The One Story Literary Debutante Ball

One Story has long been one of my favorite literary magazines—it runs on a simple concept; every three weeks or so, they publish a single story, by a single writer, and they’ve kept that model going for 135 issues so far. And this is all accomplished as a non-profit, for which they’ve never held a single fundraising benefit… until now.

On Friday, May 21, the editorial staff of One Story is throwing a literary debutante ball in Brooklyn, with more than 50 of the writers who’ve published in the magazine in attendance—including nine who, as the event’s nomenclature indicates, made their literary debut here. (Up to the most recent contributor, Grant Munroe.) There were only 350 tickets available, and most of those have already been sold, but you might still be able to get in.

If you can’t attend, whether it’s sold out or you’re too far from Brooklyn to come, you can still help contribute to the magazine’s ongoing success: Several artists have contributed original works based on One Story stories, and absentee bids are permitted.

(Sadly, I won’t be able to attend the ball due to a prior commitment, but it truly sounds like a wonderful evening and I encourage you to go if you can, and to read One Story under any circumstances—pick out a few issues and see for yourself!)

13 May 2010 | events |

May 22: A Blogging Workshop in Philadelphia

A few years back, I spoke at the Pennwriters conference about the importance of writers being able to market themselves, especially online; it was one of my first major public speaking engagements on the topic, and I got a lot of great feedback from it, and I’ve stayed in touch with the organizer, Lisa Diane Kastner, ever since. Recently, she launched a new organization called the Running Wild Writers Community in downtown Philadelphia, and it looks like she’s put together some great workshops on matters of both craft and practicality for the city’s literati, so I’m delighted to tell you that I’m planning to take the train down on Saturday, May 22, and teach an afternoon-long version of the blogging workshop I’ve given for the creative writing and professional education programs at several universities since Pennwriters helped me get my start.

Here’s the course description:

“We’ll talk about how writers can use blogs to develop their personal brands and establish an ongoing relationship with readers even before they’ve published their first work, as well as the opportunities for creative expression. We’ll also discuss some of the available technical resources, including their strengths and weaknesses, and touch upon elements of social media technology that can be integrated into a blogging strategy, and about how authors and publishers are using all these tools in today’s publishing environment.”

I use a lot of examples from blogs you’ve seen me talking about here and at GalleyCat, as well as drawing upon my own experience at both websites, and now that I’ve gotten comfortable with the topic, I don’t faint at the podium nearly as much as I used to, so you’ll really be getting your $54 worth if you sign up. I mean, obviously I’m going to recommend it for anyone within striking distance of Philadelphia, but I’ve been assured that it really is a good class, so if you’re in the neighborhood, I’d be delighted to see you!

12 May 2010 | events |