Washington library to host new season of Writers’ Workshop

This is an exciting time of the year for planning a new season of the Washington Writers’ Workshop. I enjoy finding interesting writers/presenters for our monthly meetings and feeling the excitement build for our participants. Our season runs from September through May and we will kick off our September 10 meeting at 10 a.m. with visiting writer/presenter Corinne Stanley.

Corinne Stanley grew up in Washington, Iowa, and presently lives in Iowa City. She worked as Staff Language and Culture Specialist for the University of Iowa and as a translator for the International Writing Program while finishing her Master’s in Spanish. Stanley translated and published Silencios del bosque/Silence from the Forest by Spanish poet Esther Bendala Pavón and has two poetry collections, They Say This Is Light, and Breathe into the Knowing. Her poems appear in Comstock Review, Feminist Studies, Fractal, and House of Zolo. Stanley’s latest work is a memoir, La Tercera Luz: A Poetic Journey through Spain, which is in our WPL collection and available for checkout. She cocreates a bilingual poetry blog, www.bilingualborderless.com with award-winning Mexican poet Marjha Paulino and is a collage artist.

The first hour of this upcoming workshop will be devoted to Corinne’s presentation on the craft of writing and she will also discuss her publishing process. The second hour will be spent workshopping the pieces submitted by participants. Corinne is welcoming pieces written in English or Spanish. At the Washington Writers’ Workshop we engage in all genres of writing and I always encourage patrons to participate in every workshop whether our presenter is talking about poetry, short story, novel, nonfiction, memoir, or letter writing. There are golden nuggets of writing knowledge in every session. Our program is free, open to adults and teens, and you can attend just the presentation portion if you prefer.

Looking forward, the Washington Writers’ Workshop is hosting a special songwriting workshop on October 22. Singer/songwriter Carol Montag will be visiting the Washington Writers’ Workshop and discussing why we write songs, what makes a good song and a good songwriter, the categories of songs, song forms, and tools of the trade, as well as the roadblocks and hard truths. She is also performing a free afternoon concert for our community that day, presenting the music of Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, and Judy Collins! Please join us for these enriching, cultural opportunities at your Washington Public Library. We work hard to organize these programs and attendance from you is our biggest reward.