Writer in the Window

This is a new experience. I’m writing from the window Thursday morning at Appletree Books in the Cedar Fairmount neighborhood of Cleveland Heights. To my right are shelves full of books. To my left is the traffic on Cedar Road, including foot traffic.

I’m doing this as part of Literary Cleveland’s Writer in the Window program. The organization asked members to take two-hour shifts writing in the front windows during November to celebrate NaNoWriMo. That’s National Novel Writing Month, when writers are challenged to write a novel in 30 days.

I’m not planning to write a novel, but who knows what inspiration might come from working in the window? You could call this a novel experience, though. Many of my workplaces haven’t even had windows.

Literary Cleveland is a nonprofit organization for writers and readers. I joined last year, and I have met wonderful people and attended quite a few free classes and the occasional mixer. A free six-month class on personal-essay writing led to the creation of a writers group that meets once a month. Hello, Real Writers!

The number of programs Lit Cleveland offers astounds me, particularly the number of free programs. I have attended classes covering subjects ranging from memoir writing to tax tips for freelancers. Memberships support the organization, and members get benefits including discounts on classes that have a fee and free admission to the mixers.

One of my favorites is the annual Cleveland Inkubator, a week of classes, readings and performances that concludes with the free all-day Cleveland Inkubator conference and book fair at Cleveland Public Library’s downtown branch. The links here are to last year’s Inkubator, but they give you an idea of what the week includes. I highly recommend attending if you like to read or write.

If you’re reading this post this morning, consider stopping by to see me at Appletree Books. I’ll be in the window again today from 10 a.m. until noon.