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Lend an Ear 2019 on July 20, 2019

Lend an Ear 2015 - Audience listens to MaryJane Nordgren read, The 10th Annual Lend an Ear, Come and Hear reading event is July 20, 2019, at Plum Hill Winery in Gaston, Oregon.

It begins at 10:30AM and goes to approximately 1:00PM, and is produced by Writers in the Grove.

July 20, 2019
Saturday 10:30am-1pm
Plum Hill Vineyards
6505 SW Old Highway 47
Gaston OR 97119

The event is free and open to the public.

For ten years, writers from around Forest Grove and Washington County have submitted and read their work to dozens. Last year we had nearly a hundred attendees. This free event is held in a beautiful winery in the foothills near Hagg Lake overlooking the Tualitin Valley. Enjoy some wine from Plum Hill Winery, our fabulous hosts, and afterwards have a picnic with views of Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Adams from the covered picnic area.

Come laugh, cry, and sigh as you listen to our marvelous readers sharing their creative writing and storytelling skills at this fun family event at Plum Hill Winery.

Entry form and submission guidelines here: (more…)

Lend an Ear 2018 on July 7, 2018

Lend an Ear 2015 - Audience listens to MaryJane Nordgren read, The 9th Annual Lend an Ear, Come and Hear reading event is July 7, 2018, at Plum Hill Winery in Gaston, Oregon.

It begins at 10:30AM and goes to approximately 1PM, and is produced by Writers in the Grove.

July 7, 2018
Saturday 10:30am-1pm
Plum Hill Vineyards
6505 SW Old Highway 47
Gaston OR 97119

The event is free and open to the public.

(more…)

Lend an Ear 2017 on July 8, 2017

Lend an Ear 2015 - Susan Schmidlin distributes goodies after her reading to the audience. The 8th Annual Lend an Ear, Come and Hear reading event is in just a couple weeks on July 8, 2017. The submissions this year have been wonderful, and we’ve narrowed them down to about 20 writers who will be reading their stories, poems, and prose for free at Plum Hill Winery in Gaston, Oregon.

July 8, 2017
Saturday 10:30am-1pm
Plum Hill Vineyards
6505 SW Old Highway 47
Gaston OR 97119

The event is free and open to the public.

Come join us for this delightful storytelling and author reading event. There will be food trucks and plenty of wine to enjoy on the hillside surrounded by nature and this beautiful winery in the Tualatin Valley.

WordCrafters Writers Conference August 25-27, 2017

WordCrafters conference in Eugene, Oregon, is August 25-27, 2017, and a must-attend for writers and fans of mysteries, thrillers, police procedurals, and crimes of passion this year. Each year the conference has a theme, and this year is for the who-done-it writers.

The conference is a part of the amazing work of WordCrafters in Eugene, offering extensive literacy and writing programs to the adults, children, prisoners, special interest groups, and the public in general.

We are writer and readers. We believe in the power and value of the written word and seek to help others to express themselves through their writing. We believe we are the keepers of the literature and the chroniclers of our times, and to do that effectively, we must write effectively. Wordcrafters is about the craft of writing.

This year’s conference fe3atures a wide range of sessions including “Into the Mind of a Killer,” “Pyschological Sleuthing,” “Forensics Unmasked,” and “Plotting the Perfect Murder.” Special speakers include D.P. Lyle, Forensic MD and author, and Katherine Ramsland, Forensic Psychologist and author.

Jessica Morrell to Speak at Writers Forum in Hillsboro

The fairly new Washington County Writers Forum in Hillsboro, Oregon, will be hosting a Writers Forum event on June 1, 2017, at Insomnia Coffee from 7-8pm. Insomnia Coffe is at 317 E. Main Street in downtown Hillsboro. Suggested admission is $5.

Jessica Morrell is a fabulous author, speaker, and instructor from the Portland area. She offers regular educational workshops for fiction and memoir writers around the area, and speaks at many conferences. She will be covering the writing process from “flash to finish” in this program titled “From Idea to Story.”

Writers in the Grove welcomes the Washington County Writers Forum to our writing community and look forward to some excellent workshops and programs.

Lend an Ear 2017 on July 8, 2017

Lend an Ear 2015 - Audience listen to Veronica read. The 8th Annual Lend an Ear, Come and Hear reading event is July 8, 2017, at Plum Hill Winery in Gaston, Oregon. It begins at 10:30AM and goes to approximately 1PM, and is produced by Writers in the Grove.

July 8, 2017
Saturday 10:30am-1pm
Plum Hill Vineyards
6505 SW Old Highway 47
Gaston OR 97119

The event is free and open to the public.

For eight years, writers from around Forest Grove and Washington County have submitted and read their work to dozens. Last year we broke records with over a hundred attendees. This free event is held in a beautiful winery in the foothills near Hagg Lake overlooking the Tualitin Valley. There will be food from several food wagons and, of course, some wine from Plum Hill Winery, our fabulous hosts. Come laugh, cry, and sigh as you listen to our marvelous readers sharing their creative writing and storytelling skills.

Enter Your Submission: If you would like to participate as one of our readers, submit your poems or prose of four-minute readings per the instructions on our submission form for Lend an Ear, available as a downloadable Word document or PDF file to complete and return to Writers in the Grove by June 12, 2017. Submissions must be original and able to be read out loud for no more than 4 minutes. This is a juried event. Pieces will be selected on the basis or originality, writing style, and quality of work. All genres are welcome, however, they must be family friendly. Submissions should reflect content suitable for mixed age groups.

Come join Writers in the Grove for this fun, family event at Plum Hill Winery.

Crossroads

The following is by Writer’s in the Grove member, Lorelle VanFossen, inspired by Prompt: Three Random Words with Same First Letter and Share. The prompt was to write down three nouns that start with the same letter and have nothing to do with each other, then pass them to your neighbor for the writing prompt. The words were truth, trouble, and transition.

She stood at the crossroads of her life as well as the intersection of Hindspitter and Fredricksville Roads, next to her car, a boring, blue Mazda like millions of other broken down, boring blue Mazdas on the road over the past twenty years, ignoring the steam hissing from its tightly clenched jaws. She chewed a broken thumbnail, the result of five minutes trying to force open those jaws to inspect the damage. It remained closed, as did her options for rescue.

Her cell phone gave up contact with civilization about 5 miles ago. Sarah stood in the middle of nowhereville rural Oregon, on the eastside where rain rarely visits. The old junker barely made it over the pass and couldn’t cope with the rising morning temperatures, and neither could she. She gave up on the thumb and ran a sleeve across her forehead. It didn’t help.

With no car in sight, the truth was life looked as bleak as these roads. She had 20 minutes to either magically repair her car or get rescued to make her job interview in Fredricksville. This was a long way to come for a job, but there were few options left closer to Portland. Fifty-six job interviews in six months since losing her high school teaching gig, it must be a world record. Job hunting was expensive. With no wand or wizard in sight, she could hear even more money sliding down the hole in her already empty wallet. Damn car.

A vulture swept down and landed on the Hindspitter street sign and hissed at her.

“Wait your turn, buddy,” she glared at him. “I still got some fight left.” She leaned back against the overheated vehicle and closed her eyes against the relentless sun, considering her lack of options.

Who names a street Hindspitter? Was there a family who owned this hunk of desert, or some unfortunate who died along the wagon road, his name forever immortalized with a blue road sign? Hindspitter. Imagine introducing yourself. “Hi, I’m one of the Hindspitters.”

The car hiccuped and spat a new burst of steam out the front grill.

She sighed and replied, “Wrong end.”

Portland WordStock November 7, 2015

WordStock, Portland’s Book Festival, is a one-day event at the Portland Art Museum on Saturday, November 7, 2015. Tickets are available now for $15 and includes admission to the Art Museum and a $5 voucher to spend at the extensive book fair.

Over 80 authors will be present offering writing tips and techniques in all genres. According to the press release (PDF), “There will be conversations between Cheryl Strayed and Diana Nyad; Jon Krakauer and Barry Lopez; Tom Spanbauer and Chuck Palahniuk. There will be interviews with Wendell Pierce, Sandra Cisneros, John Irving, and Stacy Schiff; and panel discussions on topics as wide-ranging as unconventional histories, accidental families, paranormal YA, and so much more.”

A series of writing workshops are also available during the event for an addition fee. They include storytelling, poetry, scene writing, editing, humor, and other topics.

The Bookmark Ball is the opening night celebration held the night before as a fundraiser and social gathering with music. Tickets start at $35 for this special event for the Portland literati.