Benjamin Franklin made his name in Philadelphia, but he did some of his more important (and fascinating) work in France.  After arriving and taking the country by storm as a rock-star-level celebrity in 1776, he supported vital support for the American Revolution while winning friends and losing secrets.

Benjamin Franklin made his name in Philadelphia, but he did some of his more important (and fascinating) work in France.  After arriving and taking the country by storm as a rock-star-level celebrity in 1776, he supported vital support for the American Revolution while winning friends and losing secrets.

In this lighthearted lecture, we will “read behind the lines” of some of America’s greatest writing to discover the sometimes amusing, often inspiring, and always fascinating stories that accompany American writers and their works.  Meet Emily Dickinson, whose idiosyncratic, enigmatic poems would have to wait decades before finding an audience.  Eavesdrop on the witty (and sometimes savage) conversations of Dorothy Parker, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald.  Learn what inspired Harriet Beecher Stowe to write her powerful novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin, how Truman Capote distilled years of research into the gripping “nonfiction novel” "In Cold Blood," and how the eccentric savant Thomas Wolfe magically churned out piles of prose in a single sitting (or standing).  In the end, you will come away with a richer understanding of not only the writers, but also their works and the art of writing.

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Registrations are required for this free event. To RSVP, call 260-563-1102, extension. 1 to reach the Honey Center Box Office or visit Honeywellhouse.org to reserve your seat online.

Join Mark Canada and historian Chris Young for the first in-person Moving Experience: "Welcome to the Jungle: Upton Sinclair, Turn-of-the-Century Chicago, and Investigative Fiction."

Even for those of us who never rode the waves on a whaler or, in the case of Stephen Crane and Ernest Hemingway, a tiny open boat, the sea is a mystical place of both perils and possibilities.  Join me as we “see the sea” through the eyes of some of our greatest writers, including Homer, Herman Melville, and--surprise!--Edgar Allan Poe.  (This lecture features performances of lively sea poems such as "Sir Patrick Spens" and "The Jumblies.")