Writers Workshop "who the hell do we think we are"
Artist Spotlight: The Writers Workshop The Writers Workshop was founded by writers, and good friends, Erik Matsunaga and Edren Sumagaysay. Edren is a longtime friend of FilAm ARTS and the Festival; among many other facets of his talent (actor, spoken word artist) he was the winner of the 2nd Annual FPAC poetry slam, where he took first place amongst 15 poets/friends/competitors.
The Writers Workshop started about ten years ago, as a “solution to [seemingly, initially] aimless writing that was created on blank sheets of butcher paper that covered the tables at a local favorite hangout, Weiland’s Bar in Little Tokyo. (It is a tradition to assemble at Weiland’s after every Tuesday Night at the Café, a weekly open mic event that takes place in the courtyard of East West Players Theatre.) Weiland’s served as their makeshift salon, where Edren and Erik would converse about their disappointment over the lack of good writing around them. “We thought we could write better than everyone else,” Edren mused in a playfully ambiguous manner, which makes one wonder how serious is he really being with that statement.
It is not an uncommon observation by writers, that with the rise of online social networking, there has also been a decline in “writing as an art” and the public reading literature. Edren lamented over the excess of non-fiction self-help books on bookstore shelves, and the deficit of “good literature…the neo-coffeehouse culture [inadvertently] created a book culture with no books.”
The Writers Workshop began in a live setting, in which Erik, Edren and a handful of others would meet and discuss what their thoughts of what makes good writing, and “just write.” When Erik moved to Chicago, the correspondence switched to email. In 2006, the spike in online vanity press (ie., blogs) they took it upon themselves, to rise to the responsibility of doing their part in “making the art of writing better,” as Edren puts it. “We were just talkers. Now was the time to do it.”
October 2007 marked the beginning of the Writers Workshop in its current form.
The main rule is: You must write everyday, even if it sucks.
Edren notes, “just as an athlete trains and exercises to gain excellence, so must a writer. The practice of writing everyday will help the writer hone their skills and get disciplined to write and create.” At first it was going to be just Erik and Edren writing to each other, as they had agreed to write a novel, chapter by chapter, publicly. However, others, their peers, asked to join as well. They started out with about 6 people for a 3-month session – each writer must write everyday for one hour, and then share their work with the group, who would in turn provide feedback to the writer. This built community and a positive energy within the group. “Folks are running the marathon with you.”
Currently there are three sessions in motion, focusing on the genres of novels, poetry, and correspondences. The WW started with its two founders, then 6 writers, and now over 50 consistent writers across the country participate. There are about 50 others who contribute occasionally. Ethnically, the bulk of the writers are Asian American, and most reside in Los Angeles, but also reside in Chicago, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Detroit and Texas.
Edren sees this as the “ultimate follow-through” to those conversations that started at Weiland’s – “the meeting of the internet and the tradition of writing as an art.”
February 9th marked another cornerstone for the Writers Workshop – the publishing of their first book – who the hell do we think we are – which will be available online via PDF and in the traditional book form.
One of the featured artists in this premiere volume is Elaine Dolalas, former FPAC co-director and long-time FilAm ARTS supporter. On describing her featured work, “Laughing Through Tears”:
“when the writers workshop came up i decided to write my story and what emerged was a story about a girl in college who deals with her mother’s stroke and the hilarity that ensues. just kidding about the hilarity. it is about a girl in college who deals with her mother’s stroke. the writing process was cathartic for me because when i was in my 5th year at UCI my mom had a massive stroke and i never actually dealt with the trauma of it all. writing ‘Laughing Through Tears’ let me deal with all the issues i had set aside.”
Elaine was initially apprehensive about joining the Writers Workshop, because of the potential rigor of committing to writing a minimum of one hour everyday, adding on to her already full roster of daily life tasks, which included work and graduate studies. However with a encouragement from Edren and the professor of her ethnography class, she joined the Writers Workshop in October 2007, and is still writing.
The Writers Workshop, which started out as an idea between friends who loved to write and tell stories, took action to combat their disappointment in the decline in the art of writing. By setting up a simple rule – “write for one hour a day” – a community of writers has emerged. And it doesn’t stop here; the WW has developed a business plan to grow financially as well. By artists, for artists, and for our community.
For more information on the Writers Workshop, visit www.theundeniables.org
