The official blog of Denise M. Baran-Unland, author. Discover her books for all ages at bryonyseries.com.
On September 25, 2025, WriteOn Joliet held its first open mic night at Critical Grind in Shorewood.
Charter member Duanne Walton emceed and videotaped the entire event.
Here is the video to the final rounds of short performances, which includes some spontaneous readings from WriteOn Joliet's 2023 radio play.
Enjoy!
On September 25, 2025, WriteOn Joliet held its first open mic night at Critical Grind in Shorewood.
Charter member Duanne Walton emceed and videotaped the entire event.
Here is the video to the second half hour of short performances.
Enjoy!
On September 25, 2025, WriteOn Joliet held its first open mic night at Critical Grind in Shorewood.
Charter member Duanne Walton emceed and videotaped the entire event.
Here is the video to the first half hour of short performances.
Enjoy!
BryonySeries had the good fortune to participate in Critical Grind Board Game Cafe's first author fair on Saturday.
And then we also had the good fortune to share the table with longtime WriteOn Joliet member Dale Hansen.
I've participated in many author fairs over the past fifteen years. And this was one of the best in terms of steady and robust attendance abd marketing along with additional "fun" elements, such as genre-inspired beverages from the cafe, the fact Dale and I each sold seven books, and the surprise handmade bookmarks from Cindy, which we gave as gifts to anyone who bought one of our books.
Cindy chatted to attendees about B.L.O.C.K.S. and distributed information. Rebekah discussed tropes and helped select books to browse according to interests.
But don't take my word for it. Check out these videos Critical Grind uploaded to its Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1169522728588370
Curious about the "B.L.O.C.K.S" initiatve some members of my BryonySeries team has created?
Timothy will give his first public presentation about B.L.O.CK.S. tomorrow night at "Presentation Night" at Critical Grind Board Game Cafe in Shorewood.
During "Presentation Night," which runs from 7 to 9 p.m., various presenters will deliver a five minute-ish presentation on just about any topic imaginable, which can be (according to Critical Grind), "funny, serious, or completely absurd."
So if you live in the area, consider coming out and becoming entertained, informed, and enjoying something deliciouis from the cafe.
Good morning!
I am super excited to participate in Critical Grind Board Game Cafe's Local Author Book Fair with TWO of my favorite authors.
One is WriteOn Joliet member Dale Hansen, who writes devotionals.
The other is children's author C.W. White, whom I met at Calkins Day 2023. I was so impressed with her books, I wound up ordering copies for my grandchildren.
In additon to BryonySeries books, I will have copies of WriteOn Joliet's anthologies (including copies of 2024 and 2025), and information on B.L.O.C.K.S.
Be sure to check out Critical Grind's menu and get yourself something good to eat and drink before you leave with your book purchases.
Because what could be better on these cold dark days than a hot drink and some new good books?
Happy Monday!
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On September 25, WriteOn Joliet held its first (and only) open mic at event for 2025 at Critical Grind Board Game Cafe in Shorewood.
It was also our first mic event since 2023 - and we held two that fall, shortly before the Book and Bean Cafe in Joliet closed - and we're thrilled to have found a new cafe home.
Critical Grind hosts a writer meetup on alternating Saturdays called Inkwells and Espresso, which WriteOn members have attended from the event's inception in early 2024.
WriteOn Joliet Charter Member Duanne Walton served as emcee at this first open mic at Critical Find and read some of his stream of consciousness works.
Ed Calkins, Steward of Tara, gave a dramatic recitation of his original poem.
Steve Cordin read an original crime thriller short story.
Holly Coop read her inspirational poetry.
Danny read some of his micro fiction.
Guest Nancy Calkins shared intriguing stories from her career as an art teacher.
Diana Estell gave a dramatic performance of original poetry.
Mauverneen Blevins read original poetry.
Our guest Chloe shared original poetry.
Barbara Eberhard, organizer of "Stories R Us" read original poetry.
"Stories R Us" takes place at 6:30 p.m. every third Wednesday at Nik & Ivy Brewing in Lockport.
And Duanne and I reprised his piece (from the same radio play): "The Beast of Venice Pier."
And somewhere in the mix, I read part of "A Little Wine for Your Stomach, Part Two" from the BryonySeries novel "The Phoenix."
But alas, no photo exists of that reading since I was the one (overall) taking the photos (Timothy caught this one of Duanne and me).
So here's a glass of wine instead, one of my "teaser" photos for "The Phoenix."
Happy Thursday!
"The Beast of Venice Pier" is a piece written by WriteOn Joliet charter member Duanne Walton for WriteOn Joliet's first radio theater-style performance at the Billie Limacher Bicentennial Park and Theatre in Joliet in 2023.
The piece is an alternate piece based off "The Foghorn" by Ray Bradbury, which Duanne explains on his YouTube channel.
Duanne and I read "The Beast of Venice Pier" at WriteOn Joliet's open mic night last week at Critical Grind Board GAme Cafe in Shorewood.
We read this quite spontaneously and had not read it since our last performance in 2023.
What made it so much fun is that we quite naturally slipped into our roles as if we'd just performed it an hour ago. Each syllable, each inflection, was exactly the same.
Duanne, .Holly Coop, and Diana Estell, also read my piece from that same performance ("A Little Wine For Your Stomach"), which is an excerpt from the BryonySeries novel "The Phoenix," which they also executed flawlessly
Diana had previously said she'd love to perform that piece again. So they did, quite spontaneously, at the open mic - which led Duanne to want to read "The Beast of Venice Pier."
The point of all this (other than the fact I'm super proud of all of us) is the value of doing your homework (so to speak) before showing up.
I'm not just talking theatrics here. I'm talking about any project you tackle. All the hours and unseen work in the background will pay off during that short time in the foreground.
So be encouraged today that your hard work is not in vain.
You can watch the original performances starting at the 1:50 mark here: An Evening With WriteOn Joliet: Readings to Entertain and Inspire You. Act 2 and also at 38:10.
Happy Thursday! :)
WriteOn Joliet started offering its open mic nights in the fall of 2013, when my former co-leader Tom Hernandez (who passed from brain cancer in 2024) decided we should be sharing our works publicly with the community.
We typically held them twice a year at the former Book and Bean Cafe inside the Joliet Public Cafe, with WriteOn Joliet's last open mic in 2023, because the Book and Bean Cafe closed at the end of the year.
With the closing of Book and Bean, WriteOn (along with many other groups) lost a wonderful community gathering space.
But approximately six months later, Critical Grind Board Game Cafe in Shoreood started hosting a twice monthly writers meetup called Inkwells and Espresso.
I was working for the first one but popped in to show support. The owner told me I was the only one who attended.
So I started sharing the information with WriteOn. And our writers started coming out, which attracted more writers, a few who also starated coming to WriteOn Joliet meetings for added support.
And now, WriteOn Joliet will host its first open mic at Critcal Grind from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Sept. 25. Local writers will read short pieces (three to five minutes) of original works in all genres.
WriteOn members will have an opportunity to signup in advance.
The community may sign up on a first come, first serve basis starting at 5:30 p.m.
We will give away a 2024 WriteOn Joliet anthology and have additional anthologies (2017 to present plus the "cheetah" anthology) for sale.
We will also have information about WriteOn Joliet's annual anthology release party on Dec. 4.
We will have information about WriteOn, along with individual WriteOn authors.
Admission is the price of any drink or snack from the cafe.
Come out to read, come out to be entertained.
Questions?
Email us at writeonjolietgroup.com.
Hope to see you there!
Before you "meet" me, here's how I met Critical Grind.
I first learned about Critical Grind Game Board Cafe in Shorewood in 2023 the week Ron entered Lightways Hospice in Joliet and I was asked to write a business story for the following Monday.
Not sure how the week would turn out (Ron actually passed away that Friday night) and knowing I would need plenty of coffee to weather the unpredictable hours, I wrote this story: 5 Will County coffee venues you should try now.
From there, I became introduced to the Inkwells and Espresso writers networking community Critical Grind was trying to launch and invited WriteOn Joliet to hang out every other Saturday.
About a month ago, Critical Grind reached out to me, said it was starting a podcast, and would I be interested in recording an episode?
Well, how could I refuse such a kind invitation, especially from a venue that's been so welcoming to local writers?
So without further commentary from me, please listen to Critical Community: Episode 6 - Meet Denise.
Enjoy!
Good morning!
I have nineteen stories to share with you today at the bottom of this post.
Nineteen!
No wonder I've felt so busy lately!
And more stories will go live this weekend and into next week, even though I won't return to work until Jan. 2. So be sure to check back on The Herald-News site: shawlocal.com/the-herald-news.
We finally got the Christmas tree up at our house. It now has a lights and even a few ornaments (courtesy of several grandchildren, who kindly placed them on Christmas Eve. So here's hoping today's the day!
Before the stories I also have a list of additional updates, resources, and information. Please check them out, too.
And if you'd like to find more kindness in your life, consider this book.
And have a great Friday!
The BryonySeries Christmas Display is still up at The Book Market in Crest Hill. Along with eleven curated BryonySeries books for you to browse and buy, the display features Ribbit-Ribbits from Cindy and free purple music roses with select purchases while supplies last.
It's the perfect way to support the only local book story in the Joliet area and find some wonderful books for your winter reading pleasure.
House on Top of the Hill: Third book in the BryonySeries Limbo trilogy, and the book is now live on Amazon. Copies are also available at The Book Market.
The Adventures of Cornell Dyer: Timothy and Daniel are super busy with school on top of work (and plenty of work-related traveling). But Sue Midlock is already hard at work with the cover for the next book that involves a toymaker: "Cornell Dyer and the House of Horreur" (because the toymaker's last name is "Horreur."). Timothy and I have tentatively agreed to a "Cornell" breakfast when he's off school and work during the holidays. Here's hoping! (we are looooong over due).
I also outlined a "bonus" book that is intended for distribution at Bicentennial's "Ye Olde Mayfest" event in 2025. Here is a recap of the 2024 event.
Brainy Ann: The fifth book in The Girls of the BryonySeries is outlined and the first chapter is written, hurray! Jennifer Wainwright, who welcomed her first child into the world in April, is nearly done with the cover portrait. I let this book slide for other BryonySeries projects. But I'll return to this book in early 2025.
Jennifer designed the cover portraits for "Julie and the Too-Hard Homework," "Katie and the Big Fear," "Summer Sisters." and "Karla Joins In," as well as the frontispiece for "Lycanthropic Summer."
Rebekah is also slowly (very, very slowly) updating the BryonySeries YouTube and Pinterest accounts. And she' catching up with Kindles for some of the BryonySeries books. So do watch for those.
And finally...
I am working on the hard edits for Ed Calkins, Steward of Tara's third book in his Ruthless trilogy: "Recovering Ruthless."
Ed's first book is "Ruthless," his second is "The Fifth," and he is also the author of "Denise Unland's Irish Genealogy."
For books and more information about the series, visit bryonyseries.com.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Sue's Diner is a fictional restaurant in the fictional Munsonville that only exists in the BryonySeries.
Each Wednesday, we post a new recipe. The recipe is either featured in one of our cookbooks, will be featured in an upcoming cookbook, or is just an "extra" we want to share with you.
Check out the recipe here.
WRITERS
Daily updates: I haven't posted anything on Twitter/X (except a daily Bible verse) since September I can no longer schedule posts in advance. I'm not sure yet how to manage the account without that option. But you're welcome to follow me at @Denise_Unland61.
BryonySeries stuff: I used to curated content relating to the BryonySeries on Twitter/X at @BryonySeries and still post assorted related content at facebook.com/BryonySeries, youtube.com/user/BryonySeries, and themes of each book in the BryonySeries at pinterest.com/bryonyseries.
Again, not sure yet about the direction of the BryonySeries Twitter/X account. Still mulling that over.
And of course, please follow the adventures of Bertrand the Mouse on Instagram at bertrand_bryonyseries.
QUESTIONS
Email me at bryonyseries@gmail.com.FEATURES
Be a Herald Angel: Help Will County United Way meet high community need
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Support downtown Joliet businesses and earn rewards
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Community rallies to save a Shorewood board game cafe
Dana Buxbaum, Critical Grind co-owner: ‘We’ll be making some
changes in the new year’
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winners announced
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Free microchipping for Will County pets during December
Owners must have proof of current rabies vaccination and
proof of Will County residence
Plainfield opens 143rd Street West extension with
ribbon-cutting
The total project cost $12 million
Plainfield Park District receives $260,000 from state for
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New Lenox building now named Town Center Bank Building
Crest Hill meal prep company seeking donations for Christmas
dinners
Joliet Witches Night Out raises $1,108,000 in 15 years for
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The 2-day event attracts 3,000 attendees, sponsors and
volunteers
Semi falls off I-55 bridge in Plainfield blocking train
tracks
Tow truck driver goes into cardiac arrest at the scene
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QR code scams aren’t limited to packages, can send info to
scammers
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2024/12/22/police-raise-awareness-of-brushing-scam/
Police: Joliet man’s death under investigation, seemed to be
‘under influence of an unknown substance’
Joliet police: Man arrested following domestic disturbance
that involved woman getting shot
Will County Pets of the Week: Dec. 23, 2024
Will County rescues have dogs and cats for adoption
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2024/12/23/will-county-pets-of-the-week-dec-23-2024/
5 Things to Do in Will County: GLOW Holiday Festival
https://www.shawlocal.com/thescene/2024/12/26/5-things-to-do-in-will-county-glow-holiday-festival/
Illustration by Matt Coundiff for "Visage"
