every facet of this tale is rich with description, evocative of place, and compelling with romance and intrigue. Even if you have read the book before, or seen the movie as many times as I have (at least 5 times!), you will be enthralled with the stories of Hana, Kip, Caravaggio, and the mysterious English patient, and how they connect with each other." - Rachel R. Baum

Check your local library or independent bookstore for a copy of "The English Patient" by Michael Ondaatje.

Writer-director Kirk Sullivan is casting actors for a table read of his feature film GOOD OLD BOYS, a coming-of-age story about a teenager (Josh) who forms a band with his friends in the summer after his dad dies and is forced to decide whether or not he will leave his hometown to attend prep school. As Josh navigates grief, friendships, and young love, he tries to find his voice.

*Actors to be available August 29 & 30th*
*Actors do not need to be the same age as the roles*

Email Sarah Allen for more info at [email protected].

Roles
JOSH (16): A bright kid with a kind heart, he’s torn between the comforts of his hometown and an opportunity to leave.
ADAM (16): A headstrong troublemaker with a loud-mouth, he is Josh’s best friend and bandmate.
NICOLE (16): A foul-mouthed dreamer from a rough family, her tough exterior shields her sensitivities about her background and her personal goals.
MOLLY (40s-50s): A warm-hearted optimist forced to confront the difficult reality of becoming a single mom of two teenagers.
MARK (40s-50s): A gregarious jokester and raconteur, he is a store owner, family friend, and Josh’s mentor.