Learn about songwriting, self-publishing
Registration for the Lancaster-based Seven Bridge Writers’ Collaborative’s winter and spring classes will open Monday, Jan. 4, at https://sevenbridge.org. For more info, email 7bridgewriterscollaborative@gmail.com.
“What Makes a Good Story,” with Jim Brennan, is Saturday, Jan. 16, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at Thayer Memorial Library, 717 Main St., Lancaster, though it could change to an online class if necessary.
This is a workshop for people who like to read short stories and want to write their own. Brennan will discuss the building blocks of fiction and how writers utilize them to make compelling stories by looking at a couple of stories by masters of the craft. Then, with some tools, tips and TLC, participants will have the opportunity to “play” with the blocks as they write to prompts provided by Brennan.
Participants will come away with an understanding of how stories work, material that could be the beginning of a short story, and some suggestions and resources not only to keep them going but also to help them aim toward publication.
Brennan teaches writing and literature at Quinsigamond Community College and is the faculty adviser to the college’s
Creative Writing Club. He holds an MFA in literature and writing with an emphasis on fiction from the Bennington Writing Seminars. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in Slab, Edge, Adelaide Literary Magazine, First Line, Colere, Charles River Review and other publications. He is working on a collection of short stories.
“Songwriting,” with Nancy Beaudette, will be held online Wednesdays, April 7, 14, 21, 28, and May 5 and 12, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Learn how to write your own song. Explore the elements of songwriting including lyrics, rhythm and melody. Over a six-week period, students will be asked to create their own lyrics, develop a melody and be given an opportunity to perform their composition.
Classes will be facilitated by Beaudette, an award-winning songwriter and author of “SongCraft — Writing Songs In Your Authentic Voice.” There’s a song in everyone waiting to be written!
Blending brave and honest songwriting, first-rate musicianship, and a huge helping of native Canadian wit, Beaudette is an artist of songs and
heart. She was raised near Cornwall, Ontario, a place sustained by farming and millwork where French and English languages were friendly neighbors. Her songwriting delves into those roots, weaving a nostalgic past into lush songs of familial history, good-humored folly, and poignant observations of life and loss.
Her recent accolades and notables include: a 2019 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Finalist; a 2019 SERFA Official Showcase Artist; a 35th Annual Mid Atlantic Song Contest finalist for “Reeds On The River”; a 2018 SWRFA Official Showcase Artist; and the 2017 Songs For Peace Competition 5th Place winner for “Peace Date.”
The fee is $125 and preregistration is required https:// seven bridge. org/ seven
bridge- sessions/ classes/ song writing.
: “Independent Publishing Tools,” with
Ursula Wong, will be held
Wednesdays,
Feb. 3 and 10, from 6 to 8 p.m., at Thayer Memorial Library, 717 Main St., Lancaster, though it could change to an online class if necessary.
This two-week class will discuss tools commonly used in self-publishing, including book design and formatting using Microsoft Word, an overview of Amazon publishing tools, and a demonstration of Canva for book covers and graphics. The class will also review Smashwords and Draft2Digital services, useful for publishing books to online platforms used by libraries, Apple’s iBookstore, Kobo, Barnes & Noble and others.
The fee is $50. To register and for more info, visit https:/ /seven bridge. org/ sevenbridge-sessions/ classes/ independent publishing tools.
Wong writes about strong women who battle impossible odds to achieve their dreams. Her work has appeared in Everyday Fiction, Spinetingler Magazine, Mystery Reader’s Journal, and the popular Insanity Tales anthologies. Wong’s Amber War series of historical fiction chronicles the relationship between Russia and its European neighbors during the Soviet occupation of Lithuania in WWII and into modern times.
For more information about Wong and her books, visit www.ursulawong.wordpress.com.