Blog: Author: Jean Slavkovsky

National Novel Writing Month!

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

What is NaNoWriMo?
National Novel Writing Month began in 1999 as a daunting but straightforward challenge: to write 50,000 words of a novel during the thirty days of November. Now, each year on November 1, hundreds of thousands of people around the world begin to write, determined to end the month with 50,000 words of a brand-new novel. Learn more at NaNoWriMo.org.

Monday, October 28th 7PM NaNoWriMo Kickoff: Learn about National Novel Writing Month and meet other Wrimos. Hear from others who have successfully completed novels through NaNoWriMo.

Thursday, November 14th 6:30-8:30PM Come Write-In: Work on your novel among other Wrimos. Snacks provided.

Monday, November 25th 6:30-8:30PM Come Write-In: The Final Push: There are only a few days left to finish your novel! Join other Wrimos to meet your goal. Snacks provided.

Sponsored by The Malden Writers’ Collaborative and The Friends of the Malden Public Library.

Author Talk with Jason Rubin
Thursday, October 24th 7PM

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

Local author, Jason M. Rubin will discuss his new novel, King of Kings, which brings to life the meeting of (and romance between!) King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. Based primarily on the Ethiopian tradition–but also weaving in Jewish, Christian, and other sources–the wise and powerful rulers are drawn together and eventually have a son, Menelik, who is placed in the unique position of being qualified to inherit two thrones. Which will he choose?

King of Kings has been published along with an updated version of Jason’s first novel–The Grave and the Gay (2012), based on a 17th-century English folk ballad–in a single volume under the title Ancient Tales Newly Told.

Books will be available for sale and signing. $15 cash/check.
Refreshments are sponsored by the Friends of the Malden Public Library.

Thursday, September 26th 7PM Informational Session for
The Malden Writers’ Collaborative

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

Are you a local writer?
Are you interested in joining a collaborative community of committed writers?
Are you looking for people to workshop your writing and are you committed to doing the same for others?
Are you open-minded, respectful, and encouraging to fellow writers and to the writing process?

The Malden Writers’ Collaborative meets the first and third Thursday of each month from 7-8:30PM at the Malden Public Library.

New members must attend this informational session to join for the 2019-2020 season. The group will then be closed until Fall 2020.

Email facilitator Chris Hickey at maldenwriters@gmail.com with any questions about The Malden Writers’ Collaborative. You can also follow the group on twitter: @maldenwriters.

Sail Away!: Learn the Art of Pastels with Gregory Maichack
Thursday, June 13th 6-8PM

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

Learn the art of pastels with artist Gregory Maichack in this adult art workshop. Call 781-324-0218 to sign up. Space is limited.

Imagine using sailboat references and Maichack’s pastel version of Monet’s Impressionist painting,“Sailboat at Le Petit-Gennevilliers,” to create your own pastel painting. In this new, highly researched two-hour workshop, you will freely experiment with hundreds of the artist’s professional grade pastels, pastel
pencils, and pastel paper, creating a painting in your own style, realistic or Impressionistic, in this fun pastel painting workshop.

Gregory Maichack is a seasoned pro at teaching pastel techniques, as recognized by the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) Boston; Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC), and 1,030 libraries and local cultural councils. He guides participants through the process with everything they need to know to pastel paint any subject. Expressive and fun, you will quickly learn how easy and direct pastel painting is and as always, all will keep their pastel painting.

This event is generously sponsored by the Malden Cultural Council and the Friends of the Malden Public Library.

Thursday, April 25 7PM Author Talk with Jack Kelly III & Paul Hammersley

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

Sharp Needle is an autobiographical account of Jack Kelly’s tragic spiral into heroin addiction, recovery and running for office, in the cutthroat world of Boston Politics. After sustaining a significant shoulder injury Jack was prescribed opiate pain meds and became addicted. Quickly, Jack descended into the sordid life of heroin that ultimately lead to homelessness and the loss of his family. But at the age of 22, Jack found recovery and battled his way back.

Jack has advised and served on various boards for public health policy and substance use disorder. He founded a mobile app tech startup, connecting people in recovery to one another from their phones. Jack remains a vocal leader on issues surrounding addiction and recovery.

Paul Hammersley, Malden’s Addiction Recovery Resource Specialist, serves to help residents navigate the treatment system, promote recovery, help to remove barriers, connect people with recovery support services and also encourage hope, optimism and promote healthy living.
Paul is a recovery and empowerment specialist and is also a Certified Addiction Recovery Coach who guides people through the process while supporting recovery based choices, goals, and decisions.

Books will be available for purchase.
This event is free and open to the public.
Call the library at 781-324-0218 with any questions.

Author Talk with Hester Fox, Thursday, April 11, 7PM

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

Join us on Thursday, April 11th at 7 PM for a reading, Q&A, and signing by Hester Fox, author of The Witch of Willow Hall. Books will be available for purchase.

“In the wake of a scandal, the Montrose family and their three daughters—Catherine, Lydia, and Emeline—flee Boston for their new country home, Willow Hall. The estate seems sleepy and idyllic. But a subtle menace creeps into the atmosphere, remnants of a dark history that call to Lydia, and to the youngest, Emeline.

All three daughters will be irrevocably changed by what follows, but none more than Lydia, who must draw on a power she never knew she possessed if she wants to protect those she loves. For Willow Hall’s secrets will rise, in the end…”

Hester Fox: “When not writing and painting, Hester works in the museum field as a collections maintenance technician. This job has taken her from historic houses to fine art museums, where she has the privilege of cleaning and caring for collections that range from paintings by old masters, to ancient artifacts, to early American furniture. She has a master’s degree in historical archaeology, as well as a background in Medieval studies and art history. Hester lives outside of Boston with her husband.” (HesterFox.com)

BOOK LAUNCH! “The Darkness” by Matt Brennan Thursday, October 25, 2018 7PM

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

Join us for the launch of “The Darkness” by Matt Brennan, long-time member of the Malden Writers’ Collaborative on Thursday, October 25th at 7 p.m.

Book Synopsis: “On the surface, Dorian Whitney seems like any other boy his age. He hangs out with his friends whenever he can, constantly complains about his daily chores around the house, and stays up late almost every night playing video games.

But in reality, he’s so different, there isn’t even a category to put him in.

In the 2015 Tablo.io NaNoWriMo winner,  a virus decimates the entire planet’s human population. No treatment or vaccine can be found, so contraction—meant death.

Humanity is forced to seek refuge in hermetically sealed self-sustaining bunkers, commonly referred to as ‘Biospheres’. The disease, however, remains active and continues to spread, despite the survivor’s best intentions and inexhaustible precautions. It is therefore commonplace for connections to become broken. The people of the network begin to call the silence that inevitably comes at the end of the line: The Darkness.”

Matt Brennan is a six-year member of the Malden Writing Collaborative and besides winning the 2015 NaNoWriMo Novel writing contest at Tablo.io has published a short story entitled The Glass Slipper Entanglement in the literary magazine eFiction India. A story he wrote in response to a writing prompt he received as a member of the collaborative.

Books will be available for purchase for $15, cash.

Thursday, October 4th 7PM
Information Session for
The Malden Writers’ Collaborative

Posted on by Jean Slavkovsky

Are you a local writer?
Are you interested in joining a collaborative community of committed writers?
Are you looking for people to workshop your writing and are you committed to doing the same for others?
Are you open-minded, respectful, and encouraging to fellow writers and to the writing process?

The Malden Writers’ Collaborative will host their Informational Session on Thursday, October 4th at 7PM in the Maccario Room. Here we will give go over group expectations, group etiquette, hear first-hand experiences from previous season members, and answer any questions.

At the end of this session interested parties will sign up for the 2018-2019 season. The group meets the first and third Thursday of the month, 7-8:30PM, October-May, culminating in a Public Reading.
You must attend the Information Session in order to sign up– the group will then be closed to additional members until the 2019-2020 season.