Emily Brontë's Birthday Party: A Contemporary Gothic Reading!

(Kat Georges Design) 

(Kat Georges Design) 

On Sunday, July 30, Three Rooms Press and Great Weather for Media are hosting "An Afternoon of Contemporary Gothic Poetry and Fiction Celebrating the Birthday of Emily Brontë." I'm honored to be one of the featured readers, and I'll be reading my own modern gothic, Brontë-inspired short story "The Lady of the House"! Please join us for an incredible afternoon of eerie, unsettling poetry and fiction, classic Dark and Stormy cocktails, and open mic performances! I hope to see you there!

AN AFTERNOON OF CONTEMPORARY
GOTHIC POETRY AND FICTION

Celebrating the Birthday of
EMILY BRONTË

featuring performances and storytelling by
CHAVISA WOODS
DEIDRE COYLE
CONSTANCE RENFROW

Plus Open Reading!

Sunday, July 30, 2017
Parkside Lounge | 317 E. Houston St., NYC 

Celebrate the birthday of legendary goth author EMILY BRONTË at an afternoon of Contemporary Gothic Poetry and Fiction, Sunday, July 30, 4-6 pm at The Parkside Lounge (Houston at Attorney St., NYC). 

The event will feature the phenomenal poet and author Chavisa Woods, whose new book Things to Do When You’re Goth in the Country, was described by Booklist as “This book is tight, intelligent, and important, and sure to secure Woods a seat in the pantheon of critical twenty-first-century voices.” 

In addition, Deirdre Coyle (author of How to Talk to Writers at Parties), and Constance Renfrow (author and editor of Songs of My Selfie: An Anthology of Millennial Writers) will read from their work. We’ll also talk about the weird and mysterious life of Emily Brontë, whose only novel,Wuthering Heights, is considered a goth classic.

An open mic precedes the reading, hosted by poet, playwright and Three Rooms Press co-director Kat Georges.

Doors open at 3:45 pm. $2 suggested donation and 2 drink minimum. Featured drink: The Dark & Stormy -- the Parkside makes a great one. 

ABOUT THE PERFORMERS:

Chavisa Woods is the author of three books of fiction: Things To Do When You're Goth in the Country (Seven Stories Press, 2017) The Albino Album, (Seven Stories Press, 2013); and Love Does Not Make Me Gentle or Kind (Fly by Night Press, 2009). The second edition of this book was released by Autonomedia Press under the Unbearables imprint in 2013. Woods has presented lectures and conducted workshops  on short fiction and poetry at a number of academic institutions, including: New York University (NYU), Penn State, Sarah Lawrence College, Bard College, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn Tech and the New School.

Deirdre Coyle is a goth living in Brooklyn. She is the author of the chapbook HOW TO TALK TO WRITERS AT PARTIES, and her work has appeared in Electric Literature, Lit Hub, Hobart, Joyland, and elsewhere. Find her on Twitter at @DeirdreKoala.

Constance Renfrow's writing has appeared in such places as Portland Book Review, Huffington Post, Cabildo Quarterly, Denim Skin, and Petrichor Machine. She is editor-in-chief of Three Rooms Press, and hosts a monthly open mic series at New York’s Merchant’s House Museum. Her first book, Songs of My Selfie, an anthology of millennial fiction, was a 2016 IndieFAB finalist. She is pursuing her MFA in fiction from Pacific University.

Common Openers to Avoid -- on DIY MFA

In this new article up on DIY MFA, I discuss five beginnings to novels (or short stories) I see all too frequently in my capacity as an acquiring editor. From characters waking up to sudden screaming, here are some openers you may want to avoid, and why. Check out the article "Bad Beginnings: Five Story Openers to Avoid" here!

Writer's Digest Webinar

Last week I took part in a webinar, "Editors' Tips on Revising Your Manuscript and Query Letter," hosted by Writer's Digest and the freelancing website Reedsy. I joined Ricardo Fayet, founder of Reedsy, as well as former editors and publishers from Harper Collins, Simon and Schuster, and Random House, as we discussed everything from unique openings to story conflict to the the right and wrong ways to write a query letter. This was my first time participating in a webinar, and it was such a wonderful experience. I'm honored to have been chosen to participate. 

If you'd like to give it a listen, the recording has been made available on Writer's Digest. I hope our advise is helpful to you!