Greetings, friends!
Last Thursday was overflowing in sweetness. We had 10 attendees for the Collective Lit sharing circle (a.k.a. the “no audience” open mic) and there was definitely interest in doing it again in the near future, so stay tuned for updates.
After the reading, I tuned into WXPN to listen to our episode of LIVE at the Kelly Writers House. It was so strange and wonderful to hear my own voice on the radio! Our other readers—Maya Chang Matunis, Amy Beth Sisson, Alison Lubar, and Louise Barry—were (unsurprisingly) stellar, and musician Sug Daniels fit right in. KWH said the full recording won’t be available for another couple months, so if you missed it live, just know that it was fabulous.
NEW PERK
As I often say, paid subscribers keep this ship afloat. To thank this special crew of supporters, I’m offering a new perk: free 30-minute 1-on-1 chats with yours truly to discuss your writing process, creative obstacles, and anything else that might aid your relationship to the literary arts. These expanded office hours will be held Saturdays after Sit & Write.
Paid subscribers will have the opportunity to claim at least one slot each month. I’ll start putting a link to the sign-up form behind a paywall at the end of each newsletter, so scroll all the way to the bottom if you’d like to claim a spot.
SIT & READ
This December, the little book club that could will be reading its 14th book: Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel. We’ll split the novel into 2 chunks, meeting to discuss each half on 12/13 and 12/27. If you’d like to participate, email collectivelit@substack.com by December 1st. Got questions? Check out the Sit & Read FAQ.
Synopsis:
Edwin St. Andrew is eighteen years old when he crosses the Atlantic by steamship, exiled from polite society following an ill-conceived diatribe at a dinner party. He enters the forest, spellbound by the beauty of the Canadian wilderness, and suddenly hears the notes of a violin echoing in an airship terminal—an experience that shocks him to his core. Two centuries later a famous writer named Olive Llewellyn is on a book tour. She’s traveling all over Earth, but her home is the second moon colony, a place of white stone, spired towers, and artificial beauty. Within the text of Olive’s best-selling pandemic novel lies a strange passage: a man plays his violin for change in the echoing corridor of an airship terminal as the trees of a forest rise around him. When Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, a detective in the black-skied Night City, is hired to investigate an anomaly in the North American wilderness, he uncovers a series of lives upended: The exiled son of an earl driven to madness, a writer trapped far from home as a pandemic ravages Earth, and a childhood friend from the Night City who, like Gaspery himself, has glimpsed the chance to do something extraordinary that will disrupt the timeline of the universe.
SIT & WRITE
It’s time to work on that thing you’ve been avoiding! If you’re new to Sit & Write, please read this before attending.
WHEN: Saturday, 11/18, 11:00am-2:00pm ET
WHERE: ZoooOOOoom
LINK: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85179146018?pwd=h5ZH31dxW1dj3GqoL3yakGBXbhdaJa.1
MEETING ID: 851 7914 6018
PASSCODE: 524157
OTHER EVENTS
Tuesday, 11/14, 7:00pm ET: No Spare People: Book Party & Poetry Showcase @ Tattooed Mom (Philadelphia). “A night of readings to celebrate No Spare People, the new poetry collection by Erin Hoover.” Additional readings by Claudia Cortese (Wasp Queen), Nancy Reddy (Acadiana), and Raena Shirali (summonings). (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Tuesday, 11/14, 7:30pm ET: Literary Death Match @ City Winery (Philadelphia). “Literary Death Match—a globe-trotting event that’s taken place in over 70 cities worldwide—brings together four brilliant authors to read their most electric writing for five minutes or less before a panel of all-star judges. After each reading, the judges take turns spouting hilarious commentary about each story, then select their favorites to advance to the finals.” ($20/IN-PERSON)
Tuesday, 11/14, 8:00pm ET: More than Vibes: Revising for Mood + Muchness, a workshop with Emily Stoddard. “What if we revise for feeling, mood, and energy before getting locked into the structure or ‘right’ order of a piece? … In this workshop, you’ll try a series of experiments to follow and build the energy on the page. Bring your messy drafts, your weird fragments, and your uncertain beginnings that want some fresh attention.” (FREE/VIRTUAL)
Wednesday, 11/15, 5:00pm ET: The Writing Room @ Iffy Books (Philadelphia). “Come co-work with other writers in three 40-minute units of silent writing. Writers and projects of any type welcome. 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins between units. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc.” (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Wednesday, 11/15, 6:00pm ET: Sally Van Doren and Michelle Taransky @ Kelly Writers House (Philadelphia). This hybrid poetry reading will be also livestreamed on YouTube. To attend in-person, register here. (FREE/HYBRID)
Wednesday, 11/15, 7:00pm ET: Poetry Is The Point @ Main Point Books (Wayne, PA). “Please join us for our final 2023 Poetry Is The Point reading with Mary Brancaccio, Leah Falk, and Autumn McClintock.” (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Wednesday, 11/15, 7:00pm ET: House Poet #14 @ Divine Lorraine Hotel (Philadelphia). A spoken word dance party, featuring Bethlehem Roberson, Aaron Gadbury, and DJ Rudy Kardos. Sign up for the open mic here. ($10/IN-PERSON)
Wednesday, 11/15, 7:00pm ET: Moonstone Arts Poetry Reading @ Fergie’s Pub (Philadelphia). Featuring Erica Abbott, Adriann “Justthepen” Toombs Bautista, Kate Carey, Anne-Adele Wight, and John Wojtowicz. (FREE/HYBRID)
Wednesday, 11/15, 7:30pm ET: You Can’t Kill A Poet @ Tattooed Mom (Philadelphia). “Come hang out in our joyous and boisterous room full of queerness and listen to some amazing poets share their work.” Featuring: Malachi Lily, Alyse James, Mo the Poet, Candice Iloh, Medina Keita, and Trina Sanyal. 21+ (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Thursday, 11/16, 12:00pm ET: ‘Writing Hard Things’ with Autumn Konopka. “Writing about traumatic or challenging experiences can be healing for the writer and the reader. In this talk, author Autumn Konopka discusses her approach to difficult topics and how to balance candor and sensitivity so that readers feel seen, validated, and safe all at once. She will also offer exercises, strategies, and techniques for anyone interested in writing hard things and taking a trauma-informed approach to creative writing.” (FREE/VIRTUAL)
Thursday, 11/16, 4:00pm ET: Breaking for Beauty: Line Breaks & the Dancing Poem with Sarah Browning. “We’ll discuss many approaches to breaking the poetic line, reading a variety of contemporary poems as examples. The instructor will share an early draft and finished version of one of her own poems and discuss the choices she made in revision. Then we'll take on a short line-breaking exercise for fun!” (FREE/VIRTUAL)
Thursday, 11/16, 6:00pm ET: Moonstone Arts’ New Voices Fall 2023 Reading @ Parkway Central Library (Philadelphia). “Celebrate the release of our Fall 2023 volume of the New Voices anthology for young and emerging poets! New Voices is series for emerging poets between the ages of 10 and 25. It includes a monthly reading series and a bi-annual publication which strives to bring together younger poets from various communities.” (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Thursday, 11/16, 7:30pm ET: Sigrid Nunez in conversation with Henry Hoke @ Parkway Central Library (Philadelphia). Nunez is the author of The Vulnerables: A Novel, and Hoke is the author of Open Throat: A Novel. (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Friday, 11/17, 6:00pm ET: Quilting Water: Voicing Our Stories @ Rutgers (Camden, NJ). “Join us for a celebration of Quilting Water, a global public arts project which stitches together the human connection with water through quilt-making and oral histories. We will share in this communal journey of witnessing the ties between our ecological realities, cultural and spiritual rituals, and the literary forms hidden within our everyday conversations. Featuring celebrated lead artist for Quilting Water Renata Merrill and acclaimed writer and art quilter Jacqueline Johnson, and a special performance by the Resistance Revival Chorus.” (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Friday, 11/17, 6:00pm ET: Mylo Choy Reading & Signing @ Giovanni’s Room (Philadelphia). “Mylo Choy will be joining us on the evening of Friday, November 17th, for a discussion and signing of their new graphic memoir, Middle Distance.” (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Friday, 11/17, 7:00pm ET: The Riverwards Arts & Letters Salon Series @ H&H Books (Philadelphia). “A neighborhood hub where writers read and artists exhibit with an aim towards sparking collaborations and ultimately creating a published works together.” Featuring artists Lou, Holly Jansen, and Manuela Guillén, and writers Lauren Ballester, Vriddhi Vinay, Mary Zhou, and Miriam Saperstein. (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Friday, 11/17, 7:00pm ET: Reading @ Lot49 Books (Philadelphia). Featuring Alina Pleskova, Stephanie Cawley, and Isaac Pickell. (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Friday, 11/17, 7:30pm ET: Overflowing Poetry Reading @ Iffy Books (Philadelphia). With readings by Nora Treatbaby, Irene Silt, Ryan Skrabalak, and Carolyn Ferrucci. (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Saturday, 11/18, 7:00pm ET: Spit Poetry Open Mic @ Upstairs Abyssinia (Philadelphia). Featuring China Rain, Eric Benick, Evan Williams, and Austyn Wohlers. (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Saturday, 11/18, 7:30pm ET: Personal Velocity @ H&H Books (Philadelphia). “Personal stories (creative nonfiction/ memoir) by Philadelphia-based writers who identify as women, nonbinary, and trans.” Featuring Shoshana Bockol, Nikki Volpicelli, Amber Joseph, and Gina Tomaine. ($5-10 SUGGESTED DONATION/IN-PERSON)
Sunday, 11/19, 8:00pm ET: A Night of Poetry with Sentimentally Ill @ Undisclosed location (Philadelphia). “Come one, come all for a night of mingling, snacking, sentimentalizing, and more.” DM the organizer on Instagram to get the location. (FREE, I ASSUME/IN-PERSON)
Monday, 11/20, 6:00pm ET: Monday Poets @ Parkway Central Library (Philadelphia). Featuring Simon West and Myronn Hardy. (FREE/IN-PERSON)
Tuesday, 11/21, 5:30pm ET: Philly Area MFA Panel, with Blue Stoop. “Join us for a free hour long Q&A with Philadelphia area MFA program directors to discuss who, what and why’s about MFA programs. This panel is an opportunity to ask the questions you’ve always had about the application process and what being in both full and low residency programs are like. Though it will focus on Philadelphia area programs specifically, the topics covered will be widely applicable to national MFA programs as well.” (FREE/VIRTUAL)
Tuesday, 11/21, 8:00pm ET: StorySlam: Craving @ Underground Arts (Philadelphia). “Come share your insatiable Craving story! Tell us all about that one thing that keeps you up at night longing for more and full of desire. … Already have a great first line and want a chance to be one of four lucky storytellers to be pre-selected? Email our team at stories@firstpersonarts.org.” ($15/IN-PERSON)
CLASSES & WORKSHOPS
OPPORTUNITIES
DEADLINE 11/15: Philadelphia Stories poetry contest submissions due. “Philadelphia Stories’ National Prize for Poetry is an annual national poetry prize featuring a first place $1,000 cash award. Three runners up will each receive a $250 cash award. The winning and runner up poems are published in the Spring issue. These poems and honorable mentions appear online. Philadelphia Stories’ National Prize for Poetry celebrates risk, innovation, and emotional engagement. We especially encourage poets from underrepresented groups and backgrounds to send their work.” ($5 SUBMISSION FEE/$250-1000 PRIZE)
DEADLINE 11/30: Black Lawrence Press’s open reading period closes. They’re seeking: Poetry (chapbook and full-length collections), Fiction (chapbooks, full-length collections, novellas, and novels), Creative Nonfiction, Biography & Cultural Studies, Anthology Proposals, and Translation. “We also heartily welcome hybrid work and collaborative manuscripts.” (BOOK PURCHASE IN LIEU OF SUBMISSION FEE/PAYS ROYALTIES)
DEADLINE 11/30: River Heron Editors’ Prize submissions due. “Poets may submit up to 3 poems, 5 pages maximum. … The winning poem and four finalists’ poems will be announced in January 2023. The selected poems will be published on February 1, 2024.” There’s also a non-contest submission category with the same deadline and a $3 submission fee. ($15 SUBMISSION FEE/$500 PRIZE)
DEADLINE 12/1: Proposals due for Cooper Street Workshops at Rutgers Camden. “Great workshops meet participants where they are, appealing to and engaging with writers at all experience levels. We rely on instructors to help publicize their workshops, so strong connections to a community are a plus. … Our instructors are compensated.” (NO SUBMISSION FEE/PAY UNSPECIFIED)
DEADLINE 12/3: Applications due for the The One Story Writing Circle. “Join a small cohort of fiction writers looking to devote a year to improving their craft and process. Circle members will receive access to select One Story classes for the 2024 calendar year … In addition, they will attend monthly asynchronous online meetings designed to help them set goals and create and maintain their writing practice, surrounded by a supportive community of writers from across the country and the world.” No scholarships available. ($650 TUITION/VIRTUAL)
DEADLINE 12/15: The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts submissions due. “We accept fiction and creative nonfiction, as long if they are compressed in some way. Work is published weekly, without labels, and the labels here only exist to help us determine its best readers. Our response time is generally 1-5 days. Also, our acceptance rate is currently about 2% of submissions.” (NO SUBMISSION FEE/PAYS $50)
DEADLINE 1/1: Submissions for The 27 Club anthology due. The anthology, to be published by Castle Carrington Publishing, seeks poetry and art about famous people who died at age 27. (NO SUBMISSION FEE/PAY UNKNOWN)
STARTING 1/17: The Stafford Challenge. “The Stafford Challenge is a commitment to join a community of poets who are writing a poem every day for a year, starting January 17, 2024, inspired by the legendary poet William Stafford who made it a practice to craft a daily poem. As part of this endeavor, we offer monthly Guest Poet Zoom events featuring accomplished poets who'll impart their wisdom, share their work, offer inspiration, and celebrate the magic of poetry. Our roster includes distinguished poets such as Kim Stafford, Naomi Shihab Nye, and more.” (FREE, BUT DONATIONS WELCOMED/VIRTUAL)
ROLLING SUBMISSIONS: Brookline Books seeks proposals for “history and general nonfiction books concerning the Greater Philadelphia region, including neighboring states New Jersey and Delaware. We are dedicated to highlighting the lives of Pennsylvanians—both common and renowned—and notable events that deserve to sit on the history shelves of readers around the world.” (NO SUBMISSION FEE/PAY UNKNOWN)
Find even more opportunities via my Instagram highlights! (IG account required)
Got an event, opportunity, or accomplishment to share? DM @collectivelit on Instagram or send details here.
Alright friends, that’s all for today.
Warmly,
Julian Shendelman
www.collectivelit.com
P.S. If you are a free subscriber, you will see a message below that says “this post is for paid subscribers.” That’s just the paywall I mentioned at the beginning! Don’t worry, you’re not missing any content, just the free 1-on-1 Office Hours sessions.