Events

March 7, 2024

Events in March 2024

March 7, 2024

6:00 pm: Writing for Children with José Chávez

6:00 pm: The Art and Craft of Writing Poetry with Romaine Washington

6:30 pm: ASL Poetry with Ryan Fingerle

6:30 pm: All Genres Workshop with James Coats

6:00 pm: Spoken Word Poetry with David Puma

6:00 pm: All Genres Workshop with Victoria Waddle

10:00 am: Breathing Life Into Characters with Renee Gurley

6:00 pm: Writing for Children with José Chávez

6:00 pm: The Art and Craft of Writing Poetry with Romaine Washington

6:30 pm: ASL Poetry with Ryan Fingerle

6:00 pm: Spoken Word Poetry with David Puma

6:00 pm: Writing for Children with José Chávez

6:30 pm: ASL Poetry with Ryan Fingerle

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Month Day Year

4 6:30 pm: All Genres Workshop with James Coats 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm March 4, 2024 All Genres Workshop with James Coats (All Levels) Alternating Mondays, 6:30-8:30 PM PT, 1/8, 1/22, 2/5, 2/19, and 3/4/24, on Zoom $50; Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 In this multi-genre workshop, participants receive twice-monthly inspiration in the form of both poetry and prose. Prompts inspire writing in the genre of your choice. Class discussions include the craft of writing and the challenges writers face in generating poetry, memoir, and short and long fiction. James Coats is an author, poet, and educator born in Los Angeles and raised in the Inland Empire. He received his BFA from Cal Poly Pomona and his MBA from Cal State San Bernardino. As a creative change agent, he believes the arts can inspire youth and influence positive change in the world. His first poetry collection, If I had Lived, was published in 2018. In 2021, he founded Lift Our Voices Education, which hosts the monthly “Be The Change: Social Justice Writing Workshop.” His newest poetry collection, Midnight & Mad Dreams, is published by World Stage Press. Follow him on Instagram @MrLovingWords. More

5 6:00 pm: Spoken Word Poetry with David Puma 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm March 5, 2024 Spoken Word Poetry with David Puma (All Levels) Alternating Tuesdays, 6:00-8:00 PM, 1/23, 2/6, 2/20, 3/5, and 3/19/24 $50. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 In person at Riverside Main Library 3900 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside In this Spoken Word Poetry Workshop, we invite you to dive into the expressive storytelling power of the spoken word. Unleash your creativity and find your unique voice as we explore the art of crafting powerful and evocative poems. You will be guided through various poetic forms, techniques, and performance styles. Discover how to convey emotions, perspectives, and personal experiences through your words and presence. Through interactive exercises, drafting poems, peer review, and analyzing spoken word poets, you will learn to infuse your poems with rhythm, rhyme, and mesmerizing imagery, unlocking the potential to engage listeners on a profound level. Our inclusive and supportive environment encourages open expression, fostering a space where you can share your truth and elevate your spoken word prowess. Registration is limited to 12. David Puma obtained his M.F.A. in creative writing at San Jose State University and his B.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Redlands. He has been in advanced poetry workshops every semester for the last four years, and has performed spoken word across California, including the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and the Inland Empire – as well as in New York City and in London, U.K. Professionally, David’s poetry has been included on streaming platforms like Disney+. More

6 6:00 pm: All Genres Workshop with Victoria Waddle 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm March 6, 2024 All Genres Workshop with Victoria Waddle (Int.-Adv.) Alternating Wednesdays, 6:00-9:00 PM PT, 1/10, 1/24, 2/7, 2/21, and 3/6/24, on Zoom $50. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 In this multi-genre workshop, participants submit poetry and prose for biweekly critiques and receive feedback from other group members. Discussions include the craft of writing and the challenges writers face. The workshop leader provides biweekly articles and links related to participants’ work, particularly to problems that were discussed in the previous session. Victoria Waddle is a Pushcart Prize-nominated writer, with fiction and nonfiction published in literary journals and anthologies, including in Best Short Stories from The Saturday Evening Post Great American Fiction Contest. A collection of her short fiction, Acts of Contrition, is available from Los Nietos Press and her chapbook, The Mortality of Dogs and Humans, is available from Bamboo Dart Press. Her YA novel about a teen escaping a polygamist cult is coming from Inlandia Books. Previously the managing editor of Inlandia: A Literary Journey, she helped to establish a yearly teen issue. In a previous life, she was a high school English teacher and librarian. More

9 10:00 am: Breathing Life Into Characters with Renee Gurley 10:00 am – 12:00 pm March 9, 2024 Breathing Life Into Characters with Renee Gurley (All levels) Alternating Saturdays, 10:00 AM-12:00 PM PT, 1/13, 1/27, 2/10, 2/24, and 3/9/24, on Zoom $50. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 "Breathing Life Into Characters" is a dynamic and immersive writing workshop designed to empower writers of all levels to create compelling, multi-dimensional characters that leap off the page. Whether you're a seasoned novelist, aspiring screenwriter, or just someone with a passion for storytelling, this course will provide you with the tools and techniques to develop characters that resonate with readers and leave a lasting impact. R. Gurley, MA, MFA, is a writer and English teacher with over 20 years of experience with words, whose works have appeared in Coping Magazine, Lehigh Valley Woman’ s Journal, and Budget Press. More

11 6:00 pm: Writing for Children with José Chávez 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm March 11, 2024 Writing for Children with José Chávez (All Levels) Alternating Mondays, 6:00-8:00 PM PT, 1/29, 2/12, 2/26, 3/11 and 3/25/24, on Zoom $50. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 This workshop is designed to meet the needs of those who wish to write or are writing for children. We’ll explore the writing voice for children, define a “picture book,” story arc, story introductions, appropriate vocabulary, children’s poetry, and more. There will be time to flex our writing muscles and develop the beauty and strength of our “voice” for children. José Chávez is a retired bilingual teacher and dedicates his life to writing. He's had poetry published in the Multilingual Educator Journal, Acentos Review, Inlandia Anthology and has written two award-winning bilingual poetry books for children. He lives in Riverside, CA, is married, and has three grown children. More

12 6:00 pm: The Art and Craft of Writing Poetry with Romaine Washington 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm March 12, 2024 The Art and Craft of Writing Poetry with Romaine Washington (All Levels) Alternating Tuesdays, 6:00-8:00 PM PT, 1/16, 1/30, 2/13, 2/27, and 3/12/24, on Zoom $50. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 Discover the art and craft of writing poetry with generative prompts and other forms of poetic inspiration. Brief group feedback will help you uncover images and language that resonate for you and for your audience. Romaine Washington, M. Ed., is the editor of "These Black Bodies Are... A Blacklandia Anthology" and the author of “Purgatory Has an Address” (Bamboo Dart Press) and “Sirens in Her Belly” (Jamii Publications). She has been published in various anthologies and periodicals, including Inlandia Institute’s “San Bernardino Singing” anthology and “Cholla Needles 32, 36 and 39.” Ms. Washington is a graduate fellow of The Watering Hole, South Carolina, and the Inland Area Writing Project at the University of California, Riverside. She was a public school educator for over twenty years and has developed a social justice curriculum available for free on her website: https://www.romainewashington.com/. The proud mother of two sons, Romaine Washington is a native Californian from San Bernardino who resides in the Inland Empire. More

13 6:30 pm: ASL Poetry with Ryan Fingerle 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm March 13, 2024 Writing and Presenting Poetry in American Sign Language with Ryan Fingerle (All Levels) Alternating Wednesdays, 6:30-8:30 PM PT, 1/31, 2/14, 2/28, 3/13, and 3/27/24, on Zoom FREE. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 Do you want to write poetry but don’t know how? Would you like to express poetry in ASL, but you’re not sure where to begin? Then come to this workshop! This introductory course is especially created for poetry lovers who want to learn how to write and present poetry in American Sign Language. It’s also for those who want to learn how to appreciate the art of poetry in both English and ASL. All are welcome – d/Deaf, HOH, and hearing – and an interpreter and closed captioning will be available. In this course, participants will experience both written and visual poetry. The workshop has several aims: to increase the ways you can become more engaged and curious readers of poetry; to increase your confidence in writing poems through text in English and American Sign Language; and to provide you with the support and resources for writing and presenting poetry in ASL. Ryan Fingerle is a Deaf writer, poet, and educator whose love of words has no boundaries. One of her works, “Stuck in the Middle,” was published in the 2021 MUSE Literary Magazine. She presented her English poem “Connected” in ASL in front of a live audience for a National Deaf History and Poetry Month event. Ryan holds a B.A. in English and Creative Writing, and she is in a process of earning her M.A. from Southern New Hampshire University. She is a private tutor in English and Math, and her 10 years of experience – and passion – is helping her adult students and their families enjoy the merits of both ASL and the English language. More

19 6:00 pm: Spoken Word Poetry with David Puma 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm March 19, 2024 Spoken Word Poetry with David Puma (All Levels) Alternating Tuesdays, 6:00-8:00 PM, 1/23, 2/6, 2/20, 3/5, and 3/19/24 $50. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 In person at Riverside Main Library 3900 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside In this Spoken Word Poetry Workshop, we invite you to dive into the expressive storytelling power of the spoken word. Unleash your creativity and find your unique voice as we explore the art of crafting powerful and evocative poems. You will be guided through various poetic forms, techniques, and performance styles. Discover how to convey emotions, perspectives, and personal experiences through your words and presence. Through interactive exercises, drafting poems, peer review, and analyzing spoken word poets, you will learn to infuse your poems with rhythm, rhyme, and mesmerizing imagery, unlocking the potential to engage listeners on a profound level. Our inclusive and supportive environment encourages open expression, fostering a space where you can share your truth and elevate your spoken word prowess. Registration is limited to 12. David Puma obtained his M.F.A. in creative writing at San Jose State University and his B.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Redlands. He has been in advanced poetry workshops every semester for the last four years, and has performed spoken word across California, including the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and the Inland Empire – as well as in New York City and in London, U.K. Professionally, David’s poetry has been included on streaming platforms like Disney+. More

25 6:00 pm: Writing for Children with José Chávez 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm March 25, 2024 Writing for Children with José Chávez (All Levels) Alternating Mondays, 6:00-8:00 PM PT, 1/29, 2/12, 2/26, 3/11 and 3/25/24, on Zoom $50. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 This workshop is designed to meet the needs of those who wish to write or are writing for children. We’ll explore the writing voice for children, define a “picture book,” story arc, story introductions, appropriate vocabulary, children’s poetry, and more. There will be time to flex our writing muscles and develop the beauty and strength of our “voice” for children. José Chávez is a retired bilingual teacher and dedicates his life to writing. He's had poetry published in the Multilingual Educator Journal, Acentos Review, Inlandia Anthology and has written two award-winning bilingual poetry books for children. He lives in Riverside, CA, is married, and has three grown children. More

27 6:30 pm: ASL Poetry with Ryan Fingerle 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm March 27, 2024 Writing and Presenting Poetry in American Sign Language with Ryan Fingerle (All Levels) Alternating Wednesdays, 6:30-8:30 PM PT, 1/31, 2/14, 2/28, 3/13, and 3/27/24, on Zoom FREE. Registration required. http://tinyurl.com/WriteWinter2024 Do you want to write poetry but don’t know how? Would you like to express poetry in ASL, but you’re not sure where to begin? Then come to this workshop! This introductory course is especially created for poetry lovers who want to learn how to write and present poetry in American Sign Language. It’s also for those who want to learn how to appreciate the art of poetry in both English and ASL. All are welcome – d/Deaf, HOH, and hearing – and an interpreter and closed captioning will be available. In this course, participants will experience both written and visual poetry. The workshop has several aims: to increase the ways you can become more engaged and curious readers of poetry; to increase your confidence in writing poems through text in English and American Sign Language; and to provide you with the support and resources for writing and presenting poetry in ASL. Ryan Fingerle is a Deaf writer, poet, and educator whose love of words has no boundaries. One of her works, “Stuck in the Middle,” was published in the 2021 MUSE Literary Magazine. She presented her English poem “Connected” in ASL in front of a live audience for a National Deaf History and Poetry Month event. Ryan holds a B.A. in English and Creative Writing, and she is in a process of earning her M.A. from Southern New Hampshire University. She is a private tutor in English and Math, and her 10 years of experience – and passion – is helping her adult students and their families enjoy the merits of both ASL and the English language. More