Sisters Book Festival offers workshops

Sisters Book Festival, set for September 13-15, will offer a series of workshops with noted authors.

Notions of wealth: A generative writing workshop exploring poverty and creativity — Friday, September 13, 4 to 5:30 p.m.

Authors Tina Ontiveros and Chris/tina Vega both grew up in poverty. They will host a generative writing workshop exploring these themes and the economic impact of poverty on our writing practices, storytelling, and personal narratives.

In this 90-minute workshop, participants will engage with writing prompts and storytelling practices that encourage them to acknowledge and release stigmas associated with poverty, and encourage a reclamation of narratives of power, dignity, and alternative notions of wealth. Workshop participants can expect to leave with several writing “seeds” that can serve as the base for future, thoughtful writing in essay, poetry, memoir, and/or hybrid genres.

This workshop is intended to expand the lens with which we all view and discuss notions of poverty and wealth. All are welcome, regardless of where they fall on the economic spectrum or whether or not they have lived experiences of poverty.

Writing Workshop for Parents — Sunday, September 15, 9:30 to 11 a.m.

Publisher and poet Chris/tina Vega will guide participants through a writing session meant to rekindle the imagination, get participants writing, and explore the connections between our writing and parenting practices. Workshop activities will include an iteration of the literary game “Sugar, Porridge, Spoons,” guided writing prompts about the intersection of parenting and creativity, and free writing exercises.

Poetry of Belonging: A Workshop for the Poetry-Curious — Sunday, September 15, 3:30 to 5 p.m.

You belong to language, and language belongs to you. Do you have memories of trying to connect to old poems in school, but feeling confused and uninspired? Consider this your invitation from poet/singer-songwriter Beth Wood to think about poetry in a different way.

Poetry is everywhere! And poems can lead us to healing, preserve and convey stories, and help us process emotions while connecting with others. In this 90-minute interactive workshop, participants will engage in wordplay with writing exercises and games and share our work in a supportive space. All levels of writing experience are welcome.