HAPPY WINTER BREAK

The Semester is over!!!! Unless you have class on Monday...

Abridged has been distributed. It is a great issue featuring 15 writers!

Keep writing over winter break and the Guild will be back in 2009!

End of the semester!

The last meeting of the semester is December 2nd. Time to start planning for next semester.


Deadline for the December publication "Abridged" is December 1st.

November 2nd Meeting Updates

*Places:A Creative Writing Guild Publication has been distributed.

*A meeting is scheduled for TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18th, since Thanksgiving messes with the meeting schedule.

*DECEMBER PUBLICATION

The theme is "Abridged"

send short short stories, short poems, haikus, vignettes, any short form of writing or anything with form or content that fits this definition:

1. to shorten by omissions while retaining the basic contents: to abridge a reference book.
2. to reduce or lessen in duration, scope, authority, etc.; diminish; curtail: to abridge a visit; to abridge one's freedom.
3. to deprive; cut off.

DEADLINE: Monday, December 1st

send pieces to jcrone@saic.edu

*********************
Everyone should check out Speed Trap Gallery, a not-for-profit, artist run gallery and reading space on Grand Ave in Chicago, run by Patrick Anderson and Katherine Harvath. They are currently accepting entries for their December show and reading. The theme is “The Distance Anywhere” and the deadline is November 20th. Visit the MySpace or Facebook page for more info or contact speedtrapgallery@gmail.com

http://www.myspace.com/speedtrapgallery

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1661103410&ref=ts

October Updates

*The CWGs first Publication "Places" is due to go out in the next two weeks. It will feature writing by 14 Students.

*We have begun discussing the potential of readings, to possibly be hosted by Patrick Anderson who is starting a reading series out of his apartment and is willing to open the space to the Guild.
*Everyone start thinking about ideas for readings!
some ideas for Guild readings:
-NOvember... http://www.readbookonline.net/readOnLine/4219/
-Preparing for the Winter Doldrums
-Nostalgia and Sentimentality

*The next publication: Possibly theme: "Abridged" featuring short-short stories, short poems, haikus, vignettes and other concise pieces of writing.

* Now that a lot of business has been taken care of at the first three meetings, we can now make time at the meetings for workshopping and writing exercises.

A silly little nonsensical poem from a poem pass at lat weeks meeting:

Enclosed in a ziplock baggy
bigger than a flip flop
caliwop
clip clop bop bop
dance till you drop
spin and twirl
try not to get sick
Flugle Floggle, Moggle goggle,
emitting a smell like a moldy towel
don't open the bag she said
but "pop!" there it went
spilt across the floor now; it's
no use crying now, not when it has
cried for you
many tears on the floor

*Next meeting November 4th, bring writing!

Jenn Swann's Writing Events Calendar

SAIC Creative Writing Guild Calendar of Chicago Literary Events

Friday, October 10 @ 7:30
Claudia Guadalupe Martinez reads from “The Smell of Old Lady Perfume”
Women and Children First
5233 N. Clark St.
(773) 769-9299

Saturday, October 11 @ 7
Alixopulos and Laura Park sign copies of their comic books.
Quimby’s Bookstore
1854 W. North Avenue
(773) 342-0910

Sunday, October 12 @ 4:30 pm
Stepsister Press Event Night featuring local contributors
Women and Children First
StepSister Press Event night featuring local contributors to Submerged: Tales of the Basin and Bitchin’ Bodies: Young Women Talk About Body Dissatisfaction

Sunday, October 12 @ 7
Myopic Poetry Series, Myopic Bookstore
1564 N. Milwaukee Ave
(773) 862-4882
Readings by Michael Rothenberg and David Meltzer in conjunction with the Poetry Center of Chicago.

Tuesday, October 14 @ 7
Quimby’s Bookstore
1854 W. North Avenue
(773) 342-0910
Release party for her Lucy Knisley’s graphic novel, French Milk. Knisley is also appearing at Women and Children First on October 16 at 7:30 pm.

Thursday, October 16 @ 7 pm
Quimby’s Bookstore
1854 W. North Avenue
(773) 342-0910
Damon Brown reads and discusses Porn & Pong.

Friday, October 17 @ 7 pm
Quimby’s Bookstore
1854 W. North Avenue
(773) 342-0910
Laurie Lindeen reads and signs her new rock’n‘roll memoir, Petal Pusher.

Tuesday, Oct 21 @ 7
Powell’s North Reading Series
Poet, John Taggart
2850 N. Lincoln (773) 248-1444 
 

Please join us at the next Powell's North Bookstore reading on TUESDAY OCTOBER 21, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. for a reading featuring the poet John Taggart, with students from the Writing Program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.


Saturday Oct 18 @ 7
Red Rover Reading Series
Division Street Dance Loft
735 W. Division, 3rd floor
$4 suggested donation
Red Rover Series: Readings that play with Reading with Ira S. Murfin, Marisa Plumb, and Srikanth Reddy. Series continues Sat Nov 1 and Sat Dec 6.

Thursday October 16 @ 5-8 pm
Columbia College C33 Gallery
East 33 Congress Parkway
Inspired by Beat era coffee houses, the multimedia exhibition, Beat Café, showcases the radio/audio-based work of students from the Radio Department at Columbia College Chicago. The Beat Café invites visitor participation and provides a venue for public presentations and readings, including a live performance of The Spirit of ’14, Jack Kerouac’s only radio play. Runs Oct 6-Nov 14.

Friday Oct 17 @ 6:30-9 pm
Center for Book and Paper Arts
1104 S. Wabash, 2nd Floor
Readings by Judith Goldman, Robert Harrison, Simone Muench, and Tim Yu
Special readings feature Chicago-area poets whose works exemplify contemporary experimental poetic practice in the tradition fostered by the small press and artists’ books. The poetry reading celebrates the opening of the exhibit and special issue of the Journal of Artists’ Books on Intersections of Experimental Literature and Artists’ Books.

Sunday, October 19 @ 7
Myopic Poetry Series, Myopic Bookstore
1564 N. Milwaukee Ave
(773) 862-4882
Poet: Brenda Iijima

Tuesday October 28 @ 6 pm
Kerouac and Writers on the Road
Readings and Open Mic
623 S. Wabash, 1st Floor
Students from the Columbia College Fiction Writing Department's Critical Reading and Writing: Writers on the Road class join students from Fiction Writing study abroad programs to share their research into the writing processes of Jack Kerouac with a response from Gerald Nicosia, Kerouac biographer. Following the discussion will be an open mic session with the road theme.

Friday October 30 @ 9 am – 2 pm
Beat Writing Workshop
1104 S. Michigan, Room 711
Three-hour morning session, two-hour afternoon session, led by Gerald Nicosia. Free and open to the public. Seating is limited; to pre-register contact: sbabyk@colum.edu.

Wednesday, November 5 @ 9 am-9 pm
Conaway Center
1104 S. Wabash, 1st Floor
In the true spirit of the Beat Generation, readers from the Columbia College community, as well as celebrity guest readers from the Chicago area, will bring Kerouac’s words to life in an all-day marathon reading of On the Road.

Sunday, November 9 @ 7 pm
Myopic Poetry Series, Myopic bookstore
1564 N. Milwaukee Ave
(773) 862-4882
Poet: Hugh Behm-Steinberg

September 25th Meeting

Thank you to everyone who attended the first CWG meeting of the year! there were 8 people there, plus me (Jeni) and Sherry our Sponsor.

Here are some notes from the meeting last week:

Things to be done ASAP: turn in funding proposal, put up flyers

Ideas Discussed:
Podcast
Free Radio SAIC show
Readings
open mic
workshops
multi-group festival

PUBLICATION: we hope to have one out by the end of October. The potential theme for the first publication will be "places"

More info will follow in the next few days.

Contact jcrone@saic.edu for more information or if you have any ideas.

Schedule of Meetings

Here is the basic schedule for meetings this semester. The schedule may change and extra meetings may be held when planning readings and publications.

Meetings will be held the 1st Tuesday and 4th Thursday of every month in the Student Groups Room on the 13th floor of the MacLean Building.

Thursday, September 25th
Tuesday, October 7th
Thursday, October 23rd
Tuesday, November 4th
NO MEETING THANKSGIVING, meeting time TBA
Tuesday December 2nd
WINTER BREAK

CWG 2008-2009

Keep Posted for CWG Updates. MORE INFO COMING SOON!

First Meeting:Thursday September 25th, 4:30 MacLean, Student Groups Room, 1302

Gold.

If I stare at these goldfish
long enough, they will turn to gold.
When they turn to gold I will pluck them out
and I will polish them and I will sleep on them
for six weeks.
I will carve them and squeeze them
and fit them into my ears.
I will rise from my bedside table
and I shall dye my hair the color of clams
and I shall paint my cheeks
the color of coral reefs.
I shall climb outside my window and all the men
in Massachusettes will stop and sink and
nearly drown in my presence
and he who I wish to save from his puddle in the street
shall marry me whole heartedy.
But until then I sit in my bedroom
and I stare at these goldfish.
They swim circles in a silver bowl
and sometimes they project bubbles
from their mouths or from their tails.
But mostly they swim they swim and if I stare long enough
these goldfish will turn to gold.

-jennswann

An Insomniac's Dream About Hope

It takes a lot of ink to sound like calligraphy,
Enough to pave the road to here and there and
Asymmetrically, reluctantly back. Following

A caramel moon canoeing in-and-out of clouds.
On twenty-seven more occasions I will swear I have never
Seen the moon that color.
The constellation Hercules push-pinned to the sky,
Safer than every airplane ever mistaken for something
Constantly fixed. Everything only constantly fixed to
Anything that ever got lost in the crease of a letter.

Every insecure without-teeth smile,
Every Lenten fish sandwich bought
To appease false security.
Dissymmetry personified:
In the lack of finding a fixed
Point to orbit around,
In the blame of
Interchangeable person-places,
Incongruence in the alignment
Of the reason that came before
The Reason.

Fate is an inversed factor tree,
Narrowing the margin for error
With every risk closer to purpose.


-jeni

Vinegar

I have done something wrong
I know for my cheeks are the color of those roses
this wine these oils and fresh breads
I have done something wrong
I know for my eyes have begun to sag like saphire lily pads
and the shadows on my neck could rise up
and cloud the sky in darkness
I have done something wrong
I know for my lips are pursed and stitched
into tiny tulip buds
My shoulders have stiffened themselves like smokestacks
I have done something wrong
I know ths because I cannot look you in the eyes
I cannot watch your stern eyebrows
turned up like curled ribbon
and the lines upon your forehead
could leap up and circle my body twice
I know your lips are dipped in this tobacco spitting pose
and your nose your nose
twisted like knotted pantyhose
How can we dance
How can we begin to dance
When I hold this vinegar bottle inside my chest
and anytime I move
this liquid swishes it crashes it sickens my throat
And if we dance
this bottle might break
raking shards of glass upon my insides
and oh how it would smell it would smell
I have done something wrong
I know this for these roses have begun to droop
these oils have begun to stink
these breads have grown stale
and this wine this wine is just fine
how it has ripened so I drink I drink I drink

- jennswann

Cardio

Clutch me by the throat and slit,

slither on in,

pump me full of hot metal.

Metal hearted me,

Gold hearted you,

We fuse.

One pulsing beast, we ravage the

cavities of duller chests,

we rip n' bleed ‘em,

we heat n' feed ‘em,

before we move on

into tomorrow's early morning flare.

Finding nobody there,

we storm,

stampede each other,

we rush n’ bleed each other.

Now wrapped in the heavy arms of quick sleep,

we slowly melt,

ooze and seep.

by A. Harriman

Offshore

Factory work lights dim
Fog and smoke and something
Along the lines of memory
Circling, warping, rapt.
A wave of train
Steel surf and coal
New Orleans off to sea
Dire nothing and me
Lost in silver mirrored sky
Abstract and concrete
Contradiction is impossible.

Or,
Say we lived through the storms,
And I watch you playing with my son
Now almost nine, splashing in the surf,
Sand in his blond hair- your blond hair;
Laughing at me lost
In my ocean of memory.