Constructing Powerful Openings

A first page is the first impression. The first chance to make people sit up and take notice of your work.

“Marley was dead, to begin with.” A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens.

Join us today at The Astoria Bookshop at 5 pm to kick-off a new year by exploring how to write powerful openings. Through a mixture of discussion and writing exercises, we’ll take a look at various story starter techniques and use them to revise an existing piece of work.

$10 suggested contribution. BYO Pen & Paper!

Workshop, 8/18 at 5 pm

31-29 31st St, Astoria, NY

Creating Sensory Details: How often have you heard this famous refrain: Show, don’t tell. But how exactly? And why? Most writers interpret it to mean that one should write vividly with detailed images and sensory information (show) rather than dull summaries (tell). Working through a series of writing exercises, we’ll explore the scientific impact sensory details have to emotionally engage readers.

Click here for more info and to RSVP via Facebook.

Workshop, 4/21 at 5 pm


31-29 31st St, Astoria, NY

Crafting Mythic Quests: Myths represent the ways that ancient cultures sought to explain the origins of the world and of existence itself. Sounds like a killer creative writing prompt to me! Through a mixture of discussion and writing exercises, we will explore the mythic realm of quests, break down the hero’s journey, and write into a time before time began.

$10 suggested contribution. BYO pen & paper.

Click here to RSVP via Facebook.

2019 Art Access Grant Recipient

Some pics from a lovely night at the 2019 Queens Council on the Arts Awards Ceremony.

Honored to celebrate my “switched-up” storytelling series No, YOU Tell It! (noyoutellit.com) alongside these amazing Queens artists.

Click here to listen to our recent “Crafty” show at The Astoria Bookshop made possible (in part) by the Queens Council on the Arts with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

Subscribe to the No, YOU Tell It! podcast on iTunes or AudioBoom for more switched-up storytelling from our live shows.

Workshop, 3/17 at 5 pm

Wacky Revision Techniques! All writing is rewriting. Well, great, but how does a writer approach their first, third, twelfth revision from a fresh perspective? In this workshop, we’ll go through a series of fun, bizarre, and efficient methods to tackle those tough revisions. Feel free to bring in something you’ve been working on already and/or practice materials will also be provided.

$10 suggested contribution. BYO pen & paper.

Click here for more info and to RSVP via Facebook.

Workshop, 2/17 at 5 pm

SENSORY BLITZ! How often have you heard this famous refrain: Show, don’t tell. But how exactly? Most writers interpret it to mean that one should write vividly with detailed images and sensory information (show) rather than dull summaries (tell). Working through the series of writing exercises designed to blitz your and, thus, the readers’ senses, we’ll explore the show, the tell, and what they both mean in writing.

$10 suggested contribution. BYO pen & paper.

Click here for more info and to RSVP via Facebook.