By Wendy Campbell
Rowan Public Library

The summer reading program, “Tails and Tales: Animal Stories of Fact and Fiction,” has returned with ample incentive for adults to read and write. Start a writing practice, enter a writing contest and mark the summer 2021 as one to remember.

Books to inspire your new writing practice await you at the library. Let your librarian make recommendations or browse the nonfiction collection to find self-help writing books and inspirational books about your favorite authors. In “Carolina Writers at Home,” edited by Meg Reid, learn about one writer’s special hideout, another’s writing journey, and even one author’s explosive writing start. (You can also track this reading in your summer reading log at RowanPublicLibrary.READsquared.com).

Join a community of writers at the library for support, practice and discussion. The Virtual Adult Writers’ Club meets June 9, June 23, July 7, and July 21 from 4-6 p.m. For more information about this program series, contact Brittney.Peters@rowancountync.gov. Go to https://www.rowancountync.gov/1581/Virtual-Writers-Club to get started.

Enter the “Tails & Tales Short Story Contest” and explore your creative side. Get ideas for your story by reading animal inspired works and participating in the summer reading program! Writers ages 18+ are eligible for this contest that runs from June 1 to July 16. Short stories will feature an animal as a prominent character or offer an animal’s perspective.

Did you know that writing is good for you? Writing generates new ideas and improves communication as it increases vocabulary and language tools. It allows the author to live again with each remembrance and story told.

This summer, Rowan Public Library provides three ways to support your new writing practice. Read about writers and writing. Sign up for writers’ club. Write that short story about your ferocious rabbit. Visit Rowan Public Library in person or online at www.rowanpubliclibrary.org. Contact the library by phone at 980-432-8670 or by email at info@rowancountync.gov for more information about writing and other summer offerings.

Wendy Campbell is a librarian at the Rowan Public Library.