💥Join The Ass in Chair Collective – starting March 3!💥

Steal some time out of your day for what you really want to be working on, and all of us will validate your choices on Zoom

Hey there. Remember Emily Mohn-Slate? And the cool Yoga + Writing fundraiser we did? Well, we’re teaming up again to try something new, and this is your official invite to join us!

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Dorothy Parker said* “Writing is the art of applying the ass to the seat.”

🪑What is The Ass in Chair Collective? 🪑

Starting on March 3, we’re going to host a series of creative “Ass in Chair” meet-ups via Zoom. These will be short–an hour long– so you can squeeze them into a coffee break or a lunch during the week, or, you know, hide in your bathroom with your laptop while small humans are yelling for you.

The concept is simple: we get together as creative people, say hello, and then each of us will work on our own thing. Together.

The goal is to create an atmosphere like a coffee shop, but virtually. In college, I used to go to the coffee shop to study in a move my friends and I called “shame learning,” since being around other diligent folks made it feel like you should probably do some work, too. *Obviously* we’re going for a more positive, punk rock vibe with the Ass in Chair Collective. 🪑Steal some time out of your day for what you really want to be working on, and all of us will be there to validate your choices on Zoom🪑

Sound awesome?

Here are the dates for March:

• Monday, March 3 @ 12 PM EST

• Wednesday, March 12 @ 9 AM EST

• Friday, March 21st @ 12 PM EST

• Tuesday, March 25th @ 3 PM EST

We’ll eventually settle on a regular time for these meetups, but for March we’re experimenting with a bunch of times to see who shows up for what. That’s where you come in: You gotta show up to the times you really like and could make happen in your week. SHOWING UP IS YOUR VOTE. (You can also email us to let us know, but showing up is more convincing). Starting in April, the majority of these will be for paid subscribers, but we’ll still keep some open to anyone.

💥We’ll send out a post a few days before our scheduled time each week with an “Ass in Chair” reminder with the link to register for the Zoom. So, click below and get yourself on the list! 💥

Um, Isn’t This The LONG PAUSE? What if I’m not like….working on anything creative?

This totally is the Long Pause! One of the things I learned from my (ongoing…) Long Pause was that I felt better when I quit isolating myself and feeling ashamed that I wasn’t making anything. I paid to be a part of a Resort accountability group with Catherine LaSota one summer even though I was struggling to process language on the page (hi, PTSD!). I only made like 2 poems, but showing up each week and talking with other writers about their projects helped me feel that I was still a creative person, even if I wasn’t doing much right then.

It also cracked open a door. That group helped me repeatedly set aside time when I *could* be creative, to make it a priority. You don't have to feel bad if you're balancing your checkbook or doing work emails during Ass in Chair Collective meet-ups. Maybe what you’re doing is practicing setting aside time with other creative people, cracking open a door for yourself to walk through later.

Whatever it is, we’re here for it. Mark your calendars and join us!

*supposedly. I can’t find a source.