A month or so ago, as I was putting the Fall Workshop Schedule together, I asked the amazing Scott Beal if he would teach a monster poetry workshop for us as part of the Week of Wild Things. He, quite excitedly, I might add, accepted. Alas, tragedy struck Scott’s family this week, and he will be unable to be at 826 tonight.
And so, quite accidentally, and even a little nervously, I will be teaching the Institute for Monster Studies. Or perhaps it’s more fair to say that the Downtowners will be teaching the Institute for Monster Studies, as I anxiously enlisted some of my dearest friends for the task at hand. Who are the Downtowners, you might ask? Think of us as an 826-super-group featuring myself (826’s program director), Jason DePasquale (co-creator of the robot store, Volunteer of the Month August 2006, Storytelling & Bookmaking artist, teacher of Dignifying the Doodle), Tyler Brubaker (robot-store all-star, Volunteer of the Month November 2007, kickball-team pitcher), and Dr. Sara Walker (robotier, kickball all-star, clinical psychologist). We’re not totally sure what we’re going to do tonight, but if it goes well, you’ll know, because every workshop schedule from here until the end of time will feature a workshop taught by the Downtowners. (I currently have a Be a Horrible Stand-Up Comic workshop brewing in my head. Details might be forthcoming.)
Week of Wild Things INDEED.
Monster-crafting with the illustrious Matthew Shlian tomorrow…