Writing in Door County

Art galleries are fixtures on the Northern Door Peninsula, and the concert and theater venues are well known throughout the Midwest. Less apparent is the vibrant writing culture that flourishes in the area, with many opportunities for authors to hone their craft and share their work.

Some Door County writers have reputations that extend far beyond the Midwest, such as Norb Blei whose books have been connected with the county since he moved to Ellison Bay in 1969. Romance novelist Bob “Jean Barrett” Rogers, also makes his home in Ellison Bay. LaVyrle Spencer, who also pens romances, set Bittersweet in Door County, and often visits Fish Creek.

The legion of published but lesser-know poets and authors have led some observers to claim that Door Peninsula has a higher per capita number of writers than does any other part of the country. This phenomenon has been celebrated by the appointment of Barbara Larsen as the Door County Poet Laureate.

A few local literary publications which continually seek writing submissions include Knock: Door County, edited by Nik Garvoille; Caravaggio, edited by Henry Timm and Nancy Rafal; and the Literature section of the Peninsula Pulse, edited by Sally Slattery.

Newport State Park features a Poetry Trail with changing posts of the work of featured poets.

Local bookstores carry poetry chapbooks as well as fiction and nonfiction published by area writers.

Poets may read their work at regularly scheduled open mics, including the Dickinson Poetry Series sponsored by the UU Fellowship in Ephraim (each year an anthology of poetry by featured readers is published) and the Holiday Music Motel in Sturgeon Bay. Periodically other readings are sponsored by other organizations.

Those writers who seek to polish their skills will find classes at The Clearing, Bjorklunden and the Learning in Retirement program. Students in Door County schools are occasionally presented writing workshops by visiting artists; for the last three years Gibraltar High School has offered an Exposure to Creativity program sponsored by the Hardy Gallery and Friends of Gibraltar, a project that always includes writing workshops.

And those who want to test their writing skills may enter the Peninsula Pulse’s Hal Grutzmacher’s Writers’ Expose, a contest that offers prizes for writing poetry, short fiction, and essays, with a deadline of July 1.

Some of the writing activity in the area remains under the radar: writers’ groups, private workshops, invitation-only readings, and electronic mailing list networks.

Both published and aspiring writers can find a niche in Door County and become a part of the flourishing community of artists.

Writing workshops

Bjorkunden, 920.839.2216, http://www.lawrence.edu

The Clearing, 920.854.4088, http://www.theclearing.org

Learning in Retirement, 920.746.4947, http://www.nwtc.edu

Reading opportunities

Dickinson Poetry Series, 920.854,7559, http://www.uufdc.org

(Open mic 7 pm the second Wednesday of each month.)

Holiday Music Motel, 920.743.5571, Facebook, http://www.holidaymusicmotel.com

(WRiTERS NiGHT Open mic 7 pm each Thursday)

Contests

Peninsula Pulse’s Hal Grutzmacher’s Writers’ Expose and Photography Jubilee, 920.839.2121, http://www.ppulse.com