Writing in Conversation with Kohelet
2025-11-11 12:00 - 13:30, 2025-11-18 12:00 - 13:30 (America/New_York)
Tuesdays, November 4, 11 & 18, 2025
12:00-1:30 p.m.
$154

The Book of Ecclesiastes (Kohelet) is a poetic, puzzling, and deeply human text—full of contradictions, timeless wisdom, and evocative imagery. In this 3-part generative writing series, you’ll be invited to slow down, listen closely, and let Kohelet’s searching questions about purpose, joy, mortality, and meaning spark your own reflections.
Each session will offer:

Guided exploration of selected passages from Kohelet that open up new ways of thinking about life’s biggest questions.
Creative prompts to help you respond in your own voice—through poetry, memoir, fiction, or spiritual writing.
A supportive space to share and connect with others who are also writing their way into deeper wisdom.

By the end of the series, you’ll leave with fresh writing, new insights into this mysterious text, and a sense of connection to an ancient tradition that still speaks to the heart. Come ready to read, reflect, and create. All levels of writing experience are warmly welcomed.

This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience

Amy Gottlieb is a novelist and poet. Her debut novel, The Beautiful Possible, was a finalist for the Edward Lewis Wallant Award, the Harold Ribalow Prize, and a National Jewish Book Award for Debut Fiction. Her poetry has appeared in On Being, Ilanot Review, Storyscape, SWWIM, Quartet Journal, Poetica, Paper Brigade, The Bloomsbury Anthology of Contemporary Jewish American Poetry, and elsewhere. She is the recipient of a fellowship from the Civita Institute and five individual awards from the Bronx Council on the Arts.

Before All the World: A Creative Conversation with Moriel Rothman-Zecher
2025-11-11 20:00 | Zoom
Tuesday, November 11, 2025
8:00-9:00 p.m. EST

In recognition of Jewish Book Month, join us for an intimate, interactive online gathering with award-winning author Moriel Rothman-Zecher to explore his bold, genre-bending novel Before All the World. Together, we’ll dive into the book’s inventive use of language, its weaving of Jewish memory, resilience, and love, and the ways stories can hold both the ache of history and the possibility of transformation. This is more than a reading—it’s a conversation about writing, identity, and the sacred work of storytelling. Bring your curiosity, your questions, and your writer’s heart.

This event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Moriel Rothman-Zecher is the author of the novels Before All the World, which was named an NPR Best Book, and Sadness Is a White Bird, for which he received the National Book Foundation’s ‘5 Under 35’ Honor, and which was a finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, the winner of the Ohio Book Award, a finalist for a National Jewish Book Award, and longlisted for the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize. His work has been published in The American Poetry Review, Barrelhouse, Colorado Review, The Common, Jewish Currents, Lit Hub, Nashville Review, The New York Times, Poetry Daily, The Paris Review’s Daily, ZYZZYVA, and elsewhere. Moriel is the recipient of two MacDowell Fellowships, and teaches creative writing at Swarthmore College, where he is a Visiting Assistant Professor of English Literature and Creative Writing, and is also a member of the faculty of the Bennington Writing Seminars’ MFA Program.

Everyday Rituals: Jewish Life as the Framework for Playwriting
2025-11-12 12:00 - 13:30, 2025-11-19 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Wednesdays, Oct 29, 2025 and November 5, 12 & 19, 2025
12-1:30 p.m. EST
$180

What moments from the rituals of your life could inspire a new play? What makes a play a Jewish play and how can we weave Jewish ritual and values into what’s on the page? Where to start? How to go deeper?

By taking inspiration from both religious rituals and the commonalities of life Jewish families hold dear, award-winning playwright Jennifer Maisel will guide you through writing exercises that will uncover new facets to your characters and more complex elements of your story. You can be starting from scratch or working on an already existing piece. But come ready to stretch your imagination, explore your spirit, and discover how ritual can transform your writing. Show up with pen, paper, and the willingness to be inspired.

This Immersion is a special partnership with the Jewish Plays Project.

All sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.
Jennifer Maisel is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter whose work has been produced off-Broadway, nationally and internationally. Her plays include EIGHT NIGHTS, OUT OF ORBIT, MATCH. PROVENANCE, THERE OR HERE, YELLOWWALLPAPER 2.0 2020 and @thespeedofJake and have been workshopped and honored by the Sundance Theatre Lab, the Ojai Playwrights Conference, The Kennedy Center, the Ovation Awards, the Woodward/Newman Award, the Asolo Theatre and the PEN West Literary Awards. She also writes for film and television; the screenplay adaptation of her THE LAST SEDER is in pre-production with Rosalind Productions. PROVENANCE was the winner of the 2025 Jewish Plays Project contest.

Seeding Family-based Poems with Golems, Dybukks and Shpilkas
2025-11-13 12:00 - 13:30, 2025-11-20 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Thursdays, October 30 and November 6, 13, & 20, 2025
12-1:30 p.m. ET
$180

What Inspires Your Poetry?

In Jewish tradition, stories and symbols shimmer with possibility—golems who guard and protect, dybbuks who haunt and unsettle, wise sayings passed down in mameloshen (Yiddish and other beloved tongues). These mythic images and words have traveled through generations, carrying echoes of our history, humor, and heart.

In this Immersion with poet Susan Comninos, we’ll step into this rich imaginative landscape, exploring how folklore, family stories, and cultural memory can awaken new inspiration for your writing. Susan will guide us in weaving together personal history and timeless myth, crafting poems that honor our creative inheritance while speaking in our own, present-day voices. Come to reflect, to write, and to join others in a circle of Jewish creativity—where the past and present meet on the page

All sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Susan Comninos is a widely published writer and author of a recent book of poems, “Out of Nowhere” (Stephen F. Austin Univ. Press/Texas A&M, 2022). Her individual poems, often on Jewish themes, have appeared in the Harvard Review Online, Rattle, The Common, Prairie Schooner and North American Review, among others. She’s taught writing to undergraduates at Siena College, The College of St. Rose and SUNY Albany, as well as to adults in the community. She is currently at work on a second collection of poems, called “Wild Joy of Receiving” and is the poetry editor for Judith. She lives in upstate New York.

Before I Go: Writing the Ethical Will
2025-11-13 13:00 - 14:30 | Zoom
Thursday, November 13, 2025
1-2:30 p.m. EST
$18

Living wills address the physical body. Financial wills protect property. But an ethical will is a gift of the heart and spirit—a way to pass along the stories, values, and wisdom that have shaped your life.
In this workshop with memoirist Ellen Blum Barish, you’ll be invited to slow down, reflect, and give voice to the memories and teachings that matter most to you. Together, we’ll explore how writing can help you express what sustains your hope, the values that guide you, and the ways you’ve experienced the presence of God or the sacred. Through thoughtful prompts, journaling time, and opportunities for gentle sharing, you’ll begin shaping words that carry your love, faith, and spirit forward.
You’ll leave not only with the beginnings of an ethical will, but also with a renewed sense of connection to your own life story—and with tools to continue this meaningful work at home. This is not about being a “writer,” but about finding your voice and discovering how your words can become a legacy for the people you love and for generations yet to come. No prior writing experience is needed—just your willingness to show up with an open heart.
This event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Ellen Blum Barish is the author of the spiritual memoir Seven Springs (Shanti Arts, 2021), the essay collection Views from the Home Office Window (Adams Street Publishing, 2007), and a contributor to Chicago Storytellers From Stage to Page (Chicago Story Press, 2020). You can find her personal essays in Tablet, Lilith, Brevity’s Blog, Full Grown People, Literary Mama, and The Chicago Tribune and hear them on Chicago Public Radio. She founded the literary publication Thread, which earned four notables in Best American Essays. Ellen has taught writing at Northwestern University, Chicago-area synagogues, and writer’s studios, including Story Studio Chicago and Lighthouse Lit Fest. She works privately with writers on essay collections and memoir.

Balancing Gratitude and Grief: A Pre-Thanksgiving Writing Ritual
2025-11-25 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Tuesday, November 25, 2025
12-1:30 p.m. EST

As Thanksgiving approaches, many of us hold both gratitude and grief—love for what we have and longing for what’s been lost. In this special session, we’ll explore how Jewish tradition honors both emotions and how we can give voice to them through poetry, prayer, and ritual.

Join Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer, Ritualwell’s Director of Virtual Content and Programs, for a reflective and creative gathering that invites you to bring your full heart to the holiday. You’ll be guided to create your own words and rituals that bring sacred awareness to your Thanksgiving table—and to everyday moments of gratitude and remembrance.

This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Gabrielle Ariella Kaplan-Mayer is Ritualwell’s Director of Virtual Content and Programs. She is a spiritual director, author and educator whose work focuses on spirituality, creativity and disability. Her personal essays have been featured in Tablet, Shondaland, NBCThink, Wisdom Daily, WHYY and many other publications and she has published several nonfiction books as well as plays for children. Gabrielle is currently working on a memoir about the power of intuition and ongoing conversations with her ancestors. She writes a Substack newsletter called “Journey With The Seasons,” a weekly practice of meditative reading with creative self-expression prompts. Gabrielle holds a BFA in theater and creative writing from Emerson College and an MA in Jewish Studies from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.

Rekindling Light and Joy Through Writing & Art
2025-12-04 13:00 - 14:30, 2025-12-11 13:00 - 14:30, 2025-12-18 13:00 - 14:30 | Zoom
Thursdays, December 4, 11 & 18, 2025
1-2:30 p.m. EST
$154

Remember: Joy is not merely incidental to your spiritual quest. It is vital. – Reb Nachman of Breslov

In times of personal and collective darkness, how do you stay inspired and revive your creative spirit?

You don’t have to do it alone.
In this workshop, poet and painter Cathleen Cohen and essayist and memoirist Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer will guide you through Jewish texts, poetry, and creative exercises. Together, you’ll explore ways to rediscover joy and rekindle your creative passion in honor of Hanukkah, so that you can step into Hanukkah and the winter season with a renewed sense of inner light.
Whether you’re just beginning your creative journey or you’ve been writing or making art for years, this workshop invites you to discover fresh techniques and pathways that will deepen your connections and nurture joy as a spiritual practice.

All sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Cathleen Cohen was the 2019 Poet Laureate of Montgomery County, PA. A painter and teacher, she founded the We the Poets program at ArtWell, an arts education non-profit in Philadelphia. Her poems appear in journals such as Apiary, Baltimore Review, Cagibi, East Coast Ink, 6ix, North of Oxford, One Art, Passager, Philadelphia Stories, Rockvale Review and Rogue Agent. Camera Obscura (chapbook, Moonstone Press), appeared in 2017 and Etching the Ghost (Atmosphere Press) in 2021. She received the Interfaith Relations Award from the Montgomery County PA Human Rights Commission and the Public Service Award from National Association of Poetry Therapy. Her paintings are on view at Cerulean Arts Gallery (ceruleanarts.com).

Gabrielle Ariella Kaplan-Mayer is Ritualwell’s Director of Virtual Content and Programs. She is an author and educator whose work focuses on spirituality, creativity and disability. Her personal essays have been featured in Tablet, Shondaland, NBCThink, Wisdom Daily, WHYY and many other publications and she has published several nonfiction books as well as plays for children. Gabrielle is currently working on a memoir about the power of intuition and ongoing conversations with her ancestors. She writes a Substack newsletter called “Journey With The Seasons,” a weekly practice of meditative reading with creative self-expression prompts.
Gabrielle holds a BFA in theater and creative writing from Emerson College and an MA in Jewish Studies from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.

Magnify the Light: Hanukkah 5786/2025
2025-12-17 13:00 - 14:00 | Zoom
Wednesday, December 17, 2025
1-2 p.m. EST
$18

Hanukkah calls us to notice the light — even when the world feels dim.
This year, Ritualwell invites you to Magnify the Light, a special Hanukkah event and eight-night practice of reflection, creativity, and renewal.
In a time of worldwide darkness — both literal and metaphorical — we gather to recognize, amplify, and tend to the many lights that still shine. History teaches that the way forward in dark times is to follow the lights of hope, connection, compassion, and justice, even when it feels difficult. A single spark can grow into a flame, and a flame into a fire. But first, we begin with a spark.
Guided by mindfulness teacher Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein, we’ll gather on December 17 to meditate, reflect, and learn together, opening space to nurture awareness and deepen our presence through the light of Hanukkah.
This experience comes with a new creative booklet for Hanukkah. For eight nights, as you kindle your hanukkiah and set aside a pause in your day, we invite you to open the booklet — a collection of readings from Ritualwell writers, prompts, and creative invitations designed to awaken your awareness of light in its many forms.
Each night, you can:

Pause in ritual to light the candles and name a light of justice in our world.

Reflect on a short reading that invites us to see the lights among us.

Engage with a creative prompt that invites your expression.

Renew your personal spirit and our shared communal vision.

Bring your candles, your curiosity, your voice, and your yearning. Let’s kindle together — and let the light we do see grow warm and wide. Your printable Magnify the Light PDF booklet will be sent to you electronically before Hanukkah begins.
This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Daniel Raphael Silverstein is a rabbi, educator, meditation teacher and MC/poet. He lives in Israel with his family, where he directs Applied Jewish Spirituality, an online portal which makes the transformative spiritual wisdom of our tradition accessible to all who seek it. Daniel is an accredited teacher of Jewish Mindfulness Meditation and regularly teaches classes and retreats. He was born and raised in London and received a BA from the University of Cambridge and an MA from Warwick University. After receiving semikha from Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School, he served as Director of Jewish Life and Learning for Hillel of Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA. Daniel has performed and facilitated all over the world as a spoken word artist, MC, and creative educator, and the Jewish Week selected him as one of their “36 Under 36” young innovators reshaping the Jewish community. Daniel is a cofounder of Lines of Faith, a Muslim-Jewish hip hop and poetry collective that uses performances and workshops to challenge prejudice and build meaningful bonds between communities.

Nia into the New Year
2026-01-05 13:00 - 14:30 | Zoom
Monday, January 5, 2026
1-2:30 p.m. EST
$18

Start 2026 in active movement and flow of you body and creativity through the practice of Nia!

Join the Ritualwell community and Nia instructor Janice Steinberg (who is also one of our Advot members) to engage your body, spirit and creativity through Nia movement followed by prompts for reflection and writing. No experience needed.

Nia is based on the philosophy that everyone can enhance their potential for a healthy, meaningful life by engaging their senses and listening compassionately to their bodies. While it is adaptable to individual needs and abilities, its core principle is finding your body’s joy of movement, whether that’s swaying gently in a chair or dancing. Nia is low-impact and designed to be done barefoot. But it’s fine to wear tennis or jazz-dance shoes if that’s best for you. What you’ll need is a clear space so you have room to move, or, if you choose to stay seated that will work, too.

Have writing materials at hand. You may want art materials, as well.

This online session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

A lifelong search for embodied spirituality led Janice Steinberg to the rich body-mind-spirit practice of Nia. She holds a Black Belt in Nia and has been teaching for 17 years. Her spring retreat in Italy, “Dance into Ancient Wisdom,” combines movement and the Kabbalah Tree of Life. She is also an author. Her novel The Tin Horse was published by Random House, and she has a five-book mystery series published by Berkley.

The 10 Rules of Writing With Etgar Keret
2026-01-11 13:00 - 14:30 | Zoom
Sunday, January 11, 2026
1:00 -2:30 p.m. EST
$54

Join us for an exclusive gathering with acclaimed Israeli writer Etgar Keret, beloved for his wildly imaginative short stories, wit, and deep humanity. In this special session for the Ritualwell community, Keret will share his “10 Rules for Writers”—hard-earned wisdom that’s as funny and surprising as his fiction.

Drawing on decades of literary success, Keret will explore how to nurture creativity, embrace imperfection, and find your truest voice on the page. Whether you’re an experienced author, a devoted reader, or just beginning to write, this event will spark new ways of thinking about storytelling and the art of connection through words.

Come ready to be inspired, laugh, and see writing—and the Jewish literary imagination—in a whole new light.

This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Jewish Writers’ Circles Members: Please enter your promo code on the second page. Click the “Next” button, then enter it as a promo code, not a membership code.

Etgar Keret is a celebrated Israeli writer known for his inventive short stories, graphic novels, and screenwriting for film and television. His work—marked by its surreal humor and emotional depth—has captivated global audiences and been translated into dozens of languages. Keret is the author of acclaimed collections including Missing Kissinger, Suddenly a Knock on the Door, and Fly Already, which won the prestigious Sapir Prize. His storytelling has also found new life on screen: Jellyfish, which he co-directed with his wife Shira Geffen, earned the Camera d’Or at Cannes in 2007. Additionally, Keret is a recipient of France’s Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and the Charles Bronfman Prize, recognizing his humanitarian vision and international cultural impact. He currently serves as the MFA Director for JTS’s new MFA in creative writing.

Torah Metaphors: Connecting Between Biblical Figures and Our Lives
2026-01-22 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Thursday, January 22, 2026
12-1:30 p.m. EST
$18
Do you ever find yourself identifying more with Jonathan’s quiet sacrifice than David’s victory? Do you wonder whether Leah could truly comfort Dinah, or how you feel about Sarah’s choices? Torah characters carry deep emotional stories—and you may find pieces of yourself reflected in them.
In this introductory session, you’ll explore your own reactions to select women and men of the Torah. We’ll ask: Where do their stories meet yours? How do their struggles echo the ones you face today?
Using Torah texts as creative sparks, you’ll be invited to write directly to a biblical character—responding to their dilemmas, imagining conversations, and drawing meaningful analogies to your own life. What would you say to Esau about forgiveness?
How might it feel to step into Jochebed’s courage as she places baby Moses into the reeds?
The Torah is timeless, and its dramas often mirror the challenges we navigate right now. Come join a warm, lively exploration of these powerful metaphors—and discover how they can deepen and enliven your writing.
This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.
Jacqueline Jules is an award-winning author, poet, teacher, and librarian. Her poetry books include Manna in the Morning (Kelsay Books, 2021), Itzhak Perlman’s Broken String, winner of the 2016 Helen Kay Chapbook Prize from Evening Street Press, and Smoke at the Pentagon: Poems to Remember (Bushel & Peck, 2023). Her individual poems have appeared in over 100 journals. Her books for young readers include Sydney Taylor Honor Award winners: Sarah Laughs, Benjamin and the Silver Goblet, and Drop by Drop: A Story of Rabbi Akiva. Her picture book, Moses and the Runaway Lamb, was a Junior Library Guild selection. She has taught writing classes through the Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Maryland and presented workshops at numerous conferences. She is also a student of Mussar and a book club leader. You can visit her website at www.jacquelinejules.com and read her poetry online at her blog.

Beyond the Eulogy
2026-01-27 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Tuesday, January 27, 2026
12-1:30 p.m.
$18

For capturing the ones we’ve loved and lost so that they can be known to others, we have eulogies and obituaries. But how do we honor the quieter, deeper truth—the mark that a loved one has left within us?
In this gathering with memoirist Ellen Blum Barish, you are invited to gently explore the unique imprint someone dear has made on your life. Together, we’ll open space for memory, feeling, and reflection—considering not just who they were, but how they continue to shape who you are becoming.
What does that inner legacy look like? What does it feel like in your body, your language, your creative spirit?
Through shared readings from memoir and personal essays, warm conversation, and guided prompts, you’ll begin crafting a piece of writing that honors this personal inheritance. You’ll leave with the beginnings of a meaningful story—one that brings your loved one forward in a way only you can.

This event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Ellen Blum Barish is the author of the spiritual memoir Seven Springs (Shanti Arts, 2021), the essay collection Views from the Home Office Window (Adams Street Publishing, 2007), and a contributor to Chicago Storytellers From Stage to Page (Chicago Story Press, 2020). You can find her personal essays in Tablet, Lilith, Brevity’s Blog, Full Grown People, Literary Mama, and The Chicago Tribune and hear them on Chicago Public Radio. She founded the literary publication Thread, which earned four notables in Best American Essays. Ellen has taught writing at Northwestern University, Chicago-area synagogues, and writer’s studios, including Story Studio Chicago and Lighthouse Lit Fest. She works privately with writers on essay collections and memoir.

Oneg Shabbat: A New Table Companion
2026-02-02 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
Monday, February 2, 2026
12-1:00 p.m. EST

You are invited into a rich, behind-the-scenes exploration of Oneg Shabbat: A Sabbath Evening Table Companion, the new publication edited by Rabbis Sandy Sasso and Jeffrey Schein and published by The Mordecai Kaplan Center for Jewish Peoplehood.
In this event, Sandy and Jeff will open the creative curtain and share the inspirations, questions, and intentions that shaped this beautiful volume. You’ll discover the many ways the Companion can enrich your own Shabbat practice—whether used personally, with family and friends, or as a resource for community gatherings.
You’ll also hear directly from several contributors—an artist, a poet, and a musician—who will speak about the creative sparks behind their work and how Shabbat shaped their offerings. Together, we’ll explore the new digital resource and the pathways it opens for meaningful, accessible celebration.
This session is designed for anyone who creates, curates, or simply loves contemporary Jewish liturgy—all who turn to Ritualwell for inspiration and connection. You’ll leave with fresh ideas, creative insight, and new ways to bring Shabbat joyfully to your table and community.
Rabbi Sandy Sasso is the author of the nationally acclaimed children’s books. Her children’s book, The Shemah in the Mezuzah won the 2012 National Jewish Book Award for Best Illustrated Children’s Book. She is the recipient of an Indiana Author’s Award. In 2018 she received the Indiana Author’s Award for Best Regional Author.

Jeffrey Schein is the past Executive and current Senior Consultant for Jewish Education of the Mordecai Kaplan Center for Jewish Peoplehood. He has been a leading figure in Reconstuctionist Jewish Education the past fifty years and is a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (1977). He has authored 50 articles and a dozen books used in the education of Rabbis and Jewish educators.

Drawing from Torah: A Generative Jewish Poetry Workshop
2026-02-15 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Sunday, February 15th, 2026
12-1:30 p.m. EST

How do poets weave Jewish imagery, Torah stories, and sacred language into their work in ways that feel alive and authentic? And how might you do the same in your own poetry?

This generative poetry workshop invites you to explore Jewish themes through reading, writing, and conversation. Together, we’ll read poems by writers such as John Keats, Sharon Olds, Dan Pagis, Yehoshua November, Marie Howe, and Lucille Clifton—poets who draw on the Hebrew Bible and other Jewish texts to shape their work. We’ll look closely at how these writers transform ancient stories and symbols into powerful, contemporary poems.

You’ll be guided through writing prompts inspired by these texts and poems, with a special focus on moments from the Torah that spark imagination, memory, and meaning. During the session, you’ll have time to write, share your work (as you feel comfortable), and receive thoughtful, supportive feedback.

This workshop is open to anyone interested in reading and writing poetry with Jewish themes—whether you’re an experienced poet or just beginning, and whether your connection to Jewish texts is deep, curious, or newly forming.

This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Dr. Eve Grubin is the author of the book of poems Boat of Letters (Four Way Books). She is also the author of Morning Prayer (Sheep Meadow Press), The House of Our First Loving (Rack Press) and Grief Dialogue (Rack Press). Eve holds a PhD on the poetics of reticence, and she is a lecturer at NYU London and a tutor at the Poetry School.

Lifting the Threads: Writing Past and Present
2026-02-17 12:00 - 13:30, 2026-02-24 12:00 - 13:30, 2026-03-03 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Tuesday, Feb 17 & 24 and March 3, 2026
12-1:30 p.m.
$154

As storytellers, how do we balance our present lived experience with the past that shapes it? In Jewish tradition, memory and narrative carry profound weight—from the retelling of ancestral journeys in the Torah to the intimate stories passed through our families. In this 3-week workshop, we’ll explore strategies for seamlessly integrating backstory, experimenting with time shifts to deepen meaning rather than interrupt narrative flow. Through readings, discussion, and writing prompts, we will move fluidly between temporal layers—the “forward momentum” of the lived story and the “backwards glance” demanded by memory.

By the end of the workshop, you will produce a short memoir piece that demonstrates fluid interplay between present and past—using backstory as a source of resonance, not digression, and honoring the threads of memory that connect us to our histories and communities.

All sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Megan Vered writes about family, friendship, and the dazzle of daily life. Megan lives in Marin County, where she facilitates local, international, and Jewish-themed writing groups. Her essays and interviews have appeared in HuffPost, Kveller, The Jewish Writing Project, High Country News, the Los Angeles Review of Books, and the Writer’s Chronicle, among others. Megan holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts and chairs the board of Heyday Books. Learn more about her work at www.meganvered.com

Exploring Disability Torah: Text, Reflection, and Creative Voice
2026-02-23 12:00 - 13:30 | Zoom
Monday, February 23, 2026
12-1:30 p.m. EST

Join Ritualwell and the Disability Torah Project for a powerful, inclusive gathering exploring disability, Jewish text, and creative expression. We’ll hear from Mat Wilson, Founder and Director of the Disability Torah Project, and a dynamic panel of writers including Dr. Amanda Mbuvi and rabbinical students Raphael Morris and Nora Chernov, working at the crossroads of disability and Torah wisdom, then move into a guided text-study session designed to invite your own reflection and writing.

Through a short writing prompt, you’ll have the chance to respond to what you’ve read and experienced, exploring how disability Torah can deepen our communal conversations, spiritual imagination, and sense of connection.

This event welcomes everyone—whether you identify as disabled or nondisabled, whether you’re a seasoned text-studier or new to it. Come ready to listen, reflect, and write in a space of curiosity, care, and shared meaning-making.

This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Mat Wilson (he/him) enjoys board and video games, road trips big and small, and any opportunity to be in the water. They discovered a love for Torah study through the art of source sheet creation and are currently expanding their written reflections through the Disability Torah Project. Outside of their free time, Mat is a student at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and is pursuing a Master’s in Nonprofit Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania.

Amanda Beckenstein Mbuvi, Ph.D., is a scholar and teacher with expertise in Tanakh, ethics, and multifaith studies, and a special interest in the way stories shape communal identity. In addition to serving as the director of the Center for Jewish Ethics, she also helps students with disabilities get the accommodations they need to participate in the RRC learning community. Mbuvi is passionate about dynamic, inclusive Jewish communities that cultivate what she likes to call “blessed interdependence.” In addition to numerous scholarly articles, she is author of the 2016 book, Belonging in Genesis: Biblical Israel and the Politics of Identity Formation, published by Baylor University Press.

Nora Chernov (she/her) is a student at the Reconstructist Rabbinical College where she serves as the Advanced Intern for Community Life and assists in the RRC Beit Midrash. Nora is a passionate student and teacher of text, especially all things Talmud. When not at RRC she can be found going on long drives listening to podcasts and playing all manner of board games.

Raphael Morris (he/they) is an AuDHD rabbinical student at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. He feels privileged to be part of an intellectual tradition where his preferred modes of cognition, learning, and communication are not just tolerated but actively valued. In his spare time, he enjoys wiki walking, TTRPGs, Talmud, long rambling conversations and anything else tangential.

Uncovering Feminine Strength and Wisdom
2026-02-24 14:00 - 15:00 | Zoom
Tuesday, February 24, 2026
2-3:00 p.m.
We invite you to join us and sample our upcoming Immersion, Sarah and Hagar: Uncovering Feminine Strength and Wisdom in community. Join poet Tzivia and Ritualwell’s Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer for an interactive conversation on Sarah, Hagar, and feminine wisdom, followed by a creative writing prompt and time for sharing what we uncover. Consider it an opening doorway—if you’re drawn in, the full series awaits.
To join us, register here.

Tzivia Gover is the author of ‘Dreaming on the Page: Tap into Your Midnight Mind to Supercharge Your Writing‘, and other books about dreams, writing, and everyday joy. She is the creator of ‘The Life of H: Sarah, Reimagined’ an online poetry project. The founder of 350 Dreamers, an online international community dreaming for global healing in this time of climate crisis, Tzivia is a board member of the International Association for the Study of Dreams and a past Director at the Institute for Dream Studies. Tzivia is a Certified Dreamwork Professional and a Certified Proprioceptive Writing Instructor. She has her MFA in writing from Columbia University, and has taught in college and community settings domestically and abroad. Learn more at www.thirdhousemoon.com and https://tziviagover.substack.com.
Gabrielle Ariella Kaplan-Mayer is Ritualwell’s Director of Virtual Content and Programs. She is an author and educator whose work focuses on spirituality, creativity and disability. Her personal essays have been featured in Tablet, Shondaland, NBCThink, Wisdom Daily, WHYY and many other publications and she has published several nonfiction books as well as plays for children. Gabrielle is currently working on a memoir about the power of intuition and ongoing conversations with her ancestors. She writes a Substack newsletter called “Journey With The Seasons,” a weekly practice of meditative reading with creative self-expression prompts. Gabrielle holds a BFA in theater and creative writing from Emerson College and an MA in Jewish Studies from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.

Purim & the Poetry of Resistance
2026-02-26 20:00 - 21:30 | Zoom
Thursday, February 26, 2026
8-9:30 p.m. EST
$18

Whether Purim is your favorite, somewhat problematic holiday or the source of some of your least favorite rabbinic takes, this generative poetry workshop invites you to unpack, reclaim, and rewrite the sacred words we need now.

Led by poet Anna Goodman Herrick, author of A Speaker is a Wilderness: Poems on the Sacred Path from Broken Whole , this Ritualwell gathering turns to the Book of Esther as a text of hiddenness, inversion, and holy disruption. Purim asks us to question power, unmask false authority, and listen for voices that have been pushed to the margins—including our own.

Through playful, mystical writing prompts and shared reflection, you’ll craft poems, blessings, and sacred language rooted in resistance, courage, and joy. Open to both new and seasoned writers; no prior writing experience is necessary. Come ready to play with language, embrace the chaos, and enter Purim as a time of celebration, courage, and creative rebellion.

This event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Anna Goodman Herrick is the author of A Speaker is a Wilderness: Poems on the Sacred Path from Broken Whole (Monkfish, 2024). They work at the intersection of spirituality, sacred words, and human rights, towards collective liberation. Anna has performed their poetry at the Emily Dickinson Museum, Patagonia’s Earth Day, and One Billion Rising’s Artist Uprising at the El Paso Border, and shared their work at the Library of Congress, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and Bloomsday on Broadway. They have poetry in Spirituality + Health Magazine, Rattle, and The Los Angeles Press. Anna has created work for television and branded content for Teen Vogue, Sony, ABC Family, Oprah Winfrey Network, MTV, and the Sundance Channel, and created installations based on their poetry for museums and galleries worldwide.

Poems of Freedom: A Reading & Writing Experience
2026-03-17 20:00 - 21:30 | Zoom
Tuesday, March 17, 2026
8-9:30 p.m. EST

Prepare for Passover—the festival of liberation—through poetry, reflection, and creative expression. Join Ritualwell and the Philly Yetzirah Regional Chapter for a special reading, sharing poems inspired by themes of freedom, liberation, and the Passover story.

After the reading, you’ll be invited into a generative writing experience with a guided prompt designed to help you begin crafting your own poems of freedom. Whether you’re a seasoned writer or simply curious, you’ll have space to write, reflect, and explore what liberation means in your own life and in our collective moment. Featured poets are Cathleen Cohen, Henry Israeli, Lynn Levin and Maya Pindyck.

This event is a beautiful way to enter the Passover mindset—through listening, creativity, and shared inspiration. All are welcome; no prior writing experience is necessary.

This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Cathleen Cohen was the 2019 Poet Laureate of Montgomery County, PA. She created the We the Poets program for children from diverse cultural and faith communities (www.theartwell.org). Currently she teaches poetry and painting through local venues, including Ritualwell, Or Zarua, Cerulean Arts Gallery and Kol Tzedek. Her poems appear in literary journals and four collections: Camera Obscura (2017, Moonstone Press), Etching the Ghost (2021, Atmosphere Press) and Sparks and Disperses (2021, Cornerstone Press) and Murmurations (2024, Moonstone Press). Three of her poems were nominated for Pushcart Prizes. Her artwork is available through Cerulean Arts Gallery (https://ceruleanarts.com/pages/cathleen-cohen).

Henry Israeli is the author of four poetry collections, most recently Our Age of Anxiety (White Pine Poetry Prize: 2019), and god’s breath hovering across the waters, (Four Way Books: 2016), and as editor, Lords of Misrule: 20 Years of Saturnalia Books (Saturnalia: 2022). His next collection, Between the Trees (or the Lonely Nowhere) will be published by Four Way Books in 2028. He is also the translator of three critically acclaimed books by Albanian poet Luljeta Lleshanaku. His poetry has appeared in numerous journals including American Poetry Review, Boston Review, Plume, and The Harvard Review, as well as several anthologies including Best American Poetry 2025. He is Director of Jewish Studies, Drexel University; Director of Drexel Writing Festival; and Teaching Professor, Drexel University.

Lynn Levin is a poet and writer. She is the author of nine books, most recently the short story collection House Parties (2023) and the poetry collection The Minor Virtues (2020). Her work has appeared in Boulevard, Plume, Smartish Pace, Southwest Review, Kerem, Shofar, Nashim, Jewish Fiction Journal, and several anthologies including The Bloomsbury Anthology of Contemporary Jewish American Poetry, The Torah: A Women’s Commentary, and Keystone Poetry: Contemporary Poets on Pennsylvania. She teaches at Drexel University and for many years taught creative writing at the University of Pennsylvania. Her website is lynnlevinpoet.com.

Maya Pindyck’s third book of poems, Impossible Belonging (2023), won the Philip Levine Prize for Poetry and was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. Her poems have recently appeared or are forthcoming in American Poetry Review, Ploughshares, Plume, GRANTA (Hebrew edition), Beloit Poetry Journal, and Seneca Review. A recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship, Maya is an associate professor and director of Writing at Moore College of Art & Design in Philadelphia, and co-author of the educational textbook A Poetry Pedagogy for Teachers (2022). She grew up in Boston and Tel Aviv. Her website is mayapindyck.com.

Holding The Sweet and The Bitter: Four New Questions for Passover 2026
2026-04-01 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
How do I hold a sprig of parsley — fresh as the first days of spring — and dip it into salt water, the taste of tears? How do I sing familiar songs with joy while also carrying fear, grief, or anger about the world around me? And how do I leave the Passover seder not only remembering liberation, but claiming joy and resilience for the days ahead?

To spark thoughtful and heartfelt conversation, the Ritualwell team has created a new collection of curated Passover resources, including four new questions to complement the traditional Four Questions. This printable PDF will be delivered electronically and accessible online, ready to bring to your table when you register.

You’ll also receive a recording of our meaningful event with Rabbi Isabel de Koninck reflecting on beloved Passover traditions, rituals, and the questions you are bringing to the holiday.

Creative Containers: Writing With Poetic Forms
2026-04-16 12:30 - 13:30 | Zoom
April 16, 23 & 30 and May 7, 2026
12-1:30 p.m. ET
$180

Creative containers — ranging from sonnets and sonnenizios, to pantoums and triolets — can offer structure while also inviting depth, complexity, and even surprise into your writing! In this series, poet and author Susan Comninos will guide participants through the rich possibilities of using poetic forms as tools for cohesion and focus, as well as exploration, expression, and musicality. Taking as our springboards poems by Jewish voices or on Jewish themes (including work by Rochelle Nameroff, Jaqueline Osherow, Emma Lazarus and Robert Morgan), we’ll play with prompts and shared writing time to help you develop your own poetic voice within the shape of a received form.
In each session we’ll:

Learn techniques of specific forms and how they shape content and create tone;
Read and discuss examples that illuminate craft and purpose;
Practice generative prompts tailored to the form of the day; and
Share work in a supportive environment with thoughtful feedback.

This workshop is open to writers of all levels — from beginners curious about form to experienced writers looking to stretch their practice!
This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.
Susan Comninos is the author of a recent book of poems, “Out of Nowhere” (SFA Press/Texas A&M, 2022). Her individual poems have appeared in the Harvard Review Online, Rattle, The Common, Prairie Schooner and North American Review, among others. She’s taught writing to undergraduates at Siena College, The College of St. Rose, and SUNY Albany, as well as adults in the community. At present, she serves as poetry editor of Judith magazine and is at work on a second collection of poems, “Wild Joy of Receiving.” The title poem, published by The Baltimore Review, is forthcoming this spring in the anthology “The Color Wheel” (Terrapin Books, 2026).

The Art of the Unexpected: A House Parties Reading
2026-04-27 13:00 - 14:00 | Zoom
April 27, 2026
1-2:00 p.m.

Join us for an intimate book talk and reading with Lynn Levin, acclaimed poet, writer, and author of the celebrated short story collection House Parties. In this special Ritualwell gathering, Lynn will read from her vividly imagined, witty, and deeply humane stories that traverse everyday moments, unexpected predicaments, and unforgettable characters.

With her poet’s eye and storyteller’s heart, she invites us into narratives that are both surprising and resonant, ranging from the comic and absurd to the quietly profound. Whether you write, read, or simply love great storytelling, come be inspired by Lynn’s craft, engage with her work, and explore what makes these stories linger in the mind long after the last page.

This session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.

Lynn Levin is a poet and writer. She is the author of nine books, most recently the short story collection House Parties (2023) and the poetry collection The Minor Virtues (2020). Her work has appeared in Boulevard, Plume, Smartish Pace, Southwest Review, Kerem, Shofar, Nashim, Jewish Fiction Journal, and several anthologies including The Bloomsbury Anthology of Contemporary Jewish American Poetry, The Torah: A Women’s Commentary, and Keystone Poetry: Contemporary Poets on Pennsylvania. She teaches at Drexel University and for many years taught creative writing at the University of Pennsylvania. Her website is lynnlevinpoet.com.

Writing Memoir from Photos
2026-05-04 13:00 - 14:30 | Zoom
Mondays, May 4, 11 & 18, 2026
1-2:30 p.m.
$154

Photographs are powerful vessels of memory—small artifacts that live in albums, frames, and on our phones, holding moments of joy, longing, love, and loss.
In this three-week memoir writing workshop, led by Lisa Grunberger, we will explore how photos can serve as meaningful starting points for writing about the past. Together, we’ll consider how images invite stories forward, helping us approach both cherished memories and more difficult ones with care.
Alongside our own writing, we will engage with reflections on photography from writers such as Susan Sontag and John Berger. Through guided prompts and gentle exercises, participants will use personal photographs to generate new creative work, including short “micro-memoirs” that can stand alone or grow into longer pieces.
Each session will include time for sharing, discussion, and supportive feedback. Working with photos can be a tender, accessible way to honor our experiences and deepen the stories we carry.
All sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.
Poetry Pushcart nominee and Temple University English Professor Lisa Grunberger is a first-generation American writer. Her award-winning poetry book For the Future of Girls is a lyrical reflection on life as a woman, a mother, and a daughter of Holocaust survivors. It was nominated for an Eric Hoffer Independent Press award. She’s the author of Yiddish Yoga: Ruthie’s Adventures in Love, Loss and the Lotus Position (Harper Collins); Her poems appear in Breaking the Glass: A Contemporary Jewish Poetry Anthology (The Laurel Review, 2023). A widely published writer, her work has appeared in The New York Times, Newsday, The Southern Review, The Paterson Literary Review, Mudfish, Bridges, Of the Book Press, The Jewish Literary Journal, and Manna Songs: Stories of Jewish Culture and Heritage (ELJ Editions), Crab Orchard Review, Mom Egg Review, The Baffler. She’s been translated into Slovenian, Russian, Spanish, Yiddish.

ALMOST PREGNANT, her play about infertility and motherhood, is published by Next Stage Press; Her play, Alexa Talks to Rebecca won the Audience Choice Award at the Squeaky Bicycle Theatre. She’s working on a memoir called Me and My Makers: A Memoir of Adoption, Genes and Love.
