Weekend Happenings

In the spirit of spring and a renewal of posting, I wanted to let everyone know that I will be attending the Free Library Festival this weekend, April 17 and 18. (You should go too--tell your friends!)

Although the festival launched in 2007, and I'm usually a proponent of this sort of thing, I have yet to attend. According to the library's website, the event is "an annual 2-day celebration of books, music, people, and ideas." Hosted by Philadelphia's Central Library on the Parkway, the festival is a free public event that draws 25,000-35,000 booklovers from across the mid-Atlantic region. "Highlights include appearances by celebrity authors, engaging children’s programs, live music and other performances, plus a Street Fair & Literary Marketplace featuring numerous literary exhibitors—including publishers, booksellers, independent authors, and cultural organizations."

I'm not yet sure which events I'll be able to hit, but here are a few of my favorites:

• Robin Black | If I Loved You, I Would Tell You This
• Storybook Parade
• Heidi W. Durrow | The Girl Who Fell From the Sky: A Novel
• Chang-rae Lee | The Surrendered
• David Lipsky | Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself: A Road Trip with David Foster Wallace
• Second Annual First Person Inter-City StorySlam: Philly vs. Washington D.C.
  

And that's just a taste of what's going on Saturday. Many more on Sunday (including an event with Sapphire, the author of Push, the novel for which the movie Precious was based).

Other noteworthy going ons this weekend: I'm getting my first tattoo!

I did it!

Tomorrow is September 1. That means today is the final day of the August blogger challenge, and I met the challenge. I blogged something (quality of varying degrees) every single day this month.

I'm actually quite proud of this accomplishment--I've never tried anything like it before. I had a rough spot there in the middle of the month where I had some writers block and it got so damn hot, the last thing I wanted to do was sit in front of the computer. Still, I pushed through and the pressure of having readers made me feel motivated to at least post something. (I can be a perfectionist at times.)

As a new contributer to the blog, I think this was a really good exercise for me. It made me write every day and feel as if it was okay to make posts that weren't necessarily revised and "publishable." It made me a little more carefree and willing to just commit to an idea and run with it.

I'd definitely do it again, but I can also pretty much guarantee I won't be posting tomorrow. And although I think the idea is intriguing, I don't think I'll be doing NaNoWriMo anytime soon.

Best Continuing Education

Philadelphia magazine's Best of Philly 2009 issue just came out, and I am proud to announce that the University of the Arts Continuing Education program was voted Best Adult Classes.

My pride for this recognition is two-fold. One, my day job is coordinating marketing and development efforts for the UArts Division of Continuing Studies. And two, because I teach for their Continuing Education program. Sorry for the shameless self promotion, but fall courses are now online and you can find and register for my Writing This American Life courses here. I'm really hoping the hybrid course gets enough enrollment to run. It's called a hybrid because the course is part online, part meet-in-class, and it's the first time UArts CE has offered anything like it.

"Gentleman, Start Your Engines!"

Tonight it is a race against time to get this blog up and meet the challenge deadline of midnight. I'm counting on this challenge to bring my writing back to life. Right now it's road kill, bleeding profusely and barely moving on the side of the cyber-highway.While I know that today the pen weighs ten tons, tomorrow will be easier. That is just the way it goes with writing.

When I first started to blog in 2005, my blogs read like diary entries - Really juicy stories of an exciting New York life. I didn’t proofread or spell check, there was rarely a point, and the writing style was inconsistent and, well, pretty much sucked. Over time that changed.

With practice, stories began to emerge with beginnings, middles and ends. I established a consistent voice and developed my writing style. Publishing daily really elevated my writing and I hope that this challenge will have the same effect.

Writing has been a safe spot most my life. When I was a troubled teenager, I wrote through a lot of my more difficult life stories. I poured my anger and shame into wide ruled pages of a spiral notebook that I hid under my bed. In my twenties, I cataloged every love, every date and every painful moment of rejection. My early thirties are saved in a file on my desktop marked “Daily Log”.

Since I stopped blogging daily, I keep my daily log filled with stories, feelings, ramblings, rants and prayers. I write them as if no one will ever read them. I don’t try to tell a story, I just try to fill the page and in the process empty out every negative thought or fear being harbored in my brain. I also use the pages to be grateful and appreciate all the gifts in my life. Writing outside of the safety of my log is a little bit scary. Am I ready to let the outside world back into my fragile heart?

I don't know if I'm quite ready, but it's time to just jump. Over the years, writing has been my very best friend. Sometimes I stray, but she is always waiting for me with open arms whenever I wish to come back. It’s been a tough year and I need her more than ever.

Let's get blogging and see where this challenge takes us!