The Lewisburg Literary Group, organizers of the Lewisburg Literary Festival, is excited to present two free Writers Workshops on Saturday, Nov. 23 in downtown Lewisburg. Both classes will take place in the Nick Rahall Room in the Greenbrier Valley Visitors Center. First, at 10 a.m. is “Searching for a Signal Amid the Noise: Deciphering Media and Messaging in the Modern Age” by Josh Baldwin, publisher of the Greenbrier Valley Quarterly. In “Searching for a Signal,” the workshop will provide a conversation about the state of media and its relationship to consumers, employing critical theory from the fields of postmodernism, post-colonialism and rhetoric. In an age of 24-hour news organizations, Twitter, blogging and other delivery mechanisms, modern journalism is quickly shifting both its purpose and function. This workshop seeks to explore the issues at stake for the public and how we, as consumers, can better identify the pitfalls of mass media. Participants need only to have an interest in our current state of media and come ready for a lively discussion. After lunch at 1 p.m., will be “How to Write a Memoir.” We are all custodians of personal memories, and we sometimes feel the urge to commit them to paper. But where do you start, and how do you go about writing something others will find entertaining and worthwhile? Lewisburg author Greg Johnson will explain how he went about crafting his 2011 memoir, “A Very Famous Social Worker,” and review the choices memoir writers face in telling their stories. The class will examine various elements of autobiographical writing, and discuss memoirs written by Homer Hickam, Jerry West and Jeanette Walls, recent headliners at the Lewisburg Literary Festival. Classes are free, but limited in size, so please call to reserve your space at 888-716-5082. The Greenbrier Valley Visitors Center is located at 200 West Washington Street in downtown Lewisburg. Complimentary refreshments will be served. The town will be decorated for the holidays in anticipation of Lewisburg’s Holiday Open House Event the following day on Sunday, Nov. 24, so it’s a perfect time of year to visit! The Lewisburg Literary Group is a nonprofit, all volunteer organization, which puts on the Lewisburg Literary Festival and Literary Events throughout the year. For updates follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lewisburgliteraryfestival.
