Thanks, kind participant! And thanks to generous grants from Local Cultural Councils in Berkshire and Hampshire Counties and the Massachusetts Cultural Council, I'll present 19 FREE workshops in 2024. Pre-registeration required; space is limited. Please see summer/fall schedule here (more coming soon).
Thanks for all the hometown love! And thanks to Robert Mitchell for this lovely recap in the Boothbay Register.
Thank you to Jennifer Huberdeau and the Berkshire Eagle for this lovely review of Maine Character Energy (Rogue Owl Press), edited by Sarah Parke. I'm grateful to have a story in this charity anthology. All stories are by writers with strong ties to Maine; all proceeds support Everytown for Gun Safety to honor the victims of the October 2023 shooting in Lewiston-Auburn, Maine.
I'm proud to be a Mainer and proud to be among so many creatives in the Shire.
If you'd like to order a copy of Maine Character Energy and support this cause, please purchase from ROP here.
Thank you, Kate Abbott and BTW Berkshires, for highlighting the 19 free poetry/fiction/nonfiction workshops I'll present this year, all due to support from local cultural councils and Mass Cultural Council. Kate is a wonder! 🙏 Hope to see you at a workshop--or a few. (See registration details here.)
Here's the full article.
Thank you, Michelle Schmer of Coffee Fueled Stories! We chatted about Maine Character Energy (a charity anthology from Rogue Owl Press) and why I love my home state, plus Barry Manilow, musicals, Solid Gold, Paul Gauguin and how I got a black eye.
Listen to the podcast episode here.
Pumpkins, anyone? Thank for the mention, Bold Journey Magazine.
Re: Swift Ink Stories:"I know the ups and downs of the creative process and the discipline needed to sustain a writing life. I provide a framework for others to create. I give deadlines and homework. I provide accountability. I was lucky to have wonderful mentors who did the same for me while earning my MFA (Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers) and beyond. They believed in me. So, I'm paying forward."
Read full interview here.
Fun FREE (in person) stuff from Swift Ink Stories coming up in April/May in Western MA and NY. All details and registration links here.
Plus two (fee-based) ONLINE options:
*April 4, 7 pm ET (Pick Up the Pen)
*May 2-30 (five Thursdays) Spring Workshop Series for work in progress - a few spaces left!
Join me for a five-week spring workshop series (online) for writers of fiction or nonfiction with work in progress. A few spots left! Drafts due April 15. Details here.
Thoughts from 2024 Winter Workshop participants:
"Lara's guidance is gentle yet thorough. She's an experienced writing mentor who will inspire you."
"I so appreciate the work on my specific piece, but I enjoyed learning and thinking about the craft of writing and ways to explore even more."
"Thank you so much for this excellent, nurturing, constructive workshop. It sharpened my desire to write, gave me more confidence, and helped me focus on making my writing more compelling. The homework and the feedback from you and the group were tremendously helpful. I'm very much looking forward to the next one!"
"What an amazing opportunity! The group worked so well together. We helped each other as writers and readers."
"Boothbay Harbor's Lara Tupper submitted a short story from her award-winning collection, Amphibians. 'Sarah [Parke, editor] wanted to focus on Maine character and resilience, and to me this means meeting hard circumstances with compassion and action. My short story, Glass, speaks to resilience. I've written about Maine in other ways, but this story seemed to meet Sarah's vision for what the anthology could be. I was thrilled when it was accepted and grateful to Leapfrog Press for allowing the story to be reprinted.'"
Read the article here. Thanks, Lisa Kristoff.
