ANNUAL REPORT

2015IWC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Message: Executive Director and Board Chair

IWC Classes

Gathering of Writers

Memoir Projects

Selected Financial Data

IWC Donors

Staff and Board Members

06 Mission

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I took my first writing class at the Indiana Writers Center in 1979. The Center offered me solid writing instruction, an invitation to be a part of the Indianapolis writing community, and a stepping-stone to becoming the published writer I?d always wanted to be. Over the years, I was an IWC instructor and a member of the Board of Directors. In 2008, I became the Executive Director, bringing this important part of my life full circle.

Originally part of the Free University, the Indiana Writers Center was founded by Jim Powell in 1979 and offered informal writing workshops that helped establish a strong writing community in Indianapolis. As the director of the Center for twenty years, Powell instituted a regular schedule of classes

and workshops; monthly open readings at which writers could share their work; the Flying Island, a magazine featuring Indiana writers; and an annual Gathering of Writers that connected writers throughout the state.

Throughout the next three decades, the IWC evolved into a professionally run nonprofit organization with a strong, working Board of Directors. Currently located in the Indianapolis Art Center?s Cultural Complex in Broad Ripple, we continue to offer a wide variety of classes and programs; our annual Gathering of Writers has featured award-winning Indiana authors, including Christopher Coake, Michael Martone, Scott Russell Sanders, and Elizabeth Stuckey-French. A weekly e-blast keeps more than 1,500 people up to date on literary events and

MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

There are amazing stories hidden inside those who live quietly among us, and it is the mission of the Indiana Writers Center to bring them to light. We educate, inspire, connect, and support Indiana writers at all levels and in all genres.

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opportunities throughout the state.

Outreach programs in schools, libraries, and community centers bring writing to a diverse audience of people, many of whose voices are rarely heard. In 2015, our summer learning program, ?Building a Rainbow,? served 200 at-risk kids, who honed their writing skills with the help of IWC instructors, interns, and volunteers. ?Where Truth and Mercy Meet? provided the opportunity for 20 homeless women to tell their stories.

Partnerships with community organizations expand our outreach opportunities. In 2015, IWC faculty led 43 book discussions at branch libraries for the Indianapolis Public Libraries Big Read, Summer Reading, and Paper Towns programs, and taught ten memoir classes. We collaborated with Indy Fringe to present the first annual Short Play Festival, and consulted with the Indiana State Library on a map of Indiana authors to be unveiled as part of Indiana?s Bicentennial Celebration in 2016. Thanks to a $20,000 grant from the Central Indiana Senior Fund, we?re

currently collaborating with the Jewish Community Center, the Albert & Sara Reuben Senior and Community Resource Center, and Dance Kaleidoscope on ?A Choreography of Dreams,? a Spirit & Place program exploring dreams through words and dance.

It is an exciting time for the Indiana Writers Center! I?m proud of what our organization has accomplished, and look forward to what the future will bring.

Barbara Shoup Executive Director

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If everyone who reads is a reader...

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then everyone who writes is a writer.

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MISSION: The mission of the Indiana Writers Center is to educate, inspire, connect, and support Indiana writers working at all levels and in all genres; to recognize excellence in Indiana literature; and to provide outreach programs designed to bring forth the voices of people who are not usually heard. It advocates for writing and literature as essential to a community that values clarity of communication and honors diversity, tolerance and compassion.

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DISCOVER.NURTURE.

CONNECT.PROMOTE.

The Indiana Writers Center strives to:

writers.

IWC CLASSES

The IWC offers single-session and series classes in fiction, nonfiction, creative nonfiction, and memoir, as well as in publishing, self-publishing, blogging, website development, time management and other writing-related topics. All classes are taught by published writers. 72 % of our instructors hold MFA degrees in creative writing and/or teach at colleges and universities.

"The Writers Center does the seemingly impossible: meeting you wherever you are in your writing life and making your work and process better. "

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?I walked into this class without a clear idea of how to structure my book and walked out with many tools.?

?I have a feeling this class will stick with me for a long time as a source of inspiration, motivation, and a sense of community.?

?The instructor created a really safe space for a 'fragile' writer. I am leaving feeling energized and empowered!"

?I came in nervous? but now I feel like a writer.?

IWC CLASSES

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GATHERING OF WRITERSThis annual event features a keynote speaker, and workshop sessions in fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry by nine outstanding Indiana Writers. It is an opportunity for aspiring writers to enhance their writing skills and for writers working at all levels to connect with one another, expanding their personal writing communities. Since its inception, hundreds of people have enjoyed coming together to share a writing experience.

Prior years have included recognized Indiana authors Marianne Boruch, Alice Friman, Karen Kovacik, Lee Martin, Elizabeth Stuckey-French, Scott Russell Sanders, David Shumate, Dan Wakefield, and Ben Winters.

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"Not only is the Gathering of Writers an essential

event for most of us who write, but it also is a great opportunity to find out who

your peers are and what they are doing creatively."

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GATHERING OF WRITERS

Community Partners

- Barnes & Noble- Bookmamas- Duos- Einstein Bagels- Firehouse Subs- Hubbard & Cravens- Jason's Deli- Maco Press- NUVO- Teachers' Treasures

"The conversation with others? in workshops and out? was inspirational and renewing."

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"I felt like a writer all day."

"I enjoyed being among those who are doing, not only learning."

"What a great opportunity to hear from a terrific group of instructors!"

"It was so good. I came away happy, excited inspired? ready to get down."

Thoughts from our participants:

MEMOIR PROJECTSThe Memoir Project publishes an anthology that features voices not typically heard that could otherwise be lost to time. Professional writers engage diverse audiences in exercises designed to help them get their memories down on the page and shape them into finished pieces.

Workshops may range from a single session to as many as twelve weekly sessions. In some instances, special funding has allowed the publication of anthologies of writers' work, which are available on amazon.com.

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MEMOIR PROJECTSPublished Anthologies:2009: Sitting at the Feet of Our Elders: Flanner House Speaks; Recording Memories: Girls in Prison Speak

2011: Harvesting History: 50 Years? Pioneer Village at the Indiana State Fair I Remember: A Collection of Indiana 4-H Stories in Celebration of 50 Years of the Indiana 4-H Foundation

2012: Returning: Stories from the Indianapolis Senior Center

2013: Monday Coffee and Other Stories of Mothering Children with Special Needs.

2014: Life Dances: Stories from the Indianapolis JCC and the Arthur and Sara Reuben Senior and Community Resource Center.

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MEMOIR PROJECTSProjects and People Reached

- 2009: The Flanner House (16 bi-weekly sessions, African American Seniors), Indiana Correctional Institution for Girls (8 weekly sessions for 35 incarcerated girls, aged 14-18)

- 2011: The 4H Foundation (1 session for 125 adults), Pioneer Village (1 session for 40 adults), and the Indianapolis Senior Center (12 sessions for 9 adults).

- 2013: Mothers of Children with Special Needs (ongoing writers workshop for 10 women)

- 2014: Jewish Community Center (2 sessions for 50 seniors), Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library (6 weekly sessions for 4 war veterans)

Partners

Indiana Correctional Institution for Girls, Jewish Community Center, Albert and Sara Reuben Senior and Community Resource Center, Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, 4-H Foundation, Pioneer Village and the Indiana State Fair, Flanner House, Indianapolis Senior Center, and Hoosier Veterans Assistance Fund.

Funding

Funding for IWC memoir projects was made possible by generous donations by: the Arts Council of Indianapolis, the Albert and Sara Reuben Senior and Community Resource Center, the Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation, Inc., the Central Indiana Senior Fund, the Efroymson Family Fund, the Indiana Arts Commission, the Indianapolis Foundation, the Indianapolis Retirement Fund, the Lily Endowment, the Midwest Orthotic & Technology Center, as well anonymous and individual donors.

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"The memoir project at the Indianapolis Senior Center was a great success on many levels. Not only did it encourage and nurture the

creative process in the individuals the program touched, but it also instigated conversation among members and non-members

at the Center about the importance of sharing information through the written word. I have personally witnessed participants from

the project explaining or answering questions regarding the finished product and the program as a whole." - Indianapolis

Senior Center Staff Member

FINANCIAL STATEMENT

The Indiana Writers Center is able to offer the services we do because of the generous contributions of our members. Each year, we help new students discover a love of writing, nurture the talent of writers in our community, connect teachers, students, and writers, and promote stories that might otherwise be lost. This happens because of community support, and we cannot possibly express our gratitude for your generosity.

ASSETS

Current Assets

Net Property and Equipment

Total Assets

LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS

Current Liabilities

Net Assets

Total Liabilities and Net Assets

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION 2012

$ 52,211

2,291

54,502

1,212

53,289

55,714

2013

$ 61,830

1,977

63,807

2,075

61,732

63807

2014

$ 84,935

3,674

88,609

1,145

87,464

88,609

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SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

INCOME

Public Support: Memberships, Contributions, Grants

Revenues

Total Income

EXPENSES

Program Services

Supporting Services

Total Expenses

Changes in Net Assets

STATEMENT OF ACTIVITIES AND CHANGES IN NET ASSETS 2012

$ 49,613

39,010

88,623

44,729

50,267

94,996

(6,374)

2013

$ 53,402

54,560

98,968

34,603

55,919

90,522

8,442

2014

$ 65,568

63,447

129,015

46,085

83,047

129,132

(117)

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$100

$750

$1,000

IN 2014...The IWC held 234 events, including 4 active critique groups that meet twice a month.

The IWC served 4,156 people by way of its classes and programs.

The IWC partnered with the Indianapolis Public Library to present a free day of writing workshops and 37 free writing classes at 14 branch libraries throughout Indianapolis, serving 567 people.

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Provides instruction for one three hour class

Publishes a memoir anthology

Provides an instructor for a 12 week memoir workshop

EVERY DONATION DOLLAR COUNTS

Help advance our mission: www.indianawriters.org/products/support-the-iwc

The Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation

Teena Anderson

Chuck & Lisa Baldwin

Julia Baumann

Barbara Bell 

Rebecca Bender 

Fred Biesecker  

Jon & Judy Birge  

Peggy Boehm

Chris Bradburn

Robert Broemel

Carole Carlson 

David & Marta Carter

Jeffrey & Deborah Christie

The Cohen Family Foundation

Andrew Cupp

Peggy Dallmann

Myrna DeAgostino  

Kerry Dinneen & Sam Sutphin

Jodie English

Lois & Sandra Eskenazi

Kay Fagin

Stephanie French-Mischo

Nancy Frenzel

Marjie Gif f in

Jan Gildner

Leigh Hirschman

David & Melli Hoppe

Debra Horberg

Sandra Hurt

Indiana Arts Commission

Indianapolis Arts Council

Indianapolis Foundation

Leanne Jackson

Michael Johnson

Darolyn Jones

Sonja Kantor

Kathy & Stephen Kershner

Uroosa Khan

Klapper Family Foundation

Karen Kovacik & Jim Powell

Norbert Krapf

KSM Business Services, Inc.

Claudia Labin

George LaMaster

Judith Libby 

Tracy Line

Michael Martone

Gaye McKenney

Barbara McLaughlin

Anna May McQuitty

Mineral Technologies, Inc.

Roger Mitchell

Emily Montague & Noreen Lenay Baca

Leon Mordoh

Lilly Endowment

John Morgan

Mike Mullin

Judy Newton

Tony Perona

Steve Pettinga & Mike Byrum

Diane W. & Hudnall Pfeif fer

Roger Pfingston

Nelson Price

Nancy Pulley

Maureen & John Purcell

Mary Redman

Sablosky Family Foundation

Sandy Sasso

Mark & Julanne Sausser

Lori Schankerman

Alice Schloss

Ellen Scott

Barbara Shoup

Jennifer Shoup

Kate Shoup

Steve Shoup

Katherine L. Simmons 

Charr Skirvin

Daniel Sliva

Jeanne Smucker

Larry Sweazy

Linda Thornton

John Tinder & Jan Carroll

Harry F. Todd

Jim Torke

IWC

Vicki Townsend

Eleanor Vonnegut

Shari Wagner

Daly Walker

Dylan Warman

Joan & Bill Warrick 

Carol Weiss

Dan Weitz

Celeste Will iams

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WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR THE INDIVIDUALS AND BUSINESSES WHOSE GENEROSITY MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.

INDIANA WRITERS CENTER BOARD OF DIRECTORS

INDIANA WRITERS CENTER STAFF

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Carol Weiss, President

Heather Howard

Brad King, Vice President

Claudia Labin

Stuart Sobel, Treasurer

Judith Libby

Uroosa Khan, Secretary

Anne Mannsfield

Kelli Norwalk Charles Sutphin Celeste Will iams

Barbara Shoup, Executive Director

Teri Costello, Accounting Coordinator

Lyn Jones, Educational Outreach Director

Rachel Sahaidachny, Off ice Manager/Programs Mgr

Roxanna Santoro, Website and Graphic Mgr

812 EAST 67TH STREETINDIANAPOLIS, IN 46220

(317) 255-0710WWW.INDIANAWRITERS.ORG