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What’s Happening at Writers & Books?
May 2004 Programs & Events
LITalk
- Tuesday May 4, 7–8:30 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Free to W&B members, $3 general public
The Bible as Literature, with Marcos Donnelly
Over a thousand years in the writing, it’s still the best-selling book of all time and the world’s most enduring anthology. This talk will approach the Old and New Testaments via their literary qualities and allow us, as readers, to look at these works for the enduring paragons of literature they have become.
 Strengthing the Bond: Mother/Daughter Creative Photo Journaling
- SA4-G15
- One Saturday, May 8, 10 am – 2 pm
- At the Gell Center of the Finger Lakes
- $50 W&B members (per pair) / $55 general public (per pair)
- Instructor: Patricia Roth Schwartz [ bio ]
Take time out from your busy schedule for a mother/daughter outing.
In this workshop, mother and daughter will come together to compile a journal of writings and photos of special times, guided by a skilled instructor. Participants will take home a bibliography of works (fiction, poetry, and non-fiction) on mothers and daughters. Come to the workshop with four or five favorite photos and a small album in which to document your memories.
Bring a picnic lunch, and enjoy the beauty of the Gell landscape. To make it even more special, we’ll have a tea party, complete with specialty teas and cookies.
Travel Writing & Journal Keeping: Destination Summer
- May 8, 9 am–4 pm, with lunch at a local restaurant,
plus an optional follow up Saturday, September 18, 11 am–Noon.
- SY4-N5A0
- Ages: 13–18
- Instructor: Karen vanMeenen [ bio ]
- $69 W&B members / $76 general public
- Plus $10–$15 pocket money for lunch
Are you a traveler? Do you spend summers at camp, on the road with your family, at your grandparents’ cottage, or at home basking by the pool? Do you like to document your summer vacations by writing in a journal and taking photographs?
Join us as we get excited about our summer adventures and plan the best ways to keep a written and visual record of our adventures. We will read travel writing from around the world and learn the easiest ways of writing about experiences in the moment, keeping things organized and eventually combining them into a book of your life experience. Then we’ll go on a short adventure to Village Gate to look at art, dine out, and write about it.
You will have the option of gathering again on September 18th at 11 am in a café so we can all share our summer experiences of travel and writing. This course is appropriate for all would-be journal-keepers and travelers with an interest in writing and the tendency to observe the world around them, whether in Fairport or Finland.
 2,000 Word Club Open Mike
- Monday May 10 , 7 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Free and open to the public
This fiction and creative non-fiction open mike lets writers of all levels to read up to 2,000 words of prose in front of an encouraging and enthusiastic audience. Hosted by Len Messineo [ bio ]
Senior Reading Group
- Tuesday May 11, 2-4pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Free and open to the public
Share your writing with other seniors in a comfortable, supportive atmosphere at W&B.
 Rochester Poets Reading & Open Mike
- Tuesday May 11 , 7 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Free and open to the public
Rochester Poets has been a thriving poetry organization in the community since 1922. Their membership includes poets of all ages, interests, and backgrounds. Come to W&B to hear a Rochester Poet read, followed by an open mike program. Hosted by Donna Marbach [ bio ]
Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgendered Open Mike
- Wednesday May 12, 7 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Free and open to the public
The Wilde/Woolf Society presents an informal reading open to everyone. Material will focus on (but is not limited to) LGBT lifestyles and issues. Hosted by Dennis Rosenbaum and published author and W&B instructor Patricia Roth Schwartz [ bio ] .
The Bertrand Russell Society
- Portraits of Russell from Memory (panel discussion)
- Thursday May 13, 7 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Free to W&B members, $3 general public
A common misconception is that the BRS is for only those who have special knowledge of or interest in Bertrand Russell. Actually society is much more focused on a large number of intellectual areas, great skill in writing of all sorts from the most esoteric technical material to the most commercial popular writing, and whole-hearted involvement in social and political activism.
Hosted by Dr. David White, this ongoing program promises to be an enlightening and enjoyable experience. Questions about the meetings or the group itself should be directed to
at the University of Rochester Press.
See also: W&B Welcomes the Bertrand Russell Society
Writing Aerobics
- SA4-M22
- Saturdays, 10 – 11:45 am
- May 15 – August 21 (No class May 29 or July 3)
- $12 W&B members / $16 general public
Join Sarah Freligh, Len Messineo, Anaïs Salibian, Pat Schwartz, and many more talented instructors in guided writing exercises guaranteed to get you into the writing spirit.
Impromptu writing exercises can generate great moments of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and drama, not to mention valuable endorphins. The emphasis each Saturday is on generating spontaneous work.
Students may share their efforts in class if they feel comfortable, but this is not a critiquing workshop. Each session is meant to get those brain cells pumping!
Genesee Reading Series
- Tuesday May 18, 7:30 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- $3 W&B members, $6 general public
- Hosted by M.J. Iuppa [ bio ]
The Final Genesee Reading of the Season
Kathleen Wakefield is the recipient of grants from the New York Foundation for the Arts and the Constance Saltonstall Foundation for the Arts. She has been a contributor to The Georgia Review, Kenyon Review, Seneca Review, Poetry, and many other journals. Kathleen also teaches poetry in the Rochester area school system, and she has been a visiting instructor at the University of Rochester, the Eastman School of Music, and Writers & Books.
Fran Weeks has taught at St. John Fisher College, San Diego and Monroe Community Colleges, and was an English Department Head for the Rochester City School District. She has studied poetry writing at Empire State College, The Frost Place, and The Brockport Writers Forum. Her work has been published in Desperate Act, Lake Effect, and The Black Buzzard Review, among others. Her chapbook, Vigil, was published by FootHills in 2003.
- Thursday May 20, 6–9 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Admission $6 members, $8 non-members
- Contact at 473-2590 x104 for details
Join Democrat and Chronicle film critic Jack Garner for a discussion and screening of a critically acclaimed film. This month:
- Mystic River
- 2003, USA, 137 min., Color
- Directed by Clint Eastwood
- Screenplay by Brian Helgeland, from the novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane
- All Movie Guide
Set in an Irish neighborhood in Boston, Jimmy, Sean, and Dave are three childhood friends who are reunited after a brutal murder takes place. Reformed convict Jimmy Markum ( Sean Penn ) and his devoted wife Annabeth (Laura Linney) find out that their teenage daughter Katie ( Emmy Rossum ) has been beaten and killed.
Valley Manor Book Club
- Friday May 21, 10–11:30 am
- at Valley Manor , 1570 East Ave [ map ]
- Free and open to the public
Join the seniors at Valley Manor for a book discussion led by W&B.
Write Who You Are: Teen Women
- Friday, May 21, 7 pm–Sunday, May 23, 3 pm
- SY4-N6C9
- Ages:14–20
- Instructors: Karen vanMeenen [ bio ] & Wendy Low [ bio ]
- At the Gell Center of the Finger Lakes
- Limit: 14
- $175 W&B members / $195 general public
Teen women have experiences, problems, feelings, dreams and hopes that are unique. In this retreat, we will explore these personal and cultural issues through poetry, personal essays, sharing life stories, and writing from journal prompts.
Participants will be given the opportunity to write from the heart and share who they are and what they experience with a supportive group of other young women. We will also read selections from insightful books, including Ophelia Speaks: Adolescent Girls Write About Their Search for Self, The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty Are Used Against Women, Odd Girl Out , and Women Who Run With the Wolves , and discuss their relevance in our lives.
Part of the retreat will include nurturing our connection with nature through activities which take advantage of the Gell Center of the Finger Lakes' beautiful setting. We will also have the chance to stay up late and share our life stories over popcorn and snacks. Pajamas welcome.
Poetry of the Natural World
- SA4-P14
- One Saturday, May 22, 10 am – 2 pm
- $36 W&B members / $40 general public
- Instructor: Patricia Roth Schwartz [ bio ]
The class will explore themes of the natural world and its cycles in the work of three poets: 19th century Victorian Emily Dickinson, 20th century poet Robert Frost, and contemporary poet Mary Oliver.
The instructor will discuss how style, form, imagery, and symbolism in their works contribute to theme. The unique world-view of each poet, as well as how these powerful writers envisioned the human connection to nature, will be emphasized.
After lunch, participants will write their own poems using exercises to facilitate the process, based on the natural setting of the Gell landscape as well as other tranquil places they have known well. Voluntary sharing of the group’s writing will follow. Bring a bag lunch.
(Writing Rochester: A Sense of Place also recommended.) Writing for Trade Magazines
- SA4-B18
- One Saturday, May 22, 10 am – 2 pm
- $36 W&B members / $40 general public
- Instructor: Mary Anne Donovan [ bio ]
Times are tough for freelancers these days, but the trade magazine market can provide interesting opportunities for enthusiastic, motivated, and tenacious writers.
- What opportunities are out there?
- How do you find them?
- How do you break into the market?
The instructor will focus on all of these things in this informational course, as well as writing an irresistible query letter, getting assignments, and developing strong, professional relationships with editors. Plan for a brief lunch break.
(Jumping Into Journalism also recommended.)
Writing Aerobics
- SA4-M22
- Saturdays, 10 – 11:45 am
- May 15 – August 21 (No class May 29 or July 3)
- $12 W&B members / $16 general public
Join Sarah Freligh, Len Messineo, Anaïs Salibian, Pat Schwartz, and many more talented instructors in guided writing exercises guaranteed to get you into the writing spirit.
Impromptu writing exercises can generate great moments of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and drama, not to mention valuable endorphins. The emphasis each Saturday is on generating spontaneous work.
Students may share their efforts in class if they feel comfortable, but this is not a critiquing workshop. Each session is meant to get those brain cells pumping!
Wide Open Mike with Norm Davis
- Tuesday May 25, 7:30 pm
- in the Verb Café at W&B
- Free and open to the public
W&B is proud to sponsor Rochester’s longest running open mike program, “Wide Open Mike,” hosted by Norm Davis, local poet and editor of HazMat Review.
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