We’re back with another weekend of fun and free events happening online and in-person (in Philly).
Last year we tested the waters with an online open mic and a writer-packed live event and because it was so much fun we decided to do it again. This is our alternative to AWP, the annual writing conference hosted by MFA programs, which can be a very fun and cool experience and a great way to meet other writers if you can afford to travel and take time off work. Over the years I’ve gone to a few AWP conferences, and by that I mean I’ve been fortunate to be able to travel to some of the cities where the conference was being hosted so that I could attend the off-site events and sneak into the convention centers to do some mingling. I’ve definitely had fun when I’ve gone, but the past couple of years it just has not been feasible for me to go, which is why we started putting together this free alternative to AWP. We even stole the acronym.
There will be two live events and four online events.
The live events include a party (complete with a photobooth by Tim Tiebout) slash reading curated by Be About It Press, Stanchion, and Thirty West Publishing House at Space 1026 on Friday, February 9th, and a mini book fair and open mic at A Novel Idea on Saturday, February 10th.
The online events include a Q&A session about writing and publishing led by Jeff Bogle of Stanchion, a panel about building and maintaining a writing practice led by Julian Shendelman of Blue Stoop and Collective Lit and featuring panelists Alison Lubar, Kale Hanson, and Peter Webb, a multimedia poetry workshop using SuperLied led by William Hazard, and an online open mic hosted by K.R. Morrison and featuring Kelechi Ubozoh, Norm Mattox, Hollie Hardy, Natasha Dennerstein, and Tongo Eisen-Martin.
All of this should provide an ample amount of socializing, meeting other amazing writers, thinking about writing, and an opportunity to share your work. I hope you can come to some or all of the events! I like the idea of having a mix of online and in-person events because I have friends in various parts of the country (and around the world) and want to give them a chance to come if they’re free, and I also just love a party. I love dressing up, standing awkwardly in a corner before eventually warming up and finding the courage to chat with people, and dancing. And having my photo taken.
In-person gatherings:
Friday, February 9th at 7pm: Party/reading at Space 1026 (844 N Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19130). Photobooth by Tim Tiebout. DJ stylings by Hegemonster. Featuring performances by Jeff Bogle, Jiordan Castle, C.M. Crockford, Josh Dale, Violet Gehringer, Shannon Frost Greenstein, Sam Heaps, Alison Lubar, Alexandra Naughton, Jesse Prado, and Pony Silk. There is a $5 suggested donation but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Saturday, February 10th at 1pm EST: Mini book fair and open mic at A Novel Idea (1726 E Passyunk Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19148). The open mic will start at 3pm, but please arrive early.
Online gatherings:
Thursday, February 8th at 3pm EST: Writing Q&A with Jeff Bogle. Jeff Bogle is a dad of two teenage daughters and a clowder of cats. He’s an avid traveler, photographer, author, falafel & hummus fiend, and English football obsessive. As a freelance writer, he’s written for The Washington Post, Fodor's, Esquire, Travel + Leisure, Good Housekeeping, Wine Enthusiast, Food & Wine, Real Simple, USA Today, and Reader's Digest, among many other print and online publications. Jeff is the publisher of Stanchion, a quarterly print literary magazine and small book press. His book, Street Cats and Where to Find Them, will be published by Running Press in the summer of 2025. He lives in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Register now!
Thursday, February 8th at 6pm EST: Making it happen: A discussion on building and maintaining a writing practice. This panel and community conversation will explore (non)traditional methods of establishing a consistent writing practice. We’ll discuss obstacles to just “making it happen,” the feelings that accompany failure, and opportunities to break through writer’s block and self-flagellation. Writers of all tendencies and velocities are invited to listen and participate. Please register now!
Sunday, February 11th at 3pm EST: Multimedia Poetry Workshop using SuperLied led by William Hazard. In this workshop, we'll develop some new poems for SuperLied, a free and open source software tool for the development of multimedia works at the intersection of poetry and computer music. William Hazard, the developer of SuperLied, will lead workshop participants through the process of setting up SuperLied to run on any macOS, Windows, or Linux computer, and then we'll dive right into making poems that generate their own musical accompaniment. Or writing music using letters. Or whatever you want to call it. SuperLieding. No coding experience, music experience, or poetry experience is necessary – all skill levels are very welcome. We'll meet where we're at and work from there. And by the end of the workshop, we'll each have our very own multimedia poem to take home, publish, or perform. William Hazard makes poems with computers. Recent work can be found in Ghost Proposal, Beloved Radio, Audio Flare Gun, and on GitHub. He teaches at Temple University. He edits at Overpass Books. He moderates at llllllll.co. Register now!
Sunday, February 11th at 6pm EST: Online reading and open mic. Join us and share some poems! Hosted by K.R. Morrison and featuring Kelechi Ubozoh, Norm Mattox, Hollie Hardy, Natasha Dennerstein, and Tongo Eisen-Martin. Please register now.
I hope to see you at some or all of these events! Check our linktree for updates!