NEWS RELEASE
WORD UP BARRIE
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Voices at Word Up, a.k.a. Word Up Barrie, will discontinue in May 2023 after nine years of offering a supportive space for all writing genres.
We’ll have hosted over 100 monthly author readings, writing panels hosting poets, spoken-word performers, rappers, comedians, songwriters and lovers of the magic of language.
Voices at Word Up hopes someone fills this gap. The organization has brought pro and amateur writers in Simcoe County together in a safe and encouraging environment where local talent shared the stage and learned from award-winning authors who’ve been published by major publishers and top literary publications.
“Word Up has inspired my writing simply and effectively by presenting panellists who have shared innovative and interesting ways of approaching the art of storytelling. There is truth to the axiom that an idea expressed by one will trigger new and diverse ideas in many. That’s the secret sauce of Word Up,” said Michael J. Whyte, screenwriter/playwright/content writer.
Word Up’s founding members, including Barrie’s first poet laureate and prolific author, Bruce Meyer, along with Aaron Reynolds, a past contributing writer, copy editor, and proofreader for PIE Magazine, and Linda Laforge, visual artist and fiction writer, created something vibrant and lively to add to our creative community. Past volunteers Dorothy Sjöholm, author of poetry collection Why the Telephone Stopped Ringing, and Colleen Winter, author of The Gatherer series, also volunteered their time, expertise, energy and enthusiasm.
Events to look for until May:
- Storytelling masterclass for writers with Scott Hurst — May 9 at East Bayfield Community Centre
- Flash fiction writers panel — Thursday, April 13 at 7 p.m. at the Barrie Public Library and on Zoom
- Final open mic extravaganza — Thursday, May 11 at 7 p.m. at the Barrie Public Library and on Zoom
We hope this space is filled by a new organization or volunteers who value the development of performance skills for our local creatives so all their blood, sweat and tears shine equally at the mic here and worldwide.
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