Philadelphia Alumni Writers House
Where Imagination Has No Limits
Unique among selective liberal arts colleges, F&M’s Writers House is an actual house — complete with comfy couches, a kitchen, and a picturesque fireplace — with a mission to give the writing and reading community exciting opportunities to fully immerse themselves in wordcraft and literature.
The Writers House offers a literary performance space for the College community, a podium for hundreds of world-class and emerging authors, an incubator for student-run publications and programs, and a classroom for writing-related courses. Closely connected to the English department, with a mission to work with departments and programs across the curriculum, Writers House hosts and co-hosts tons of writing-related events, including readings, craft workshops, road trips, career Q&A's, faculty talks, and publication parties.
Writers House Community
The Writers House Community is a close-knit, far-flung group of writers and readers, and everyone in the F&M community is welcome to join. Being a member means that you are a part of anything and everything we do! Community members plan and host events, attend our biweekly meetings, hang out in the House, or just lurk on our email listserv looking for publication opportunities.
F&M Literary Publications
Several student-run publications find their home in Writers House. These publications offer exceptional opportunities for students to flex their writing, editing, or staffing skills in new ways. F&M student publications at Writers House include:
- Epilogue, a literary magazine celebrating the creative works of F&M students, including fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and art.
- boy-band, a quarterly magazine with two sections: a lifestyle section focusing on conscious living, fashion, and entertainment, and a literary section featuring F&M authors and poets.
- FEM&M, a fresh, feminist-focused literary and visual arts magazine
Visiting Writers
Every year, Writers House invites dozens of talented writers from all walks of life to give readings, craft talks, and to engage with the F&M community.
Writing Workshops
Often led by F&M faculty or visiting alumni authors, these hands-on workshops are opportunities to learn the craft of writing prose, poetry, plays and more directly from the experts.
The Emerging Writers Festival
Each spring, F&M’s English department partners with the Writers House to host the Emerging Writers Festival. A hallmark literary tradition on campus, the Emerging Writers Festival is a three-day event that invites the country’s most exciting emerging authors to F&M to host readings, craft talks, and writing workshops. The festival is a collaborative effort between students and faculty, offering students hands-on experience in bringing a literary festival to life.
Writers House Thanksgiving
Writers House Thanksgiving is the social event of the holiday season. Students, faculty, staff, alumni, family, and friends join together for a giant potluck, featuring a home-cooked, hand-carved feast for turkey eaters, vegetarians, and vegans alike.
Lapine Family Visiting Artists
F&M alumnus James Lapine '71 is a three-time Tony award-winning stage director, playwright, and screenwriter. Lapine and his family endowed an annual lectureship at the College to bring eminent theater artists to campus. The Lapine Family also endowed the Lapine Poetry Fellowship, created to aid writers and artists at a particularly important moment in their careers.
Lapine Theatre Trips
Thanks to the generosity of alumnus James Lapine '71 and the Lapine Family Endowment, F&M students, faculty, and staff are able to travel to New York City every semester to see new shows and connect with artists working on Broadway and Off-Broadway professional productions. One such trip brought Writers House to New York City to see Merrily We Roll Along on Broadway. James Lapine '71 moderated a discussion with the show's Tony award-winning actors Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez.
The Pi/es of March
The Pi/es of March party is a celebration of pi, pie, March birthdays and anniversaries, and the Ides of March. Pi/es of March features the writing of "Pie-ku" poetry, a socket puppet presentation of "Julius Caesar," and plenty of pies!
Murder Mystery Parties
As Writers House’s spookiest tradition, we host an annual Halloween Murder Mystery full of fabulous costumes and enigmatic plots. Some have even been written by students!
White Elephant Gift Exchange
Anything is possible at the White Elephant Party. You might go home with a corn-husk duck, a giant ceramic cupcake, or an angel wearing an eyepatch: your trash could be someone else's treasure.
Writers House students find exciting opportunities to be a creative force of positive
change by sharing their passion for writing with F&M’s home city of Lancaster. Our
students engage the community in writing opportunities for kids and adults in our
beautiful city. Upcoming Writers House Events
Whether you’re a writer, a reader, or a performer, there are an infinite number of
ways to get involved with Writers House. All are welcome at the Writers House to visit,
listen, contribute, or just stay a while.
View All Events on The Ampersand »Writers House in Lancaster