How can memoir be a political act? When living under oppressive systems, the simple act of standing up and sharing personal stories that go against the mainstream is a political act.
Lang adapted Emile Zola’s novel about an adulterous affair into a doom-drenched noir.
Presented by Kate Farrell, author, librarian, storyteller, and founder of the Word Weaving Storytelling Project.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Are you a crafty member of the Mechanics’ Institute? Knit happens, but we’d love to see your crochet too! Bring a project and get to know your fellow Mechanics’ Institute members and staff.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
Murder and mayhem surround a mysterious manuscript by Jack Kerouac in this novel by Mark Coggins
New York newspapermen compete to nab a serial killer in this deft mix of crime thriller and office politics.
What sentences do you craft to capture anxiety? Thought? A reminiscent narrator? What kind of sentence creates a feeling of euphoria? Of exhaustion? By the end of this class, you will have mastered the art of writing sentences that do more than move the story along.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Join Poets & Writers, the nation's largest nonprofit organization serving creative writers, at the Mechanics' Institute for a Literary Roundtable Meeting featuring San Francisco Poet Laureate Kim Shuck.
Initially published in 1840, this celebrated and influential work of Russian literature was translated from Russian to English by Vladimir and Dmitri Nabokov in 1958, and Paul Foote in 1966.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
In this workshop, we'll examine the basics--from research to voice to pacing--in creating works of historical fiction.
"The Projectionist" is a short story by Joe R. Lansdale based on the 1939 painting New York Movie by Edward Hopper.
Cozy, hard-boiled, soft-boiled, police procedural, thriller. All can be found on the mystery shelf, but each of these sub-genres has its own rules. In this workshop, we'll discuss the differences but focus on the common essential elements: plot and character.
In the afterlife, a recently deceased advertising executive defends his life in a court-like setting.
Will you be looking for a new job in the new year? Join a group of career changers in an immersive resume makeover clinic with fellow job seekers. We will focus on creative techniques that can power you ahead as you transition to a new job function or industry. In your future job search you will be competing with applicants who have been there, done that, and have won awards doing it. Your successful career transition will require you to do more, and do things differently.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Untrusting of the San Francisco Police Department, financier Louis Marinetti's hires a private eye to find his missing nine-year-old. When a briefcase containing $300,000 in ransom is snatched from a secluded location, chaos erupts.
Learn to navigate Consumer Reports' online portal. Attendees will explore how to locate reviews, compare products, and make secure online purchases.
Come tour the facility of Raff Distillerie and learn about the craft and history of distilling in San Francisco by master distiller Carter Raff.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
If you're looking for one-on-one help with a device, software, email, or a similar tech- or internet-related issue, librarians are happy to help! Reserve a 30-minute appointment to work with a librarian regarding devices and ebook readers, how to make the best use of the Library's online features, how to safely manage social media accounts, and more.
A newly discovered skeleton unearths many other long-buried secrets in a Texas border town.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Timothy Leary's "turn on, tune in, drop out" is now replaced by Tiffany Shlain's new mantra "unplug, turn-off and re-connect -- in person, of course!"
The Mechanics' Institute offers thousands of digital titles that you can download to your computer, tablet, or smartphone from anywhere there's an internet connection. Bring your device to this hands-on workshop where you'll set up an account, have your questions answered, and get started downloading eBooks, eMagazines, and eAudiobooks.
American Pastoral won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1998.
When two writers start a volatile affair, their relationship is affected by conflicting political views and a world of rising unrest and xenophobia.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
Learn about Value Line's ranking system for stocks, and how to access feature articles and analysts' commentaries.
Award-winning writer Obi Kaufman offers an illustrated guide to the ways we conserve, use, abuse and restore water--the source of life and habitat in California.
A revolutionary new novel about five wildly different women who, in the midst of the Uruguayan dictatorship, find each other as lovers, friends, and ultimately family.
Join us for a conversation with literary attorney Robert Pimm and author Rick Homan on legal issues commonly faced by writers including how best to collaborate with coauthors and illustrators, how to relate to publishers and literary agents, contract basics, and much more!
Strange, sometimes supernatural events upend the comfortable, midwestern life of a professor of physics.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Come dive into Ancestry Library Edition to find out where your ancestors really came from, what they did for a living, and much more.
The path to a perfect checkmate is possible with the advice and techniques of a Grand Master player in this informative and accessible chess book.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
Venez ici! Pull up a chair and sip an aperitif with author L. John Harris who discusses his favorite French cafés and the rituals of café culture in Paris!
LD Kirshenbaum wants you to spend one lunch hour a month to maintaining your muse along with your career in copywriting or corporate communications. This lightning workshop packs in a useful discussion as well as writing time. Bring your lunch and preferred writing utensils.
A teenaged girl in the rural Ozarks sets out to find her missing father, who put up the family's home as part of his bond for manufacturing meth.
In this 2-hour talk, we'll examine pacing, conflict, setting, and discuss how you can use letters to gain insight into your characters.
In this afternoon session, we'll dig deep into your agent query letters, helping you brainstorm your ideas in small group critique sessions along with instructor feedback.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Join fellow members in a discussion of Morrison's 2012 novel, Home.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
Unhappy with Denver, Buddy Millar moves back to his parents' house only to have the place burglarized under his watch. Buddy decides to move to Wamsutter, a depressed red-dirt trailer park town in Wyoming. Unruly dogs introduce his new neighbors Cheri and her husband, Raze Wham, who turns out to be Buddy's sociopathic bully from high school. When Buddy intervenes in a domestic incident involving the couple's children, Cheri and Buddy grow entangled in a complicated relationship.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
American Pastoral won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1998.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
The untold story of Leland Stanford -- from his birth in a backwoods bar to becoming one of America's most powerful and wealthy robber barons of his time.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Impossible Surrealism: Georges Bataille and the Surrealist Demand features a conversation about Bataille's themes, manifestos and practices.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
If you're looking for one-on-one help with a device, software, email, or a similar tech- or internet-related issue, librarians are happy to help! Reserve a 30-minute appointment to work with a librarian regarding devices and ebook readers, how to make the best use of the Library's online features, how to safely manage social media accounts, and more.
The life and work of Miriam Michelson, a best-selling San Francisco novelist, revolutionary journalist, and feminist circa 1890, is revealed in this compelling book talk.
Ready to make your crime fiction more realistic? Join author and police sergeant Adam Plantinga for a discussion about his first book's rocky road to publication as well as some of the key differences between fictional cops and real cops and why those differences should matter to the author.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Inspector Morse is on the case at Oxford's luxurious Randolph Hotel. An American tourist dies and a priceless jewel bequeathed to the Ashmolean Museum by her late husband is missing from her hotel room. Quirky and sophisticated, the Jewel That Was Ours is a mystery for readers who love to solve puzzles.
If you are a new, long-time, or prospective member the Tour of the Institute will orient you to our building, include an overview of our history and mission, and outline our current services and the benefits of membership.
The Mechanics' Institute offers thousands of digital titles that you can download to your computer, tablet, or smartphone from anywhere there's an internet connection. Bring your device to this hands-on workshop where you'll set up an account, have your questions answered, and get started downloading eBooks, eMagazines, and eAudiobooks.
Crossing to Safety was a National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for Fiction in 1987.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
Morningstar provides investment research, analysis and recommendations for thousands of mutual funds and stocks.
Reuse, recycling, environmental issues and ecology all come together in this book about our stuff and where it goes.
LD Kirshenbaum wants you to spend one lunch hour a month to maintaining your muse along with your career in copywriting or corporate communications. This lightning workshop packs in a useful discussion as well as writing time. Bring your lunch and preferred writing utensils.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
Using the guidelines described in Writing Without Teachers, join this member-led "come as you are" writing group.
Crossing to Safety was a National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for Fiction in 1987.
Gaitskill's short story "Acceptance Journey" focuses on what the author calls "liminal states," where you "never know what will happen."
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
How does a play evolve? How do actors unravel the complexities of characters they portray?
If you're looking for one-on-one help with a device, software, email, or a similar tech- or internet-related issue, librarians are happy to help! Reserve a 30-minute appointment to work with a librarian regarding devices and ebook readers, how to make the best use of the Library's online features, how to safely manage social media accounts, and more.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
The Mechanics' Institute offers thousands of digital titles that you can download to your computer, tablet, or smartphone from anywhere there's an internet connection. Bring your device to this hands-on workshop where you'll set up an account, have your questions answered, and get started downloading eBooks, eMagazines, and eAudiobooks.
Selected stories from Lucia Berlin, a writer overlooked in her lifetime, but now celebrated by contemporary critics, writers, and readers as a legend of the short-story format.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
This class is designed for newer players looking to develop their skills and players with some playing experience looking to tune their skills and transition to scholastic tournaments.
The intimate class welcomes all beginner and intermediate levels — from not knowing how the pieces move to those who play casual chess with friends and family. You will have the opportunity to solve some puzzles/combinations, followed by a lecture (always something difference!) and last 30 minutes reserved for free play.
The Legal Guide to Book Publishing class covers the primary legal and business issues in modern book publishing. Learn what you need to know about mainstream, self-publishing, and e-book publishing.
Ready to elevate your writing career to the next level, but not sure how to present your background in an appropriately professional fashion?
This workshop is open to writers who are considering applications for--or wish to learn about--writing grants, fellowships, scholarships, or residencies.
