Writers Working

MOVING! EVERYTHING MUST GO!

2006-10-06T12:54:00.000-07:00

WEEOOWEEOOOWEEOOOWEEOOOWEEOOO

This site is officially moving.

Please go to www.agman.com for the new Writers Working website.

WEEOOWEEOOOWEEOOOWEEOOOWEEOOO

Sept 24 Show, 7pm (NOTE CHANGED DAY!)

2006-09-08T14:51:00.000-07:00

The fall has collapsed upon us and as our intrepid fellow city dwellers no longer find succor in sand dunes or blueberry flavored shards of ice because the chill of our poorly tilted hemisphere forces them (without too much reluctance, let's be honest) out of their toe-crevice-destroying flip-flops and into their regulation black leather jackets and jack boots, so too do we, writers working, return to the early dark of Sunday nights and extremely unwiedly sentence structure. Oh summer, where have you gone with my pithiness?

But enough overloaded German-esque sentences with verbs at the end buried. Our writers this month are AMAZING! Writer's Working is at the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street September 24th 7:00pm.

Our list of sharp tools this month are:
Rob Lathan
Bob Hughes
DC Pierson
Deanna Fleysher
Jen Nails
David Silverman

p.s. If you are curious about the image this month, read my bio all the way at the end of this post.

Rob Lathan is a comedy writer and performer who has appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Best Week Ever, and oddly (or amazingly) enough, The Today Show. He is also the proud owner of his very own website, www.roblathan.com. Pretty cool, right?

Robert J. Hughes is the author of the novel, "Late and Soon," published last year, and is a reporter at The Wall Street Journal, where he covers culture and the arts. He is at work on his next novel, "Seven Sisters," a play about Dorothy Kilgallen's final days, and a story for the forthcoming collection, "Bronx Noir."

Deanna Fleysher writes, performs, teaches, goes to movies by herself, and feels very tenderly about eggplant sandwiches which have been left out in the rain, as was the one in this photograph. She has created improvisational theater shows which blend comedy with sex and interpretative dance, at the PIT and the Magnet theaters. She teaches English and Theater to and runs a book club for businesswomen. She no longer goes to Burning Man. Her first novel, Guns for Girls was rejected by more than one publisher for "too much bad language."

DC Pierson is a senior at New York University, where he studies writing for television. He makes comedy videos for the Internet with a group called DERRICK (www.derrickcomedy.com). DERRICK's show "Outtakes" happens the last Monday of every month at the UCB Theater. The group is currently developing a show for Comedy Central. DC publishes poems, stories, and un-asked-for opinions at his website, dcpierson.com.

Jen Nails (the much beloved) is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She teaches writing and performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com) and has written for the Oxygen Network and SELF Magazine. She will be reading from her young adult book in progress, Beside Mexico, which is based on her award winning solo play, Lylice, which she's performed at theater festivals around the world.

David Silverman is the author of the forthcoming book from Softskull PressTypo: The Last American Typesetter or How I Made and Lost $4 Million (An Entrepreneur's Education). The photo at the top of this post is my mother's art. She was a survivor of the holocaust, but never told me what had happened to her. I just thought she was my annoying mom for never letting me join the boy scouts. I never really knew her. What I do know is that she made a lot of art, like these children on horses that would go onto carousels that she made out of clay. For more of her amazing art go here, and yes, she made all the stuff you see at this link.

August 27, 7pm (NOTE THE CHANGED TIME!)

2006-08-19T15:10:00.000-07:00

My father liked to go to the hardware store and ogle the latest torque wrenches, I like to go to J&R and eye the most recent external hard drives. We are both geeks in our times. But what about cavemen? What did they do? "Ooog, look, cave down hill has new inclined plane. Very inclined." Eh?

Or, think about this: August's Writer's Working at the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street August 27th 7:00pm.

Our list of sharp tools this month are:
Carolyn MacCullough
Wendy Giman
Joe Fiorillo
Jen Nails
David Silverman

Carolyn MacCullough has lived in New York City for several years now. Besides writing angst-filled young adult novels, she also teaches creative writing at various places around the city. In her spare time she loves to cook, garden (okay, that really means water her plants on the fire escape) and pose in front of stained glass windows (preferably belonging to churches in Europe). She is the author of Falling Through Darkness and Stealing Henry. Her third novel, Drawing the Ocean, is due out this October.

Wendy Giman is a native New Yorker and a writer. “Cooking in Hell” is a true story.

Joe Fiorillo is a recluse who has not been outside in over four years. Due to various ailments, he has been clinically determined "unemployable" in any conventional sense of the word. Among his leisure activities are talking to telemarketers and sitting in a corner weeping quietly. He will be reading from a short play about seduction on a train. He's originally from South Jersey.

Jen Nails (the much beloved) is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She teaches writing and performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com) and has written for the Oxygen Network and SELF Magazine. She will be reading from her young adult book in progress, Beside Mexico, which is based on her award winning solo play, Lylice, which she's performed at theater festivals around the world.

David Silverman as the author of the forthcoming book from Softskull PressTypo: The Last American Typesetter or How I Made and Lost $4 Million (An Entrepreneur's Education) is most proud of the fact that he has learned how to spell entrepreneur, or at least throw down enough letters to make it look that way.

July 24, Monday, 8:30 pm, Fiesta Deck

2006-07-12T11:50:00.000-07:00

Zidane, the Arabian Frenchman, who tried to make that idea sound less contradictory than "environmentally friendly SUV," was redcarded off ten minutes from the end of his career. On the one hand, his spontaneous headbutt of the Italian made him appear to be the brutish dark-skinned terrorist that the soccer hooligans called him. Did it, the media wondered, destroy the image he triumphed of a Europe that wasn't still a tribal backwater of us versus them? The truth was, however, Zidane had simply had too much abuse. The endless racial slurs on the pitch have been talked about and now even Zidane's mother has asked for Materazzi's manhood on a platter (and she didn't use the word "manhood"). That is news fit for the front pages of the sport section, but less mentioned--relegated to a sidebar in the international news--is that after the match swastikas were smeared on Jewish graveyards by ecstatic Italian football supporters. How does World Cup triumph, French-Arabs relations, or even Italian national pride turn into rehashing of Nazism, which was supposedly not even Italian? And what would have happend in Paris had France won? These are the kinds of question I am left to wonder about because on TV all I see is that famous bald head smacking over and over into the chest of Materazzi. TV, as usual, reminds me what is important.

But enough of my madness. The important thing is July's Writer's Working at the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street July 24th 8:30pm!

One of these readers is not like the others. One of these readers is not the same:
Hall Powell
Tina Lee
Micaela Blei
Jen Nails
David Silverman

Tina Lee is a writer and actress living in New York. Her comic one-person shows have been featured at the NuYorican Poets Café, HERE Theater, BBC Radio, WNET-PBS, the Kitchen Theatre, and The Korea Society, and her fiction in the River City Journal. She got her BA from Yale and her MFA in Fiction Writing from Sarah Lawrence College. With any luck, she will finish her screenplay so Fluid Motion Theater & Film Company can get started producing. She is currently obsessed with Grey's Anatomy, 24, and tiny fake food.

Hall Powell is a screenwriter who has written for film and TV, including Law & Order and Criminal Intent. He studied philosophy with utopian Marxist Ernst Bloch at the University of Tubingen in Germany, and began his career in theater and film as an assistant director, working for Alan Schneider and Roman Polanski. His most screenplay Rocco was written and produced in Italy.

Micaela BleiMicaela Blei has been a teacher of smaller kids for 6 years. She lives in Brooklyn, in a small apartment with a really cool Murphy bed, just like a private detective. She wrote and performed a solo show for kids, "City of Islands," directed by Jen Nails, at the PIT and Tank theaters. Micaela will be reading something that she wrote and it will feature either librarians or the Caribbean. She hasn't decided yet.

Jen Nails (the much beloved) is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She teaches writing and performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com) and has written for the Oxygen Network and SELF Magazine. She will be reading from her young adult book in progress, Beside Mexico, which is based on her award winning solo play, Lylice, which she's performed at theater festivals around the world.

David Silverman as the author of the forthcoming book from Softskull PressTypo: How I Made and Lost Millions is busy trying to hire a PR firm. He hasn't had this much trouble getting someone to take his money since he tried to get a tire changed in Iowa. (Real men, you see, don't need to pay someone else to do something they should know how to do. As for New York PR firms, they just don't find David's cash green enough. Now if he were Paris Hilton--with 6 minute ABs--and a reality TV show contestant who didn't get voted off--well then...)

June 26th Show: Bite Me (That Tickles)

2006-06-13T10:46:00.000-07:00

My girlfriend once had an acting teacher who told her to "smell the smells," "hear the sounds," and, yes, "feel the feelings." I'm sorry, but that just isn't right. If you can't use parallel construction correctly, you shouldn't be speaking at all. Just bite your tongue hard and mouth the sharp pain of grammatical correctness.

But enough of that. The important thing is June's Writer's Working at the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street June 26th 8:30pm! It is a fact that the doors open at 8:15.

The raven will cry five times in the night this month. Once each for:
Jane Borden
Saara Dutton
Jen Nails
Laura Buchholz
David Silverman

Jane Borden is an editor at Time Out New York. Her work has appeared on Saturday Night Live, in the New York Times Magazine and in one of those ubiquitous talking-heads shows on VH1. Jane will read a story about the limits of shame, which may or may not involve Steven Tyler.

Saara arrived in New York a few years ago with the dream of becoming a glamorous yet respected author: a weird hybrid of Jackie Collins and Philip Roth, graciously accepting Pulitzers while wearing leopard print heels. However, although her work has appeared in Salon, Bust and The New York Times, Saara spends no time accepting Pulitzers and far too much time watching Columbo reruns while wondering if it's safe to eat cheese in the fridge that is two days past the sell-by date. She plans on reading a story about being "certified" as an exotic dancer at the Penthouse Executive Club.

Laura Buchholz is a writer and editor, and one of those people whomysteriously "works from home." Which just means that she pays for her own health insurance. Laura contributes to the enduring radio show A Prairie Home Companion, and is working on some other things. She's from Wisconsin, and now lives in Park Slope.

Jen Nails (the much beloved) is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She teaches writing and performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com) and has written for the Oxygen Network and SELF Magazine. She will be reading from her young adult book in progress, Beside Mexico, which is based on her award winning solo play, Lylice, which she's performed at theater festivals around the world.

David Silverman as the author of the forthcoming book from Softskull PressTypo: How I Made and Lost Millions has been accused of smelling too much.

May 22nd Show of Objective Correlation (My Toaster, My Ennui)

2006-04-24T08:54:00.000-07:00

May is national apostrophe month. We celebrate this event's occurance with a show made entirely of powdered corned beef hash and eggs. Or, should the hash be past its sell by date, an entire show of awesome writers. You'll have to show up to see which one wins out. (I'm rooting for the authors so as to keep all the hash for myself.)

So be surprised, be unabashed, don't be afraid to order breakfast hash, and see this month's Writer's Working at the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street May 22nd 8:30pm, doors open at 8:15.

Our pecan pie favorites will be:
Micaela Blei
Carrie Gross
Jen Nails
Peter Olson
Robert Hughes
David Silverman

Peter Olson has written and performed and read at venues including Telephone Bar, the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, the Irish Rep and the PIT. He serves as the coordinator for the Yankee Rep writing workshop.

Micaela Blei has been a teacher of smaller kids for 6 years. She lives in Brooklyn, in a small apartment with a really cool Murphy bed, just like a private detective. She wrote and performed a solo show for kids, "City of Islands," directed by Jen Nails, at the PIT and Tank theaters. Micaela will be doing a staged reading of her new radio show for kids, "Gerald Small: Ombudsman." She would like to thank her real family and her urban family for patience and assistance in roasting all those chickens.

Carrie Gross is a staff writer for UpperEast.com, the webzine dedicated to New York's Upper East Sise. She is the proprietess of the Sex and the Upper East Side column/blog where she writes about dating, relationships and New York life a la Carrie Bradshaw with less expensive shoes. Previously, Carrie was the Events Director for Playboy Magazine where she produced parties across the country and gathered great stories to use in her writing. She is currently working on her first novel, which she expects to be finished any day now. Maybe.

Robert J. Hughes is the author of the novel, "Late and Soon," published last year, and is a reporter at The Wall Street Journal, where he covers culture and the arts. He is at work on his next novel, "Seven Sisters," a play about Dorothy Kilgallen's final days, and a story for the forthcoming collection, "Bronx Noir."

Jen Nails (the much beloved) is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She teaches writing and performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com) and has written for the Oxygen Network and SELF Magazine. She will be reading from her young adult book in progress, Beside Mexico, which is based on her award winning solo play, Lylice, which she's performed at theater festivals around the world.

David Silverman as the author of the forthcoming book Typo: An Entrepreneur's Education truly enjoys a good apostrophe.

Future Dates This Year

2006-04-22T08:04:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note that we have moved our dates for May and June. Consider them summer hours.

Monday May 22, at 8:30 pm.

Monday June 26, at 8:30 pm.

April 23rd Show of Helm of Ultimate Defense (+100 HP -20 DEX)

2006-04-08T09:55:00.000-07:00

April is angry. It wants to be the month of global warming, but it's been hard getting started. April wants you to know--it's not bluffing. By the time you read this, it will be 110 degrees everyday until a week from Thursday, when it will hail small balls of turnip seeds. And you thought April was going to say "snow." Ha!

So come out of the rain of vegetable matter and see this month's Writer's Working at the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street April 23rd 7:00pm, doors open at 6:45.

And if you miss this one, our next are May 28th at 7pm, and June 25th at 7pm. But why would you?

Our pecan pie favorites will be:

Dan Vitale
Jane Borden
Bill Bowers
Dave Serchuk
Jen Nails
David Silverman

Dan Vitale has, between stays at various psyche wards, and the occasional detox, managed to carve out a cult status as a shoot from the hip stand up comic, writer and actor. His TV appearances include, Saturday Live (featured player), all the cable comedy gigs and most recently, appearances on "Tough Crowd" with Colin Quinn.

Jane Borden is an editor at Time Out New York and a freelance joke writer for Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update. She doesn't believe in fate--but that might just be because she thinks it's listening.

Bill Bowers is an actor and mime, and has appeared On and Off Broadway, in Europe and an Amish Colony. He has coached the Israeli Olympic Ice Dancing Team, taught mime to a bunny rabbit. His play, It Goes Without Saying, will open Off Broadway this Fall at the Rattlestick Theater. It is a collection of true stories from his life as a mime. Bill is currently adapting this script into a book. Books about mimes are really popular. www.bill-bowers.com

Dave Serchuk is a reporter with Forbes magazine and has written for NPR, Minnesota Public Radio, Playboy, NY Post, NY Times, NY Press and Time Out NY, and is the author of ÂSerchuk On Sex.Â His greatest career achievements include interviewing Hugh Hefner, Bill Clinton and getting recognized while buying a burrito in 1997. Dave will be reading about an ill-fated trip to Burning Man, wherein he realizes what a truly terrible idea that was.

Jen Nails (the much beloved) is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She teaches writing and performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com) and has written for the Oxygen Network and SELF Magazine. She will be reading from her young adult book in progress, Beside Mexico, which is based on her award winning solo play, Lylice, which she's performed at theater festivals around the world.

David Silverman as the author of the forthcoming book Typo: How I Made and Lost $4 Million tends to make the same joke about looking like every other bald Jewish guy in New York. He knows it's not funny.

March 12, 2006 Show

2006-03-05T10:50:00.000-08:00

March's show is mad as a hatter. And think how mad that is—putting hats on people's sweaty heads all day and saying how good they look topped with felt. Only once, in Disney World, did I go into a hat shop and get the honest appraisal after trying on everything from the fedoras to the mouse ears: "Sir, hats just don't suit you." And folks, that's a mad hatter.

So come to the Drama Book Shop, 250 West 40th Street for the Writer's Reading Series, and hear some more stories of life, some true, some made up, but all much better fit for your night than a too tight chapeau. (7:00pm, doors open at 6:45.)

Our writers will be:

Sarah Long
Matt Love
Jenni Wolfson
Mark Sam Rosenthal
Jen Nails
David Silverman

Matthew Love reads scripts for the Public Theatre, but not the ones that you've actually seen produced there. If you're a fan of recently half-finished pilots, you may have fantasized about Ghost Foot, an anime parody he's assisting with that Comedy Central paid for. He is working on a sketch show.

Jenni Wolfson grew up in Glasgow, Scotland. She's traveled all over the world, including Rwanda, Haiti, investigating human rights violations. Jenni trains UN staff for humanitarian disasters. She'll be reading from her autobiographical work-in-progress.

Mark Sam Rosenthal is a comedian who has performed all over NYC including the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and the PIT. He appears in television commercials, and has portrayed folk crooner Emily Sailers on cocaine. He'll be reading from his work-in-progress about growing up in Baton Rouge, LA.

Jen Nails is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She's performed in NYC, Miami, Boston, Honolulu, Edinburgh, Victoria, Canada and others. She teaches writing and performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com). Jen's written for the Oxygen Network and SELF Magazine. She will be reading from her young adult book in progress, Beside Mexico, which is based on her award winning solo play, Lylice.

David Silverman has shortened his bio now that a publisher has offered to publish his book Typo: How I Made and Lost $4 Million. He will be moving on to sucking up to Oprah.

Feb 19, 2006 Show Info

2006-02-01T11:48:00.000-08:00

February's show is, no two ways about it, freakin' fabulous. We have two superstars from Softskull Press, Douglas Martin and Amanda Stern, the cache of being the only writing series that happens at the Drama Book Shop just before President's Day, and, as always, the most accessibly tasty muffins this side of the Seine.
So come to the Drama Book Shop for the Writer's Reading Series, and let those writers know what you think about them and their clauses. (7:30pm, doors open at 7:00.)

Our writers will be:

Douglas A. Martin, currently a PhD Candidate in English Literature at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, is the author of Outline of My Lover which was adapted by the Ballett Frankfurt (now the Bill Forsythe Company) for their multimedia production "Kammer/Kammer," and performed all over the world. His second book "Branwell: A Novel of the Bronte Brother" (just out from Soft Skull Press) traces the life of Branwell Bronte, the sole brother of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Bronte, fromchildhood to his alcohol-and-opium-induced death at the age of 31. In addition to a bit from Branwell, Douglas will be reading from a long narrative in progress entitled A Young Poet.

Amanda Stern's fiction, non-fiction and poetry has appeared in The New York Times Magazine (2001, 2004), Swink, Venus Magazine, The Believer, St. Ann's Review, Salt Hill, Hayden's Ferry Review, Spinning Jenny, and a bunch of other places. She has held many disparate jobs: editing part of the Talking Heads Box Set, "Once in a Lifetime," touring with the Cirque du Soleil, working in independent film for Ang Lee, Terry Gilliam, Hal Hartley and Gregg Araki, and performing for a couple years as a professional comic. Her first novel, The Long Haul, was published by Soft Skull Press in 2003. She is working on her current novel, The Guthrie Test, which she reads from tonight. She was born at Lenox Hill Hospital and raised in Greenwich Village. She founded, curates and hosts the Happy Ending Music and Reading Series in Chinatown. She lives in Brooklyn.

Mary Phillips-Sandy grew up in central Maine and now lives in Brooklyn. She has done the following things: earned a degree in economics, started a film festival, worked as a legal researcher (murderers interviewed = two), worked as a theater tech (digits lost to construction equipment = tip of left thumb, now grown back), and written freelance stories for many fine publications. She moved to New York two years ago and will receive her MFA from Columbia University in May, at which point she will celebrate extremely hard for several days. Mary will read an excerpt from an essay collection about life in central Maine.

Rob Bates is a full-time journalist and part-time comedy writer. He happy customers include FuseTV, McSweeneys, comedycentral.com, Jest magazine, New York Newsday's "Punchlines" column, the American Comedy Network and All Star Radio radio services. He has sold three jokes to comedian Yakov Smirnoff (true story). He has written somewhat-serious pieces for Time Out New York, Foxnews.com, and Shecky's Nightlife Guide. He is a regular writer for and cast member of Saturday Night Rewritten, a weekly "guerilla version" of Saturday Night Live. He is also performing and writing at the upcoming Assholes on Parade. Rob is proud that his work has been rejected by some of America's best-loved TV shows and magazines. Updates on his activities are at http://robbates.blogspot.com/. He is currently deciding what he will be reading on Sunday the 19th, but he and we are certain it is banging.

Jen Nails is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She's performed original solo comedy all over the world at theaters, festivals, and schools in NYC, Miami, Boston, Honolulu, Edinburgh, Victoria, Canada and others. She teaches writing and solo performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com). Jen's written for the Oxygen Network and currently works for SELF Magazine. Jen will be reading from her book in progress, Beside Mexico, is a middle grade novel based on her solo play, Lylice. Special thanks to David Silverman and the Drama Bookshop, and to her favorite person in the world, Mike Gold. Thank you all for coming!

David Silverman refuses to admit much of anything for fear of it being used in spam target at his strong impulse-to-buy-anything-he-sees-described-in-courier-or-blinking-text. His writing has been published in the Cream City Review, the Snake Nation Review, and in beautiful sepia tones from that copier he found no one had put a lock on. He has also, obviously (cause he can't stop pointing it out after a couple of drinks), been the owner of a multimillion dollar typsetting business. David will be reading from his book Typo--How I Made and Lost $4 Million. (He brilliantly came up with this subtitle at the Jan 22 show! Banging!)

Early Info For Feb 19

2006-01-26T16:58:00.000-08:00

The January reading was an enormous success. Standing room only for excerpts of one play, two childrens books, one disaffected paralegal, and yours truly, who has found a new sub-title for my book, "How I Made and Lost $4 Million." In addition, many muffins were eaten, as were all of the "ranger" cookies--allegedly only 3 points for 2 cookies.
However, the bear in the shopping cart, as usual, only showed up for drinks afterward at Siberia.
Feb 19 is our next reading and it promises to be as good or better. We have Douglas Martin reading from a work in progress and an excerpt of his book, Branwell: A Novel of the Bronte Brother recently published by Soft Skull Press. And there will be more...which we will let you know about as soon we find out about it.

Jan 22nd Show Info

2006-01-13T08:14:00.000-08:00

January's show is ready to roll on the 22nd. We've got a great line up, and, of course, free muffins. What else would you rather be doing on Sunday night? Skydiving maybe, but who has time for that? Come to the Drama Book Shop for the Writer's Reading Series. (7pm, doors open at 6:45, muffins available on first come, first serve basis, no muffin warranty implied or granted.)
Our writers are:
Hugh Ryan is a freelance writer and former social worker. His work can be found in the forthcoming anthologies Taking Root by The Sierra Club, and Where Do We Get Offf? by Window Seat Press. He also writes the Bloggorhea NYC posts for Gawker.com, and has performed his work in The Dixon Place Hot Festival. His story, Frozen Turkeys is the tale of many people, picked to work in a law firm - find out what happens when people stop being real, and start being being office workers.

Micaela Blei has been a teacher of smaller kids for 6 years. She lives in Brooklyn, in a small apartment with a really cool Murphy bed, just like a private detective. She wrote and performed a solo show for kids, "City of Islands," directed by Jen Nails, at the PIT Theater and the Tank Theater in 2003. Micaela will be reading from "City of Islands Redux," a children's novel for ages 8-12 based on her solo show. She would like to thank my real family and my urban family for patience and assistance in roasting all those chickens.

Wendy Giman tried to enter rehab a number of times, but was denied when discovered not to drink or use drugs. She moved on and studied Ancient Greek. But grew tired waiting to actually speak it with an Ancient. So she went to graduate school at Northwestern University. She now lives in an apartment and speaks English. Roleplay's a one act comedy inspired by Wendy's favorite psychiatric disorder, Jerusalem Syndrome, and her adoration for all things screwball (especially movies). Please note: No famous blond bombshells were endangered in the writing of this. For comments or therapy referrals, you can contact Wendy at wendygiman@aol.com.

James Oliver Cury is the editor of Time Out New York's Eat Out section. He has been a judge at the Culinary Institute of America, the Jack Daniels World Barbecue Championship, and the Food Network's "Iron Chef" show. When he's not stuffing his face, Cury tries to make sense of pop culture. He's written about concert-flashing communities (for SPIN,) tree-houses and other love nests (for Playboy), transgender marriages (for Cosmopolitan), celebrity action-figures (for Details), Britney Spears' reaction to her own fake nude photos (for Entertainment Weekly) and the best men's rest rooms in the country (for Esquire). Cury is also the author of The Playboy Guide to Bachelor Parties (Simon & Schuster, 2003). He lives in Manhattan with his wife and record collection. James will be reading an excerpt from an upcoming book about his experiences in the New York City restaurant biz.

Dorothy Cury is a graphic designer and a freelance writer. Her articles have been published in numerous magazines including Cabinet, New York Arts, Juxtapoz Art and Culture, and Time Out New York. Her work has also appeared in on websites such as Playboy.com and Guggenheim.com. In 1999, she completed her bachelor's degree in art history from the University of California, Berkeley and in 2003 she received a master's degree in art criticism from Columbia University in New York City. Dorothy will be reading an excerpt from Speed-O-Print, one in a series of short stories she is working on that are based on her real-life experiences growing up in Las Vegas.

Jen Nails is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She's performed original solo comedy all over the world at theaters, festivals, and schools in NYC, Miami, Boston, Honolulu, Edinburgh, Victoria, Canada and others. She teaches writing and solo performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com). Jen's written for the Oxygen Network and currently works for SELF Magazine. Jen will be reading from her book in progress, "Beside Mexico," is a middle grade novel based on her solo play, Lylice. Special thanks to David Silverman and the Drama Bookshop, and to her favorite person in the world, Mike Gold. Thank you all for coming!

David Silverman refuses to admit when he graduated from Drew University or that he majored in Math. He has, at various times, been a deli worker, copyeditor, captain (captain!) of his high school chess team, performed as a Mexican wrestlers, and been the owner of a multimillion dollar typsetting business with 200 employees and 7 plants around the world from New York to Iowa to Manila. David will be reading from his book "Typo--The Last American Typesetter," which is about the later of those things. He also welcomes anyone who can come up with a better subtitle.

Recap and Next Show

2005-12-28T19:31:00.000-08:00

So it's been a while since the show, and I have no excuse for not posting how great things were (which they were, including the fabulous Jen Nails cupcakes, which I had four of before anyone noticed and had a chance to say, "Four! Four cupcakes! You aren't supposed to eat four cupcakes!") except that I've moved apartments (my 8th move in 6 years) and went to North Carolina for Christmas, and had break the Internet connection there in my girlfriend's parent's house because that's just the sort of thing I do when I'm in people's homes being served homemade soup--I break their Internet connections.

But enough of that.

I will post a recap of the readings soon, and in the meantime, Jen and I are in the midst of planning our next show for January 22nd at the Drama Book Shop at 7pm. Now is your chance to put it in your Treo.

The FLYER!

2005-12-05T15:46:00.000-08:00

Dec 11, 2005 Show Info

2005-12-02T11:14:00.000-08:00

We've got a great reading set up for you. A little bit of everything from a young girl moving to a new town to a business gone bad to a bad trip (ahem) to Burning Man and crazy times at Playboy.

Writers Working will be at the Drama Bookshop, 250 West 40th street (bet 7th and 8th) and 7pm to 8:30pm on Sunday December 11th, 2005. Phone 212-944-0595. Suggested donation $5. Free muffins regardless.

And without further ado, here's the lineup:
Jen Nails is originally from Las Vegas, NV. She's performed original solo comedy all over the world at theaters, festivals, and schools in NYC, Miami, Boston, Honolulu, Edinburgh, Victoria, Canada and others. She teaches writing and solo performance classes at the Peoples Improv Theater (www.thepit-nyc.com). Jen's written for the Oxygen Network and currently works for SELF Magazine.

Jen will be reading from her book in progress, "Beside Mexico," is a middle grade novel based on her solo play, Lylice.
Special thanks to David Silverman and the Drama Bookshop, and to her favorite person in the world, Mike Gold. Thank you all for coming!

David Serchuk is a reporter with Forbes magazine. He has also written for National Public Radio’s “On The Media”, Minnesota Public Radio’s “Marketplace”, Playboy Magazine, The New York Post, The New York Times: Upfront, The New York Press and Time Out New York. He also spent three years as the author of “Serchuk On Sex,” through which he was flogged by a dominatrix and attempted to donate sperm. His greatest career achievements include interviewing Hugh Hefner, Bill Clinton and getting recognized as he bought a burrito in 1997.

Dave will be reading a story about an ill-fated trip to Burning Man, wherein he realizes from so many angles what a truly terrible idea that was.

Dorothy Cury is a graphic designer and a freelance writer. Her articles have been published in numerous magazines including Cabinet, New York Arts, Juxtapoz Art and Culture, and Time Out New York. Her work has also appeared in on websites such as Playboy.com and Guggenheim.com.

In 1999, she completed her bachelor's degree in art history from the University of California, Berkeley and in 2003 she received a master's degree in art criticism from Columbia University in New York City.
Dorothy will be reading an excerpt from Speed-O-Print, one in a series of short stories she is working on that are based on her real-life experiences growing up in Las Vegas.

Carrie Gross worked for Playboy Magazine and Playboy.com from 1998 until 2003, producing events such as the legendary Super Saturday Night Super Bowl Party which has been featured on E!, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood and Inside Edition and voted the top celebrity must-attend celebrity event of the weekend. Additionally Carrie produced many events at the Playboy Mansion for clients such as Dewar’s, Captain Morgan, Budweiser, and Sony Playstation. Other event executions include Mardi Gras mayhem, Spring Break insanity, a summer Volleyball Tour and other lascivious, scandalous, fabulous take-your-shirt-off parties.

She graduated from the University of Michigan magna cum laude in 1996. Her views appeared in the Chicago Tribune in a write-in column about singe life in the Windy City and she continues to pursue freelance writing projects - in the same vein as Carrie Bradshaw - a case where fact is more interesting than fiction. Carrie Gross' exploits have appeared on Page 6 and in the New York Daily News, much to her chagrin.

Carrie will be reading chapter 1 from her book, which she calls "The Party's Over," but her agent likes to insist should be "Bunny Tales."

David Silvermanrefuses to admit when he graduated from Drew University or that he majored in Math. He has, at various times, been a deli worker, copyeditor, captain (captain!) of his high school chess team, performed as a Mexican wrestlers, and been the owner of a multimillion dollar typsetting business with 200 employees and 7 plants around the world from New York to Iowa to Manila. David will be reading from his book "Typo--The Last American Typesetter," which is about the later of those things. He also welcomes anyone who can come up with a better subtitle.

Let's Get Ready To REEEEEEEEEEEEEEAD

2005-11-18T10:35:00.000-08:00

This is the official web site of the Writers Working reading series at the Drama Bookstore in Times Square, New York City.

The series is for authors to read excerpts of longer works in progress. For the writer, reading in front of an audience helps them know what is working and what isn't. For the audience, it's a unique chance to hear stories and give constructive feedback to the writer. And for both, there are free muffins.

Authors include both published and not-so-highly published writers. Works can be novels or novellas, screen or stage plays, fiction or non-fiction, or epic norse poems. We are looking for a good mix.

If you are interested in reading, contact us by putting a comment on this blog entry.

Our first reading is scheduled for December 11, 2005. More info on that reading to follow.