Over two years ago, Peggy Sturdivant invited several Ballard writers to participate in an author book night at the Sunset Hill Community Center. Many of the authors referred other Ballard writers they knew of and soon enough Peggy had more writers than she could fit in the space. A panel was formed, authors sat around the perimeter of the room to answer questions and sell their books, and the rest of the room filled with people interested in learning more about writing and publishing. The evening was such a success, Peggy decided to do it again.
A year later, Ballard Writers Book Slam was designed and planned. Once again, the response was tremendous and even more Ballard writers showed up. With so much momentum, Peggy and others suggested we meet once a month to network with one another and plan future events.
I have to admit, I was skeptical of this idea because writers, in my experience, tend to be solitary people. We have to be to write (we claim) or maybe it just gives us an excuse to be crotchety, introverted and/or mercurial. We also hate to market ourselves. We view that as an inconvenience on our good days and worst than shoving needles in our eyes on bad days. So why would we leave the safety of our homes to talk with other perhaps misfits about the dreaded “m” word? I don’t know why, but 18 of them did. And continue to do so every month.
From these meetings a website has been formed, www.ballardwriters.org, group readings have been planned (see below), a facebook page, google group, and countless of emails have been shared, cross marketing has occurred (what do you think this column is about?), brainstorm sessions have taken place, our books are now stewing in a crockpot at Aster Coffee free to read, Manhattans have been imbibed, conversations have flowed, and most of all a community of writers has formed. I didn’t know it was possible.
And now, you have the opportunity to come see and hear this group in all of its finery. Here are a few of the upcoming events we are participating in:
Thurs. March 8, 2012 (Every Second Thursday)
It’s About Time Writers Reading Series
6:00 – 7:45 p.m.
Ballard Branch Seattle Public Library, 206-684-4089
This month’s readers: Katy E. Ellis, Elena Louise Richmond, Jennifer D. Munro, & Christopher J. Jarmick on the Writer’s Craft
QWERTY Words: Ballard Out Loud
An evening with the Ballard Writers Collective!
Tuesday, March 20 – 7 p.m.
Egan’s Ballard Jam House – Ballard
Ballard is full of great writers. Watch them sweat as they abandon their quills and tell live stories without notes! Featuring surprise appearances by musicians and young people. Come hungry and make it a dinner date.
Joshua McNichols – Author/Urban Farming Event
March 22 – 6:30 p.m.
Ballard Library – Sponsored by Secret Garden Books
Finding real food outside the grocery store doesn’t have to mean moving to the boonies. Ballard author Joshua McNichols tells you how to keep chickens, grind your own grain, grow tomatoes in cool summers, and pack your freezer full of great meat – all while sustaining a career and raising kids in a big city. Sounds like too much work, right? It won’t if you know the secret: how to build a real food community.
Corbin Lewars is the author of Creating a Life: The memoir of a writer and mom in the making, which was nominated for the 2011 PNBA and Washington State book awards and is now available via ebook. Her essays have been featured in over twenty-five publications including Mothering and Hip Mama. She teaches writing and coaches other writers on-line, via the phone and in person in Ballard. She is a proud, and no longer skeptical, member of the Ballard Writers collective.
