photo by Chris Hardy
UPDATE: Thank you to all our Write-a-thoners! Collectively, you raised over $10,000 to support the free programs that 826 Valencia offers to San Francisco students.
And now, the moment you tireless and brilliant writers have been waiting for. The staff of 826 Valencia read the entries, ran the numbers, furrowed our brows in difficult decision, and after much consideration, we are pleased to announce our two winners of the third annual Write-a-thon’s Grand Prize: a reading at 826 Valencia during LitCrawl.
- The Grand Prize for top individual fundraiser goes to Jasmine Tsai, who raised an outstanding $1,350.
- The Grand Prize winner selected by the staff of 826 Valencia is Brian Karfunkel.
Please join us at 826 Valencia during LitCrawl, October 13 at 8:30 pm, to hear our Write-a-thon winners read. See you there!
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On August 26 (8/26 Day), Eighty-five writers of all ages packed our writing lab for 826 Valencia’s third annual Write-a-thon. Participants wrote until 8:26 pm to support the free programs that 826 Valencia has been offering to Bay Area students and teachers for the past ten years.
The San Francisco Writers’ Grotto kicked off our extravaganza with a workshop using their new book, 642 Things to Write About. Attendees scribbled on prompts (including dreams from the previous night) before a bellowing vuvuzela called time. We enjoyed scrumptious baked goods donated by our neighbors at Craftsman + Wolves and savory empanadas donated by Venga Empanadas.
photo by Chris Hardy
Throughout the afternoon, Dave Eggers rewarded our tireless Write-a-thoners with hand-drawn sketches of themselves working on their novels, novelas, and poems. And to celebrate our tenth birthday, we sang “Happy Birthday” to 826 halfway through the Write-a-thon and blew out the candles on an 826-themed cake. It all came to a bittersweet end at 8:26 pm with a champagne toast to 826 Valencia’s ten years and to the incredible dedication of the Write-a-thon participants.
Thank you to the many people who raised pledges and came out to write with us during the Write-a-thon. There are still two grand prize winners to announce – the person who raised the most money and the most entertaining excerpt from the day’s writing. Check back here next week, when we’ll make the official announcement of who will be giving readings during SF Lit Crawl.
826 Valencia is grateful to the following writers who worked so tirelessly on our behalf:
Alexander Marcus
Alice Beckett
Alva Fong
Avni Sisodiya
Beatrix Henry
Bhaskar Rao
Brandon Brown
Brian Karfunkel
Brooke Wright
Candace Bagley
Christina Yan
Emily Joan Smith
Emily Ostendorf
Emji Spero
Erik Kokkonen
Evan Karp
Frances Maples
Giancarlo Varanini
Heather Robinson
Jacqueline Acosta
James Mulholland
Jane Goldman
Jasmine Tsai
Jeffrey Huang
Jeff Ryan
Jen Haley
Jessica Berta
Jim Houseman
John Birdsall
John Engell
Julie Marse
Juliet Sanders
Katie Hunter
Leila Pitko
Lisa Asta
Lora Benin
Luis Arriaga-Lucero
Maggie Wooll
Marcus Jake
Marissa Skud Lark
Maxwell McGee
Meg Chilton
Meghan Adler
Melissa Yang
Misha Aziz
Misha McPherson
Naoki O’Bryan
Nathan Bransford
Nick Wan
Pei-Ru Ko
Peter Brown
Rebecca Rubenstein
Rhea St. Julien
Robin Terrell
Sarah Adler
Sarah Griffin
Seth Rosenblatt
Shannon Stairhime
Shaun McInnis
Shideh Etaat
Sonia Suresh
Stephanie Keep
Susan O’Connor
Van Nguyen
Wayne Cunningham
Wendy Webb
Write Club SF
Xiomara Blanco
