Skylight Books Public Reading for WriteGirl

Written by WriteGirl Mentee and Intern: Sharmin S., age 14

Skylight Bookstore, located on 1818 North Vermont, was the host for a WriteGirl public reading on Saturday, March 23rd. Many girls attended this wonderful event to hear each other recite their pieces. Girls took to the stage and spoke in front of many parents, passersby, and WriteGirl members, some of them doing a WriteGirl reading for the first time!

Along with the readings, every person in the room was handed a card with specific questions such as: “Where is your favorite place?” “What is your dog’s name?” “What would you take with you on a trip?” Then we were given about 3-5 minutes to answer our question. After the questions were answered and all the cards were collected, an impromptu story was created from the answers to the questions. The story was about a dog and a girl going to a museum in Syria; the dog packed with him a “daughter” and the girl packed nail polish. The story went on to talk about how they went there and why they chose a museum in Syria. This idea of impromptu speaking and storytelling was carried out throughout the evening.

I learned that a story can be written anywhere regardless of the stimulus, and that the birth of stories can take place in unconventional places. One WriteGirl mentee wrote her short story in a hospital bed. Environments can influence how a person writes a story; if you are surrounded by mourners of a tragic death, your work will usually integrate their feelings, movement, or even characters. Another reader in the WriteGirl workshop stated her story was born in a dark time, and that was very apparent in her piece where she lists all the obstacles in her life.

So, try jotting down your feelings or pick up a pencil in an unusual environment and write! One day you’ll see, like I did, that stories can take place anywhere and writing one can create a plethora of new options. So be smart and start writing, because your next work could become a bestselling novel!