Writers Week is a tradition of LHS for the week following spring break, in order to give students and faculty the ability to hear the stories and literature of notable poets, musicians, and journalists as well as for themselves to be able to present their own ideas to the school, with several student and teacher presenters each year. Below gives a run-down of some of the notable performances seen this year, including returning writers and new ones as well.
On Monday, April 6, Chicago Slam Works poets made their annual appearance at LHS’s Writers Week. Chicago Slam Works is a nonprofit organization, so the poets in it simply seek to advance performance poetry not only in Chicago, but also around the world. The presenters had even gone to Germany for the biggest national poetry slam competition in the world. The two shared poems coming from a range of themes: from middle school to high school, from love to sadness, allowing every person in the audience to be able to relate. Students also shared their personal experience through poems and short stories; student presenters including Nick Minor, Sierra Miller, Alexis Kristofferson, and Georgia Sampson.
On Tuesday, April 7, sports writer Joe Aguilar of the Daily Herald, who covers not only local sport events in Lake County but professional teams like the Chicago Bears, presented for Writers Week. Aguilar shared his experiences in writing and the process that he takes when reporting, advising aspiring writers at LHS to take good notes and be attentive at all times. Aguilar began as a radio sportscaster and then started out at Pioneer Press newspapers before joining the Daily Herald. The student presenters included Michele Piedrahita, Jasmine Turner, Kyra Pan, Carly Wegren, Emmalee Berger, Taylor Sloan and others.
Also on Tuesday, April 7, poet Aja Monet took the stage to talk about her experiences of writing poetry. Growing up in New York and addressing social issues as a part of her poems, Monet stressed how poetry can be an outlet to express feelings toward different subjects in life. Monet showcased one of her poems about a wrongly-convicted prisoner who was sent to Guantanamo Bay. She wanted to write this poem to give this man justice by showing the conditions that he should not have been through at the camp. Senior Isaac Shur read aloud his short story as well to the audience.
On Wednesday, April 8, author and poet Amy Kite shared about her books and how writing has always helped her work through her issues, encouraging students to take up journaling or poetry to help deal with difficult emotions. However Kite focused mainly on explaining the logic in her blog that she started on her website, in that it helps her share important ideas she has found in her everyday life that she feels is crucial for others to know. Students held these concepts to be true in what they shared, some of the presenters involved were Lola Akinlade, Sara Arora, Kayla Nelson, Patrick Palmer, Tristan Stephenson.
On Thursday, April 9, folk rock musician Andy Suzuki performed some of his own original songs and talked through the process of writing music. He explains the process as time-consuming and nitty gritty and it takes countless drafts to get to the final product, however this can be rewarding especially when the perfect melody and lyric is found. His band Andy Suzuki & The Method recently released their LP Born out of Mischief, and Suzuki plans to continue to write songs for the band this summer. The student presenters included Hannah Boufford, Tatum Schiebler, Carly Wegren, and Anna Burns.
Also on Thursday, April 9, Lauren Fairweather stopped by from Rhode Island to give the audience insight about her journeys traveling the United States as a musician. Fairweather noted that she usually travels with her partner, but she performed individually on the auditorium stage. As a Harry Potter aficionado, Fairweather linked most of her music to the book, as the series is her all-time favorite. Well-known on iTunes and her Youtube channel, Fairweather and her partner sing songs about whatever they have on their minds. She noted that she came up with one of her most popular songs among her fans in a music store parking lot. She played 4 songs to the audience and answered a variety of questions at the end. Seniors Tayler Mores and Maya D’Souza were the student performers for the day.
