The Writers Guild at Bloomington is an association of writers committed to mutual support and the professional development of their craft. Its mission is to foster interaction among writers as well as other artists, educators, and the Monroe County public, thereby enhancing the vibrancy of the arts and the writing community in the greater Bloomington area.

Events Calendar

Jan
19
Sun
Third Sunday Write! @ Monroe County Public Library room 214
Jan 19 @ 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm

Third Sunday Write

At this writing group, you can stretch your writing muscles with prompts and exercises.
It’s open to all WG members. Not a member yet?  No problem, just click on JOIN at the top of the website.
This generative workshop is led by local  writers.  They take it in turns and are Shana Ritter, Tonia Matthew and PDVNCH.
Hope to see you!
To register send name and email address to thirdsundaywrite@writersguildbloomington.com
It’s free!

 

Discussion with author Raymond Fleischmann @ Monroe County Public Library
Jan 19 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Discussion with author Raymond Fleischmann

This is a  Coffee with Friends literary event presented by the Friends of the Monroe County Pubic Library.

Sunday, Jan 19
2 to 4 pm

In the Auditorium at the Monroe County Public Library

303 E. Kirkwood Ave.

This program is free and all are welcome.

Join us for Coffee with Friends with author Raymond Fleischmann as he discusses his debut novel, How Quickly She Disappears, in a conversation moderated by fellow suspense writer Michael Koryta. Set in the Alaskan bush in the 1940s, How Quickly She Disappears is an intoxicating tale of literary suspense about a woman desperate to find her long-missing sister—and the dangerous stranger who arrives in town, promising answers in exchange for three favors. What follows is a chilling game of cat-and-mouse that explores madness and obsession, loneliness and grief, and the ferocious bonds of family. Book signing to follow.
How Quickly She Disappears
“A beautiful blend of high tension and literary elegance, both deeply moving and immediately engaging.”
Michael Koryta, New York Times-bestselling author of How It Happened
The Friends of the Library sponsors Coffee with Friends, an opportunity to meet authors and artists and learn more about their work. The Friends advocate for Monroe County Public Library and support Library collections, services, programs, and staff development. Be a Friend to Monroe County Public Library today!
Jan
25
Sat
Writers Guilde Monthly Business Meeting @ Monroe County Public Library
Jan 25 @ 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm

Writers Guild Monthly Business Meeting

Join us for our monthly business meeting to discuss what we are doing and what we are doing next. Bring you ideas! Bring your voice to add to the discussion.

We meet at the Monroe County Public Library in room 214.

An evening of Spoken Word and Experimental Music @ IFell Gallery
Jan 25 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Writers Guild at Bloomington, Azalea Salon, Indiana Arts Commission, and Urban Deer Records Present

An evening of Spoken Word and Experimental Music      

Doors 7 p.m., show 7:30 p.m.
Suggested Donation $5
 
Kyle Quass & Tony Brewer

Cut up and collage inspired spoken word and improvisational poetry.

Joan Hawkins
A reading of Samuel Beckett’s stage poetry piece Not I.  As with so much of Beckett’s writing, content correlates completely with form in Not I; in fact, form to a large extent is content.

Saint Bloom
Alex Cunningham – violin (St. Louis)
Kyle Quass – trumpet
Damon Smith – bass (St. Louis)
Joe Stone – drums

Damon Smith studied double bass with Lisle Ellis and has had lessons with Bertram Turezky, Joëlle Leandré, John Lindberg, Mark Dresser and others. Damon’s explorations into the sonic palette of the double bass have resulted in a personal, flexible improvisational language based in the American jazz avant-garde movement and European non-idiomatic free improvisation. Visual art, film and dance heavily influence his music, as evidenced by his CAMH performance of Ben Patterson’s Variations for Double Bass, collaborations with director Werner Herzog on soundtracks for Grizzly Man and Encounters at the End of the World, and an early performance with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company.

Alex Cunningham is a violinist, improviser, and visual artist based in St. Louis, MO. His work explores free improvisation, drone, noise, and minimalist composition.

Boxops
Don Marvel – live electronic looping of electronic sound sources

Jan
26
Sun
Last Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic 2020 @ Monroe County Convention Center
Jan 26 @ 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm

Last Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic

Presented by the Writers Guild at Bloomington
With guest poets Nate Logan and Patsy Rahn
Followed by an Open Mic
Free parking in the back.
This event is free and open to the public.

Nate Logan is the author of Inside the Golden Days of Missing You (Magic Helicopter Press, 2019). He teaches at Marian University.

 

 

 

Patsy Rahn is a poet and prose writer. Her works have appeared in various journals and anthologies. Her book of poetry The Grainy Wet Soul is available online through several booksellers. She worked for many years as an actress in Toronto, New York, and Los Angeles and has given poetry readings in Toronto, Los Angeles, and Bloomington. She is a founding member and chairperson emerita of the Writers Guild at Bloomington in Indiana. For more information visit her website at https://www.patsyrahn.com

Feb
1
Sat
Mom, Dad, Aunt Aullie, and a Cat Called Wrinkle: Writing about Family @ Monroe County Public Library Room 2A
Feb 1 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Mom, Dad, Aunt Aullie, and a Cat Called Wrinkle: Writing about Family @ Monroe County Public Library Room 2A

Mom, Dad, Aunt Aullie, and a Cat Called Wrinkle: Writing about Family

A writing workshop presented in partnership between the Writers Guild at Bloomington and the Monroe County Public Library

Free.

In Meeting room 2A

We all have relatives who fascinate us, and family stories that inspire; anger, comfort, and/or make us laugh and cry. This workshop will include exercises on writing about family. Please bring a few photos to share.

Led by Doris Lynch and assisted by Tonia Matthew.

All levels are welcome. Age 18 and up.

 

 

 

Feb
2
Sun
First Sunday Prose Reading & Open Mic @ Bear's Place
Feb 2 @ 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm

First Sunday Prose Reading and Open Mic

Presented by the Writers Guild at Bloomington

It’s all open-mic this month- -a little Valentine’s treat for the poor prose writers who struggle to fit things into our usual short open-mic slots.  So up to 10 minutes– and come early to sign up.  First come first served.

Feb
5
Wed
First Wednesday Spoken Word Series @ Bears Place
Feb 5 @ 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm

 First Wednesday Spoken Word Series

Presented by the Writers Guild at Bloomington

featuring Jennifer Sue Payne (poetry), Antonia Matthew (poetry), Bonnie Maurer (poetry)
music by Sitar Outreach Ministry (psychedelic sitar)
+ an open mic
$5 suggested donation
JENNIFER PAYNE is a multi-disciplinary artist from Bloomington Indiana. She studied Creative Writing at Indiana University and represented IU in the College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational in 2017. She has participated in her local slam community for 4 years. Jennifer also makes wire wrapped jewelry and operates a small, local, handmade style shop.
ANTONIA MATTHEW, originally from England, has lived in Bloomington since 1968. She is a member of Five Women Poets and with them has published three chapbooks and put out a CD. She grew up during WWII and this informs much of her work. Her play “Home Front,” which is built around the letters that she received from her father, who was fighting in Burma in WWII, has been performed live in Bloomington and is currently being produced in London as a full-cast audio dramatization.
BONNIE MAURER, MFA in poetry, IU, is the author of Reconfigured (Finishing Line Press, 2009) and The Reconfigured Goddess: Poems of a Breast Cancer Survivor (Blurb, 2013). Her poems have appeared in the New York Times; So It Goes, the Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library Journal; Nimrod International Journal, and others, as well as on IndyGo buses and on the 6th floor ceiling of St. Vincent Hospital cancer wing in Indianapolis. She works in Indy for Arts for Learning as a poet-in-the-schools and community, as a copy editor for the Indianapolis Business Journal, and as an Ai Chi (aquatic flowing energy) instructor. Maurer was a finalist for the 2020 Indiana Poet Laureate and currently nominated for a Pushcart prize. She is an avid welder using recycled objects from local junkyards and bike shops. Contact bmaurer@ibj.com.
In the hazy basements of local analog havens, an audio experience has been blooming at a remarkably organic rate. SITAR OUTREACH MINISTRY, comprised of a sitar, electric guitar, and numerous unique instruments, has been planting the seeds of meditative grooves for many years in the Bloomington scene and impact listeners new and old.
Feb
9
Sun
Rachel Berenson Perry discusses her new book @ Monroe County Public Library
Feb 9 @ 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Rachel Berenson Perry discusses her new book

Author and art historian Rachel Berenson Perry discusses her new biography of Felrath Hines which chronicles the life of an exceptional artist and art conservator who overcame numerous obstacles throughout his career, refusing to be pigeonholed by his race. Perry explores Hine’s life in Indianapolis and then in New York City in the 1950s and 60s where he created a close friendship with jazz musician Billy Strayhorn and participated in the African American Spiral Group of New York and the equal rights movement.

This is a Coffee with Friends event at the Monroe County Public Library.

In program room 2B.

Free.

Age 12 and up.

Feb
16
Sun
The Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic @ Monroe County Convention Center
Feb 16 @ 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm

The Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic

Please note new TIME and DATE

Presented by the Writers Guild at Bloomington
With guest poets Charles Culp and PDVNCH
Followed by an Open Mic
Free parking in the back.
This event is free and open to the public.
Charles Culp was born and raised in a town called Vincennes. After receiving his degree in Education from Indiana University in 2008, he joined Americorps. Since then he has been an advocate for non-profits and community education in Colorado, Tennessee, and now in his home state of Indiana. He is passionate about making a lasting connection with readers, and he believes every person has an opportunity to grow and thrive as they discover their passions through the never-ending, formative years of our lives.

PDVNCH

 

PDVNCH [Pee-dove-inch]   is a dramatic prophetic poetic storyteller, who uses rainbows, painting pictures, creating vivid images, with words, from multiple perspectives, giving voice to the unheard, with vocal tones, that are rhythmic.

As an inventor/originator, most known, globally, for his original iconic hair designs ‘Beads by PDVNCH’, fabulous frames and his phenomenal passion for fashion.

A Bloomingtonian, and Director Of Creative-Arts Productions for GHETT-HEALTHY productions @ GHp Stewdios.  Through collaboration, his desire is to Inspire inspiration, and “Always be on Purpose”!

———————————————-

Changes coming to Last Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic!
The Monroe County Convention Center graciously hosts our Last Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic event, and we are very grateful for their support and generosity!  They have requested a change in time and some dates, and we are happy to comply.
The convention center has requested we meet at an earlier time to accommodate their staffing. Also, due to some mega bookings that take up the entire convention center, this year we need to change 3 dates (it will be much easier when the new convention center extension is built !).
We will also change the name slightly to avoid confusion.
New Name:     The Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic
 
New TIME:                1:00 pm to 2:30 pm
 
Dates: 2020
Jan 26 
Feb 16  (one week earlier)
March 29
April 19  (one week earlier)
May 31
Sept  20  (one week earlier)
Oct 25
 
If you’d like to get a quick and easy reminder for each Sunday Poetry Reading & Open Mic, please send your name and email to: prahn**@indiana.edu  (remove asterix).
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