
Founded in 2009, Mighty Writers offers free programs to Philadelphia kids, ages 7 to 17, to boost their writing skills. The idea is that better writing means clearer thinking, which then leads to smart decisions and long-term success, both in school and in life. Every year, more than 300 of the city’s best creative minds teach and mentor some 2,000 children and teens at Mighty Writers’ four locations.
Now Mighty Writers West, the branch at 39th Street and Lancaster Avenue in West Philly, has become the home for All But True, an author reading series for grownups. Begun in 2011 at Musehouse in Chestnut Hill, the series brings in published fiction writers to present their works. Each event features two authors who do short readings and then discuss their books with the audience. The Working Writers Group, which organizes and hosts the series, hopes that hearing and meeting successful authors will inspire both adults and teens to keep writing and imagining.
The first event in the season—Friday, October 14, at 7:00—offers two novels of sibling conflict and loyalty. In Stephanie Feldman’s The Angel of Losses, sisters Marjorie and Holly are best friends—until Holly converts to a mysterious sect and Marjorie must save her from disaster. Tom Mendicino’s The Boys from Eighth and Carpenter follows two South Philly brothers from the 1960s to 2008—until one gets in trouble and the other comes to the rescue.
Authors Feldman and Mendicino will be available after the reading to autograph copies for interested readers and aspiring writers.
All events in the All But True series are free and open to the public. Previous readers have numbered more than 50, from the Philadelphia area and elsewhere, including such well-known authors as Robin Black, Ken Kalfus, Beth Kephart, Diane McKinney-Whetstone, Liz Moore, Daniel Torday, and Lisa Zeidner.
Here's a flyer for the October 14 reading:
Now Mighty Writers West, the branch at 39th Street and Lancaster Avenue in West Philly, has become the home for All But True, an author reading series for grownups. Begun in 2011 at Musehouse in Chestnut Hill, the series brings in published fiction writers to present their works. Each event features two authors who do short readings and then discuss their books with the audience. The Working Writers Group, which organizes and hosts the series, hopes that hearing and meeting successful authors will inspire both adults and teens to keep writing and imagining.
The first event in the season—Friday, October 14, at 7:00—offers two novels of sibling conflict and loyalty. In Stephanie Feldman’s The Angel of Losses, sisters Marjorie and Holly are best friends—until Holly converts to a mysterious sect and Marjorie must save her from disaster. Tom Mendicino’s The Boys from Eighth and Carpenter follows two South Philly brothers from the 1960s to 2008—until one gets in trouble and the other comes to the rescue.
Authors Feldman and Mendicino will be available after the reading to autograph copies for interested readers and aspiring writers.
All events in the All But True series are free and open to the public. Previous readers have numbered more than 50, from the Philadelphia area and elsewhere, including such well-known authors as Robin Black, Ken Kalfus, Beth Kephart, Diane McKinney-Whetstone, Liz Moore, Daniel Torday, and Lisa Zeidner.
Here's a flyer for the October 14 reading: