August 2007

Greetings from Inkberry!

Summer is flying and we’ve been gearing up for fall at Inkberry. Our new database is almost up and running, we’re interviewing candidates to fill our new writer-in-residence position for The Write Stuff Program (see details below), and our space at 61 Main Street is looking marvelous—thanks to Spencer Moser and the students from MCLA’s Lead Academy who came to Inkberry to do some summer spritzing!

We’ll be offering two new workshops this fall—a six-week workshop on that rebellious little form known as the prose poem or short-short or flash fiction—and, in preparation for the 2nd annual North Adams Open Studios weekend, a one-shot workshop on writing the artist statement with Lauren O’Neal. We’ve also got a terrific group of writers coming to read for us, including acclaimed novelists Margot Livesey and Julia Glass, who’ll read at The Eclipse Mill in September, and Elizabeth Winthrop, who’ll read from a memoir in progress in October. Our fall calendars are on the way!

Last month, we said goodbye to one of Inkberry’s co-founders, Emily Banner, who coordinated Inkberry’s reading series for six years. Emily—thank you for bringing Inkberry into the world and for getting our reading series off the ground. You will be missed. Write well. Keep us posted!

In other news, we are in the market for an extra copy of FileMaker Pro. If you have an extra copy of Filemaker Pro version 7.0 or higher and would like to donate to Inkberry, please contact me at jill@inkberry.org.

Hope to see you soon!

Jill

Inkberry is brought to you by…(people)

Congratulations to Elizabeth Winthrop, whose novel, Counting on Grace (Random House), has recently garnered lots of wonderful attention. The book has been designated as one of the two Massachusetts Honor Books for 2007, as well as a National Council of Teachers of English Notable Book for a Global Society, a Jane Addams Peace Prize Honor Book, an American Library Association Notable Book, a Notable Trade Book in Social Studies, a Dorothy Canfield Fisher Nominee and the Vermont READS Selection for 2007.

The novel tells the story of Grace, a twelve-year-old cotton mill worker who was photographed by Lewis Hines in the early 1900s. Ms. Winthrop will be making appearances in Vermont in late September and will be reading for Inkberry, from a new memoir in process, on October 4th at the North Adams Public Library.

You can find out more about Counting on Grace at: http://www.elizabethwinthrop.com/countingongrace.html

Happening this month

Wordplay featuring fantasy writer Paul Park – Saturday, August 11th at 7pm at Papyri Books, 45 Eagle Street, North Adams. Free. This second-Saturday series, co-presented by Inkberry and Papyri Books, features regional writers, followed by an open-mike. Hosted by Gail Burns. This month, Paul Park will read from his upcoming novel, The Hidden World. Read more about Mr. Park and this event at http://inkberry.org/events/.

Thursday Night Critique, facilitated by Bill Belcher — 1st and 3rd Thursday at 7:30pm at Inkberry, 61 Main Street #223. Free. You got yourself in the chair and wrote the draft. Print the draft and bring it to Inkberry. Writers need feedback. Get it here: http://inkberry.org/workshops/atinkberry/.

Opportunities

The Write Stuff Program seeks to hire a part-time writer-in-residence for the fall 2007 term at Silvio O. Conte Middle School in North Adams.

The Write Stuff Program, an intensive in-school reading and writing program, enhances middle school curriculum through creative writing instruction, reading help, mentorship, and public performance. The program serves middle school students in North Adams, Massachusetts through a partnership between Inkberry, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, and The North Adams Public Schools.

The appointment will begin August 29, 2007. Candidates are eligible for reappointment in January of 2008 (for the spring term).

Salary: $4, 500.00 per term, grant-funded.

For a full job description, please contact Jill Gilbreth, Inkberry’s executive director, at jill@inkberry.org.

Call for volunteers: Inkberry is looking for someone with office skills to help out in the office a few hours each week. If you are interested, please contact Jill Gilbreth, Inkberry’s executive director, at jill@inkberry.org.

Call for readers: The David & Joyce Milne Public Library is looking for readers to perform classic and contemporary plays at the library. Read more about this opportunity at http://inkberry.org/opportunities/index.html.

Inkberry is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

In the community

Artists and writers: take a look at these two opportunities to get the word out about what you do and to connect with others who are working to create a strong arts community in the Berkshires. It’ll just take a second.

Berkshire County Artists Survey

If you are a practicing artist in Berkshire County, you are invited to fill out an anonymous online survey designed to help provide better programs and get more funding to support the housing and professional development needs of local artists (writers too!). Your participation will help us deliver a strong pitch to funders and utilize the most comprehensive data in designing effective support services for our artist community.

The survey is designed to take less than 10 minutes, and is completely anonymous. The more information you provide, the better job we can do supporting you in your work! And please share this message with your Berkshire County artist-friends and encourage them to complete the survey also.

Click here to take the anonymous Berkshire County Artists Survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=H99ONctSywpRaroyIcY2fA3d3d.

And while you’re at it….

Add your profile to Berkshire Art Start!

MCLA’s Berkshire Art Start website is designed to be a comprehensive guide to individual artists and arts organizations throughout Berkshire County. Begun as an online guide to the Northern Berkshires cultural community, it has recently been redesigned and expanded to serve the entire county, North, Central and South, and it’s free to all. To add your own listing, click on JOIN, and sign up! As a member, you will also be able to add to the blog and post events, peruse job listings, and much more! Click here to join and add yourself to the artists registry on Berkshire Art Start! http://www.berkshireartstart.org/