The Literary Social Calendar
WLT EVENTS
The 2012 WLT Summer Writing Retreat will be held July 22-27 at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, the perfect summer escape.
*There’s only a couple slots left! Classes are Monday, July 23 – Friday, July 27 from 10 am to 4 pm. There’s an orientation on Sunday, July 22 at 6 pm. See you there!
Book People Events
SUNDAY JULY 15 AT 4PM
MysteryPeople Presents
MARTIN LIMON & TIMOTHY HALLINAN
Martin Limon will speak about and sign The Joy Brigade.
Seoul, early 1970s: US Army Sergeant George Sueño is on a mission of extreme importance to the South Korean government, as well as the US Army. Kim Il-Sung has vowed to reunite North and South Korea into one country before he hands control of the government over to his son, which means North Korea is planning to cross the DMZ and overpower the American-allied South Korean government. Sueño’s mission is to prevent this by sneaking into North Korea and obtaining an ancient map detailing the network of secret tunnels that run underneath the DMZ. To do so, he will have to go undercover and infiltrate the North Korean Communist inner sanctum.
Timothy Hallinan will speak about & sign The Fear Artist
An accidental collision on a Bangkok sidewalk goes very wrong when the man who ran into Rafferty dies in his arms, but not before saying three words: Helen Eckersley. Cheyenne. Seconds later, the police arrive, denying that the man was shot. That night, Rafferty is interrogated by Thai secret agents who demand to know what the dead man said, but Rafferty can’t remember. When he’s finally released, Rafferty arrives home to find that his apartment has been ransacked. In the days that follow, he realizes he’s under surveillance. The second time men in uniform show up at his door, he manages to escape the building and begins a new life as a fugitive.
For more information on the event and the authors, click here!
TYLER STODDARD SMITH ~ speaking and signing ~ WEDNESDAY JULY 18 7PM
Whore Stories: A Working History of Working Girls (and Guys)
Anything but judgmental, “Whore Stories” sheds light on one of our more stigmatized icons: The Prostitute. Featuring the true stories of famous streetwalkers, call girls, rent boys, and go-go dancers, this book offers a revealing look at the men and women who have blazed the bawdy trail of prostitution since the dawn of time. While you may think that you know everything about this occupation, “Whore Stories” includes plenty of details and even celebrities, such as Maya Angelou and Bob Dylan, that will leave you in awe. For more information on the event and author, click here!
SOLOMON AND SHEBA – BIBLICAL FILM SERIES
Thursday July 26, 2012 ~ Ransom Center ~ Free, limited seating ~ 21st and Guadalupe ~ 512-471-8944
The Biblical Film Series concludes at the Harry Ransom Center with King Vidor’s Solomon and Sheba (1959), starring Yul Brynner and Gina Lollobrigida.
In this non-canonical retelling of the Biblical account, King David names his younger son Solomon (Brynner) successor ahead of his older son Adonijah (George Sanders). Solomon falls in love with the Queen of Sheba (Lollobrigida), who, unbeknownst to him, has allied herself with the Pharaoh of Egypt, aims to divide the Twelve Tribes of Israel, and uses the disaffected Adonijah in her plans. The film runs 139 minutes. This program runs in conjunction with the exhibition The King James Bible: Its History and Influence, on display through July 29th. For more information go to http://www.hrc.utexas.edu.
Reckless Writing Poetry Contest
Poetry is evolving in this century and capturing the elusive animal by the word is the goal of the Reckless Writing Anthology. Forty emerging poets will be selected to have 4 to 8 poems published along with a photo and bio.
The anthology is intended to be a reflective view of the here and now. Poets will be selected based on the quality and uniqueness of their poetry. Submitted works should provide insight into the breadth and depth of the poet. For complete rules and submission requirements visit chatterhousepress.com. The deadline is July 31st. Selected poets will be notified in September with publication anticipated in November 2012. The anthology will be published in both print and electronic format.
5th Annual Barthelme Prize Now Accepting Entries
Gulf Coast is pleased to announce that the 2012 Barthelme Prize for Short Prose, judged by Ander Monson, is now open for entries
Send us up to three pieces of prose poetry, flash fiction, or micro-nonfiction of 500 words or fewer. Established in 2008, the contest awards its winner $1,000 and publication in the journal. Two honorable mentions will also appear in issue 25.2, due out in April 2013, and all entries will be considered for paid publication on our website. The deadline for entries is September 1, 2012 and all entrants receive a free one-year subscription to Gulf Coast. Click here for submission guidelines and to learn more about this year’s Judge!
Fresh Art Coalition – HOUSTON
Dog Act-Opening Night! ~ Friday, July 13, 8PM (Show runs through July 29)
$20 for all seats , $15 for Fresh Arts subscribers who give the code “DOG” when purchasing tickets for opening night!
“A theatrical, post-apocalyptic vaudeville comedy, Dog Act follows Zetta Stone, a traveling performer, and her companion Dog (a young man undergoing a voluntary species demotion) as they walk through the wilderness of the former U.S.A., heading toward a gig in China, if only they can find it…”
Dog Act is part Shakespeare, part Stoppard, part Mamet in its language; its about artists in search of their identities but also humans just trying to survive. It has more uses of the f-word than you’ve heard since Glengarry Glen Ross, and yet its heightened language is as musical and poetic as The Tempest. It’s “hysterically irreverent but still very moving,” says director Andrew Ruthven. All of these things ARE Dog Act by Liz Duffy Adams at Main Street Theater. Click here for more information!
*Recommended for mature audiences due to profanity, violence, and adult situations.
Second Saturday Open Studios at Winter & Spring Street Studios ~ Saturday, July 14, 2-5PM ~ $FREE
The artists of both Winter Street Studios and the new Spring Street Studios (located at 1824 Spring Street, just four blocks North of Winter Street)- the largest group of working artists in the Houston area- invite the public to join them in their studios and workspaces the second Saturday of every month.
Come enjoy meeting our welcoming group of artists at Winter Street Studios and Spring Street Studios, browse their work, and bring your checkbook in case you find the next piece for your collection! Click here for more information!
Monsieur Lazhar ~ Saturday, July 14, 7-9PM ~ $10 or FREE for members
Presented by 14 Pews. Nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, Monsieur Lazhar tells the poignant story of a Montreal middle school class shaken by the death of their well-liked teacher. Bachir Lazhar (Fellag), a 55-year-old Algerian immigrant, offers the school his services as a substitute teacher and is quickly hired. As he helps the children heal, he also learns to accept his own painful past. This moving film features exquisite performances by Fellag and a stunning ensemble of child actors.
Doors open at 6:45, free parking on the street. Click here for more information!
Fresh Arts Event
Houston Arts Resource Fair ~ Saturday, July 28, 9AM-6PM ~ $FREE
Registration is now open for the inaugural Houston Arts Resource Fair, an intensive day of professional development for individual artists and organizations. Featured speakers include Thomas Cott (Director of Marketing, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater), Emily Gray (Program Director of Insurance, Fractured Atlas), as well as other special guests and speakers to be announced. Attend sessions focusing on fundraising, marketing, and health care. Meet other industry professionals and foster collaboration within the arts community. Connect with vendors and organizations that serve the arts in the City of Houston. Click here for more information!
Gemini Ink Events – SAN ANTONIO
BLACKOUT NIGHT @ GEMINI INK
We’re stealing a page from Austin Kleon’s Newspaper Blackout, and asking you to join us for an evening of creativity. We’ll have mounds of newspapers and bunches of black markers. All you have to do is pick an old clipping, and create a new poem. Writer Lyle Rosdahl will be here to guide and inspire us through the process. Join us from 7 to 8:30 pm on Wednesday July 18th at Gemini Ink. Free and open to the public. Click here for more information!
Body Bliss ~ With: Celeste Guzman Mendoza
Delighting in the human body is the purpose of this generative workshop. We will discuss and read works by Sandra Cisneros, Maya Angelou, Gloria Anzaldúa, Pablo Neruda and others who celebrate and praise the human form. Then we will write poems and/or dramatic monologues in response to these works. Please dress comfortably and bring a mat; during the class we will do movement work and some basic yoga to ground awareness into our bodies.
Date: Sunday, July 22, 10am-1pm
Registration Deadline: Wednesday, July 18
Click here for more information!
Music Journalism ~ With: John Swenson
How does one write about musicians without resorting to simply offering critical opinion or practicing celebrity journalism? This class will demonstrate the rich tradition of music journalism as a way to understand the relationship of artists to the communities they represent. The class will also provide an opportunity to accurately document important events in music history. The writers will be actively engaged in imaginative interactions with musicians, while examining their own work. The class will include writing exercises, review of manuscripts, discussion, and a demonstration of the best and worst techniques to interview musicians.
Date: Saturday, July 21, 10am-3pm
Registration Deadline: Wednesday, July 18
Click here for more information!
Lynne Singerman Free Workshop! Email Marketing and Social Media:
Grow your industry connections with your audience; Market yourself and your book for free (or almost Free)
Sat. July 14 10:30-2:30 p.m. Sugar Land Library ~ 550 Eldridge Road Sugar Land, TX 77478
(Class starts at 10:30 with a light lunch at 12:15 – workshop resumes at 1:00)
For more information and to RSVP contact: infor@houstonwritersguild.org
The Missouri Review
The Missouri Review’s 22nd Jeffrey E. Smith Editors’ Prize in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction is now open for submissions. First-place winners in each category receive a prize of 5,000, plus a feature in our spring issue and paid travel to our gala reading and reception in Columbia, Missouri. Contest finalists will receive cash prizes and have their work considered for publication as well.
This opportunity is open to both emerging and established writers. All writers submitting to our contest will receive a one-year subscription to The Missouri Review.
We accept submissions online or by mail. The Postmark deadline is October 1st, and winners will be announced in January 2012. You can find more information about the contest through our website
We hope you have a productive week and let us know how these events turn out on our Facebook!
– WLT
