Dan Wickett, cofounder of Dzanc Books, announced today that the nonprofit publisher in Westland, Michigan, will hold a "write-a-thon" next month in order to raise money for its community-based programs. Volunteers can ask others to sponsor their writing by pledging either a specific amount of money based on the number of words written during the day-long session or a flat-rate donation. On the morning of November 15, Dzanc will e-mail participants a writing prompt or topic. Participants will then write poems, stories, and essays during the day.
"With the economy coming completely off its rails, traditional means of raising funds...have become less successful," Wickett says. "Here at Dzanc, we like to try and make raising money both as fun, and valuable, an experience as possible." Wickett says the goal is to raise twenty thousand dollars for Dzanc's programs, including the Dzanc Writer in Residency, an educational outreach program that places writers in Michigan schools where they teach students for free; weekly workshops; and author readings.
In addition to its community-based programs, Dzanc publishes several books per year and sponsors the Dzanc Prize, given annually to a writer of literary fiction who is also interested in facilitating a community service program. Laura van den Berg of Boston, who proposed to teach creative writing at area prisons, won last year's prize.
More information about Dzanc's write-a-thon can be found on the publisher's Web site.
