Spotlight on Florida Spoken Soul!

Deborah Magdalena is organizing her second SWAN Day event this year, an ambitious three-day Spoken Soul Festival in Miami, Florida. We interviewed her last week and share some of her insights below.  You can read the full interview at: Deborah Magdalena Interview

Increasing Popular Demand for Spoken Word –  Deborah was looking for ways to increase the audience for spoken word in her area, and SWAN Day seemed like a perfect opportunity.  She decided to assemble musicians, visual artists, and craftswomen in addition to spoken word artists, so that all of them could share their creations with the community.  The strategy worked – last year’s Spoken Soul Festival drew a large crowd and helped the artists sell their work and book future gigs. In response to increased popular demand, this year’s showcase has grown into a three-day festival that will start with a conference for teens about careers in the arts and end with a brunch in honor of women artists.

Building Excitement with a TV Ad and Poster – To generate even more excitement, Deborah recruited filmmaker Michelle Massenet of Garnet Productions to create the television ad below. Hover your mouse over the box below to see the “Play” button:

Final Swan PSA from Garnet Productions on Vimeo.

(If you can’t see the ad, please visit: www.vimeo.com/3546571)

Ivette Ortiz created a beautiful poster for the event which you can see by clicking here>>

Finding Inspiration – Like many other SWAN Day organizers, Deborah Magdalena and the other artists in the Spoken Soul collective have been inspired by President Obama’s call for community action, and they are convinced that women artists have a vital role to play in shaping our future.

Building Community – As an example of their community building spirit, the Spoken Soul Showcase is partnering with ASPIRA of Florida, a non-profit organization that has been working since 1961 to develop the educational and leadership potential of Hispanic youth.  A panel will meet with young women to talk about pursuing careers in the arts and the healing power of art.  By building bridges with organizations like ASPIRA, Magdalena is making sure that the young women in her community learn how to use the arts to help them “dream big.”

Read the Full Interview – To find out more about Deborah Magdalena’s experiences organizing the Spoken Soul Showcase and the women who inspire her, you can read the full interview here.

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110 Events and Counting – There’s Still Time to Join Us!

As of today, there are 110 events on the SWAN Day 2009 Map*. There are events all over the U.S. as well as in Kenya, Quebec, Berlin, Argentina, Jamaica, and Shanghai.  If you want to join the fun, there’s still time!

Post Your Event – Just go to our Post Your Event page and follow the instructions there. Your event can be a party or any arts activity that celebrates women artists. Your event can be public or private invitation-only.

Tell Others to Post – If you know of other events featuring women artists during March, tell the organizers that they can post their events also.

Find An Event to Join – Don’t have time to organize your own event? Many groups are still looking for collaborators. If you do a search on the SWAN Day Map* by your zip code, it will show you any SWAN Day events within a 50 mile radius.  The ones that are looking for collaborators are marked with a statement in red.  If you open the event listing, you will be able to click on a link to contact the host.

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Ask Your Mayor for a SWAN Day Proclamation

It’s Easy – A proclamation is a great way to increase public awareness surrounding SWAN Day, your organization, and the need to support women artists in your community.  They are surprisingly easy to obtain, and we have provided general instructions and a model proclamation for you in the Publicity Tools section of our SWAN Day website here.

Proclamations are considered a ceremonial document, and are provided as a public service by the Mayor’s Office.  Each city handles this service in a slightly different way.  The best approach is to contact the Mayor’s office in your city and ask them what steps to take.  Usually there is a standard application form.

Create Your Own Photo Op – After you have obtained a proclamation, we suggest that you use it to create photo opportunities with the Mayor, or any other V.I.P.’s who might attend your event.

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Statements About SWAN Day
To Print In Programs or Read At Your Event

Many of you have asked for statements about SWAN Day to read at your event or to print in your programs.  We have created a new item on our Publicity Tools page with statements for you to use.  There is a special greeting from Martha Richards, a short statement that gives background information about SWAN Day, and a slightly longer background statement.  To check them out, click here.

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Want to Be Featured In This Newsletter?

Post Your SWAN Day Event, Photos, and Videos!

In the coming months we will be featuring interviews with other artists who have organized SWAN Day events.  If you would like to be covered, please be sure to post your event on the SWAN Day Map, and send us links to your SWAN Day photos and videos.

Once you have posted your event, you can upload your pictures and videos. Just go to the SWAN Day Map*, and click on “Manage Your Event”, then click on “Edit Your Event.” From the bottom of the editing page, you can upload pictures and videos in the “Edit Attachments” section.  (Note: You will need to create a password the first time you use the “Manage Your Event” feature.)

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Need Help With Your SWAN Day Event?

If you have difficulty with the SWAN Day Map or any of the other online functions of the SWAN Day website, please contact us and we will be happy to walk you through it over the phone!

Our Associate Director Julie Forbes is available to help you brainstorm about your event, help you use the tools on the on the SWAN Day website, and maximize your publicity and fundraising efforts. If you need help or advice about your SWAN Day event, please email her at info@SwanDay.org with the words “SWAN Day Event” in the subject line.  If you would like to speak to her, be sure to include your phone number or Skype number in the email, and she will do her best to get back to you.