February 15th – IWG Lunch Kick-Off

When:  3^rd Tuesday of every month from 11:30-1:30.

Where:  Smoky Mountain Pizza at 415 E. Parkcenter Boulevard in Boise.

Come have lunch, network with other writers and find out what’s happening in your literary community.  Each month we will have featured authors and speakers.  You’ll have the opportunity to display your books, pass out flyers and business cards, and even put your name in the hat for a 3 minute open mic, so you’re welcome (but not obligated) to bring a short piece to read.

All are welcome to attend.  Come network with your fellow IWG members or learn what the Writers Guild is all about.

February 15^th:  “A Community of Excellence: Why Writers Flourish in Idaho”

Alan Heathcock will discuss how Idaho is becoming known nationally as a hot-bed of literary talent, how internally we must continue to support high standards, and as a community of writers must encourage each other, and root for each other, towards those standards.  

 We hope to see you there!

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Random Readings Featuring Alan Heathcock and William Johnson

Essays and Short Stories are the topics for the January 22nd Random Reading event set from 1-3 pm at The Cabin in downtown Boise. You won’t want to miss presentations by these two distinguished Idaho authors:

Alan Heathcock is currently the Artist-in-Residence for the City of Boise, and was named a Literature Fellow for the State of Idaho by the Idaho Commission for the Arts; he also teaches fiction writing at BSU. His fiction has been published in top magazines and journals, and he has a new collection of stories, entitled VOLT, due to be released in March 2011.  Photo courtesy of Diane Ronayne/ Idaho Writers Guild.

William Johnson is Professor Emeritus at Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, and Idaho’s Writer in Residence (from 1998-2001 and 2010-11). He has won fellowships from Fishtrap, the Environmental Writing Institute, the Idaho Humanities Council, the Idaho Commission on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Recent works include A River without Banks, a book of essays about family experiences in northern Idaho with a focus on seeing/belonging, what they are, and mean.  Photo courtesy of Diane Ronayne/Idaho Writers Guild.

Al and Bill will briefly read from their books, and share their creative process. Informal audience interaction with the authors, light refreshments and time to socialize will follow.

“Random Readings” will take place in the Jean Wilson Reading Room, on the garden level of The Cabin, 801 S. Capitol Blvd, Boise. Admission is free; non-members are welcome. For further information contact Diane Graham at diane@idahowritersguild.org.

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Random Readings for January 22nd

Please join us this Saturday from 1-3pm at The Cabin for Random Readings.  Two incredible Idaho authors will read from their works and answer questions.  Alan Heathcock is an award-winning author whose collection of short fiction VOLT is due out from Graywolf Press this spring.  William Johnson has authored three books of poetry and a recent collection of essays A River Without Banks, which Scott Russell Sanders describes as “a book to savor and celebrate.”  Join us for readings, refreshments and an informal discussion with these two remarkable writers.

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Playwright Forum Series with Boise Contemporary Theater

At the ripe old age of 28, Samuel D. Hunter has come a long way from his Moscow, ID roots.  He’s a rising star in the American theater whose plays will see five different productions across the country this season, including the Co-World Premier of Norway at BCT January 26 – February 19.  The story features Brent and Andy, two young men who grew up in Lewiston sharing their secrets, and shifts, along with music, across a decade, deconstructing the clichés of a “coming” out story and revealing how their relationship causes Andy’s father, Mark, to fulfill his own obsession. 

You’re invited to join us, free of charge, for a one-on-one discussion with Mr. Hunter on Wednesday, January 5, 7:00 PM, at BCT, 854 Fulton St. in downtown Boise.  BCT has graciously offered a $5.00 discount on tickets to the show to all IWG members who attend.  Vouchers for the discount will be presented at the forum. 

Watch for dates to two more planned forums when Actress Lauren Weedman brings her wild, hilarious one-woman take on having a baby, No, You Shut Up, to town in late February, and again for the final show in BCT’s season, The Velocity of Autumn, the 60th play by Scottish-born playwright Eric Coble.  It takes place in a Brooklyn brownstone that’s home to Lillian, a painter with a wicked sense of humor, who is determined to spend her final years there despite her children’s best efforts to get her to move into an “A-one nursing home.”  Big laughs and brilliant imagery uncover a touching relationship you won’t soon forget.

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