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La Catrina Cafe Hosts O+ Festival: Chicago Literary SalO+n, CO+llage Cafe, and SpO+ke (O+pen Mic)

We get it! It’s great to witness art and music by others, but what about a little creative YO+U time!? Fuel up at La Catrina Cafe with their “gunpowder green tea,” and spend your day taking the lead in creativity. O+ Wordsmith and O+ CreatO+r prizes will be awarded.

Literary SalO+n prompts

  1. Make an alphabetical list of things you want to see in your community (ex. “A”-Acceptance of  differences, “B”-Bikes everywhere, “C”-Chicharrones everywhere)
  2. Write a poem about art, music, wellness, and/or community.
  3. Write a first person account of one day in the life of an inanimate object in Chicago (ex: a painting, cake, keys).
  4. Freeze and Think: take in your surroundings. Finish each of the follow (1) I hear____________ , (2) I feel ____________ , (3) I see ____________ , (4) I smell ____________ , and (5) I taste ____________ . Feel free to elaborate at length.
  5. Grade yourself: Make your own report card describing imaginary subjects that you would get an “A” in. Come up with at least ten. Here are a few examples: 1. Being a frequent patron at La Catrina Cafe: A. 2. Supporting community gardens and farmer’s markets: A. 3. Thinking outside the box: A.

When you have finished writing, you have several options.

  1. Keep your writing, and read it out loud during SpO+ke (O+pen mic). SpO+ke invites writers to read, actors to perform, poets to share, any skill level of musicians to play, and anyone else to express themselves. This will take place at 5pm on Friday, July 8th; 3pm on Saturday, July 9th; and 5pm on Sunday, July 10th. All participants of SpO+ke are eligible to win an O+ Wordsmith Prize.
  2. Put your writing in the O+ Writing Box for a chance to win an O+ Wordsmith Prize. Please be sure to write your name and a way to contact you on your writing sheet. Once a winner for the O+ Wordsmith Prize has been selected, we can scan and email your written piece back to you (if you have provided your email address).
  3. Do whatever you like with your writing. Maybe you’ll be inspired to take it home and work on it more.

*You may participate in both SpO+ke (O+pen mic) and submit your writing to the O+ Writing Box.

CO+llage Cafe prompts

  1. Draw something with your eyes closed.
  2. Draw all the things you think are positive about you.
  3. Add a drawing to the community project O+ Festival: Chicago Exquisite Corpse poster. The first person will begin by drawing an image. Then that person will make a crease in the paper so that half the image is hidden under the paper and the other half is visible. The next person will draw an image that adds on to the visible half of the last image. This second person will also fold their drawing in half so that only half of it is showing. Get it?! Keep the pattern going. 

**If you would like to be considered for an O+ CreatO+r Prize, please submit your artwork to the O+ CreatO+r Box. Once a winner for the O+ CreatO+r Prize has been selected, we will bring all artwork back to La Catrina Cafe for a coordinated retrieval.

To learn more about La Catrina Cafe, click this link: https://www.facebook.com/lacatrinacafeon18/?fref=ts

***Sunday, July 10th from 10am-12:30pm, La Catrina Cafe will also having a youth painting class for kids. Laura Neira will lead this private event. See this link for more details: https://www.facebook.com/lacatrinacafeon18/photos/gm.1586126621685009/644697575682560/?type=3&theater

(In 2014, Alanna Okun wrote a pretty useful article on 21 clever writing prompts. We picked our favorite five and revised them a bit. The link to all 21 writing prompts can be found here: https://www.buzzfeed.com/alannaokun/21-clever-writing-prompts-that-will-unleash-your-students-cr?utm_term=.wmLlqp3O4#.ouMqz1ErG)