Welcome Back. Now Get Involved!

Posted by MS

The Butler MFA greeted the incoming class and welcomed back current students at our annual Welcome (Back) Party. This social gathering builds friendship within our writing community and also gives students a chance to hear from each other about the diverse ways to get involved in the Butler MFA community.

welcome back

The Butler MFA offers many opportunities for writers outside of classes. From first years to thesis candidates, all students are encouraged to get involved. Many successful authors agree the biggest advantage of an MFA degree is the community, and these experiences are designed to build a supportive writing community as well as enhance your writing education.

Like & Subscribe 

We have a Facebook page where you can see reminders of upcoming events, information about literary events and conferences, and news about current students and alumni. Also, subscribe to the blog by email (check the sidebar) so you will be up-to-date on all the latest news and opportunities.

Attend Literary Events

One of the nation’s best reading series, the Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writers Series regularly hosts public readings and Q & A sessions with some of the most influential people in contemporary literature. The program offers an average of 14 events each year, all of which are free.

In addition to the VWS series, the MFA-run conversations@efroymson  series offers a diverse lineup of niche authors and interactive workshops.

Read for Booth

Booth is Butler’s award-winning literary magazine. Readers and editors are all MFA students. Reading for a literary magazine has multiple benefits: improving your own writing, understanding how publishing works, and building a community. Plus there’s free food! Email Rob Stapleton for more information.

Be a Writing in the Schools Mentor

Writing In The Schools (WITS) is the Jefferson Award-winning partnership between the MFA program and Indianapolis Public Schools that strives to foster the creativity of young writers through mentorship. This rewarding opportunity is highly recommended by past mentors as a way to gain teaching experience, build meaningful relationships in our community, and positively impact a young person’s life. Visit the WITS website for more information.

Volunteer for a Wellness Writing Group

The Butler MFA believes the Indianapolis community can benefit from the proven powers of creative writing. The Wellness writing initiative trains MFA students to lead therapeutic writing groups at diverse locations. This semester, groups are planned for Indiana Women’s Prison, Indiana Youth Group, Eskenazi Hospital, and American Village Senior Home. To get involved in this outreach, contact Hilene Flanzbaum.

Poetry Lunch Hours

Part of the conversation@effroymson series, these bimonthly casual meetings are a great way to get involved in your MFA writing community and have meaningful poetry discussion. Led by Mindy Dunn, the poetry discussions are low-pressure, inclusive, and open to poetry readers of all levels. Because Mindy emails a short selection of poems directly to those who RSVP and provides lunch, it has never been easier to discuss poetry. Come see why the PLH continues to grow each year. See the schedule here or email Mindy for more information.

Attend Dialogue

Looking for a completely fun way to discuss your writing away from the formal workshop atmosphere? Or just looking to eat free food and laugh with some of the most entertaining members of the MFA community? Come to Dialogue. Planned by Tristan Durst, Dialogue is a student-only monthly gathering that will leave you inspired, energized, and with sore abs from laughing. Check out the Facebook page or email Tristan for more information.

Introduce yourself to Mindy

The Butler MFA has the best administrator in the world. Her goal is to make your MFA experience satisfying.  Many positions, both paid and volunteer, are available to MFA students at Butler. Some examples include writing camp mentors, bridge workshop leaders, teaching fellows, and publishing editors. Meet with Mindy to let her know your interests and talents so she can connect you and help you gain experience to meet your goals.

September Literary Events

Posted by MS

 Events at Butler

 9/2 – Poetry Lunch Hour
ECCW, 12:30 PM

The popular poetry discussion group led by Butler MFA administrator, Mindy Dunn, is back for more fun, insightful poetry discussions. Open to all Butler students, faculty, and staff, these lunches are a great opportunity to meet new people and have passionate and intelligent conversation about poetry. A selection of poetry is emailed to all who RSVP with at least 24 hours’ notice, so no book purchase is necessary to participate. You do not need to have any experience studying poetry to participate. Lunch is also provided! The semester opens with selections by Yusef Komunyakaa, the first author  in the 2016 Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writers Series. Please RSVP to Mindy.

 9/3 & 9/17 – Butler Poetry Group
ECCW, 3:30 – 5:00 PM

Poetry MFA students, alums & brave prose writers all welcome. We discuss a poem that we admire, spend some time on a writing prompt, and then informally workshop poems by anyone who brought copies. Contact Tracy for more information.

 9/7, 9/14, 9/21, 9/29 – Write Group
ECCW, 11:00 AM

The #1 rule all successful writers follow? They write. Join your writing community for one hour of writing. No Facebook, no talking, lots of coffee, and sometimes bacon. Email Natalie if you have questions.

9/7 – Book Party with Chris Forhan 
ECCW, 7:00 PM

Reading and remarks by our own Chris Forhan, Associate Professor of English and MFA poetry faculty, celebrating the release of his new memoir, My Father Before Me. Books will be available for sale and signing courtesy of the Butler bookstore.

Description from Amazon:

“An award-winning poet offers a multi-generational portrait of an American family—weaving together the lives of his ancestors, his parents, and his own coming of age in the 60s and 70s in the wake of his father’s suicide, in this superbly written, “fiercely honest” (Nick Flynn) memoir.”

Chris Forhan is also the author of three books of poetry: Black Leapt In; The Actual Moon, The Actual Stars; and Forgive Us Our Happiness.

9/9 – Dialogue the First
ECCW, 6:00-10:00 PM

Join fellow MFA students for food, festivities, discussion, laughs, and, okay, some casual workshopping. Bring a few pages you’d like to read aloud for feedback, or just bring your beverage of choice and enjoy the most wonderful time of the month. (Depending on the month! If it were October, Dialogue would rank, like, third. Tops.) Email Tristan for questions and RSVP on the Facebook page.

9/13 – Yusef Komunyakaa
Atherton Union, Reilly Room, 7:30 PM


Yusef-KomunyakaaPulitzer prize-winning poet Komunyakaa kicks off the 2016 Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writing Series with a public reading followed by a brief Q & A. Komunyakaa began writing poetry in 1973. His first book of poems, Dedications & Other Darkhorses, was published in 1977, followed by Lost in the Bonewheel Factory in 1979.

Since then, he has published several books of poems, including The Emperor of Water Clocks, The Chameleon Couch, Warhorses, and Neon Vernacular: New & Selected Poems 1977-1989 (Wesleyan University Press, 1994), for which he received the Pulitzer Prize and the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award.

9/23 – Poetry Lunch Hour
ECCW, 12:30 PM

Join Mindy Dunn for an insightful and passionate discussion of poetry over a free lunch. All levels of poetry readers are welcome and appreciated. A selection of poetry is emailed to all who RSVP with at least 24 hours’ notice, so no book purchase is necessary to participate. The featured poet of this discussion will be determined from input and recommendations taken at the first PLH. Please email Mindy to RSVP.

9/27 – Hanya Yanagihara
Schrott Center for the Arts, 7:30 PM


Yanagihara author picThe Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writers Series presents best-selling novelist Hanya Yanagihara. After a public reading, she will answer questions from the audience. Yanagihara is the author of The People in the Trees and A Little Life, which was shortlisted for the 2015 Man Booker Prize and was a National Book Award finalist. She previously worked as an editor-at-large for Conde Nast Traveler.

 

Events in Indy

Descriptions and details are taken from event websites. 

9/1 – James Whitcomb Riley Home Poetry Series: Karen Kovacik
Billie Lou Wood Visitor Center, 6:30-7:15 PM

Indiana Poet Laureate Karen Kovacik will perform a poem by Hoosier bard James Whitcomb Riley and a number of her own–all memorized, if the fates allow.

9/7 – Ross Gay Reading
Depauw University, 7:30 PM

Ross Gay is the author of Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2015), winner of the Kingsley Tufts Award and a finalist for the National Book Award and the National Books Critics Circle Award; Bringing the Shovel Down (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2011); and Against Which (Cavankerry Press, 2006). He is also the co-author of the chapbooks Lace and Pyrite: Letters from Two Gardens (with Aimee Nezhukumatathil) and River (with Richard Wehrenberg, Jr.).

9/11 – Creative Writing Series
Tube Factory artspace, 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM

At September’s Creative Writing Workshop session we will take a close look at our own natural writing voice and experiment with new ways to express ourselves! Creative voice is the unique personality of a writing piece. By understanding how our voice shapes our writing we ensure we create cohesive and engaging works.

This event is free and open to the public . All ages and writing levels are welcome to join. Snacks will be provided, coffee and tea will be available for a donation.

9/23 – Akbar IV featuring Lili Wright, Chris Speckman, & Special Guest
Bent Rail Brewery, 7:00 PM

Join the Indy literary community for this hotly-criticized and officially disavowed reading series. The Akbar is cooler than your girlfriend’s other boyfriend. It walks everywhere because it trashed its Harley on a coke bender in Pasadena. Once, high on mescaline, this reading series said you were its best friend, and you were so ready to believe. Three readers across genres will delight the crowd for 30 minutes total. Lili Wright: Novelist, wild-eyed soothsayer; Chris Speckman: Poet, suspected vegan; and a Top Secret Special Guest. There WILL be a special guest. NO, we cannot say who it is. All we can say is it’s NOT Liam Hemsworth, star of The Hunger Games. The night includes impossible trivia, a chance to win free beer, and lots of time to consort with friends and strangers.

9/26 – 9/30 – Banned Books Week
Mass Ave, 5:30 PM

Join us as we transform the Vonnegut Library into a cozy salon where community members can gather to ask big questions about art, citizenship and humanity. This year, Banned Books Week is September 26-September 30, and we are thrilled to welcome National Book Award winner, Young People’s Poet Laureate, and often-banned author Jacqueline Woodson to Indiana in partnership with DePauw University.

A “Secretary of the Future” panel discussion led by NPR’s David Brancaccio will feature Nanette Vonnegut, Aman Brar, Terrian Barnes, Sam Van Aken, and Jason Kelly. We’re also teaming up with local and national partners like the ACLU, Gen Con, and the IU McKinney School of Law to host conversations and activities that will reach a diverse audience and encourage dialogue.

Artist & author Josh Johnson will spend the week in our storefront museum window, trapped behind a “prison” wall constructed of banned books. During his time in the Vonnegut Library, Josh will write and illustrate a children’s book from start to finish.

9/26 – Literary Pub Crawl
Mass Ave, 5:30 PM

Indiana has a great literary history, and we’re excited to share that with you (as well as a drink or two) and also help out a great organization! Sarah Layden, author of Trip Through Your Wires, will be at our first stop to talk to us about her work, possibly do a reading, and honestly say anything into the microphone that she’d like. Prizes will be given out throughout the night. All proceeds benefit Indy Reads to help promote literacy in central Indiana.

9/28 – Happy Hour for Writers
Hop Cat, 5:30-6:30 PM

The Indiana Writers Center is hosting a happy hour for writers on September 28th from 5:30-6:30 at Hopcat in Broad Ripple (6280 N College Ave #700, Indianapolis, IN 46220)! Take a break from your writing to meet and mingle with other writers. All writers ages 21+ are welcome. What constitutes a writer? If you think you are, you are. Not sure what happens at a happy hour? You buy your own food and beverages – we provide the networking opportunity. Local brews are $3.50 and burgers are half off until 6:00. Join us!

9/30 – Lili Wright Book Reading and Signing 
Half Priced Books, 6:00-9:00 PM

Lili Wright will read from her new novel, Dancing with the Tiger, and sign books! Stop by to learn about masked tigers, looted treasures, and how one night class in Spanish led to a novel.

Description from Amazon:

“Taut, acidly witty, menacingly erotic, and often absolutely terrifying: this is a literary thriller of propulsive force that introduces a powerful storyteller.

“It begins when a meth-addicted grave robber unearths the death mask of Montezuma, setting off a violent struggle for its possession. There is the drug lord who employs him, who would kill for that mask. There is the expat American collector, sinister and possibly mad. There is the greatly respected curator, who for a fee will provide provenances for his country’s looted artifacts, and his long-suffering housekeeper, a deeply religious lesbian in a culture of machismo, who despises her patron. And there is the looter himself, who has stolen the mask and is now running for his life.”

Lili Wright is a professor in creative writing at Depauw University, an adjunct professor at the Butler MFA, and the author of Learning to Float, a travel memoir.