Like to dance? Okay, so maybe you don't dance, but you like to watch ballet, modern dance, tap and B-boys. And -- this is most important -- you understand what they're doing and whether they do it well, and you can write this assessment up in a clear and entertaining manner.

We're looking for a freelance dance writer who'll cover all the great dance that's going on in this area. You would be writing for both our print and online publication.

If interested, send three to five samples of your best work as well as a cover letter and résumé to Editor Margaret Downing at margaret.downing@houstonpress.com or to her attention at the Houston Press/ 1621 Milam Street/Suite 100/Houston, TX 77002. No phone calls, please.

John Nova Lomax

A couple of weeks ago while on staycation, I took a daylong bike ride from the northwest corner of the Inner Loop to the southeast, from just west of the Heights to and through the godforsaken little Manchester neighborhood.

Along the way, I saw some strange and wonderful things, like the scattered remnants of a Winnie the Pooh costume displayed on stanchions, a huge model of the USS Roosevelt in a Magnolia Park front yard, and a handmade memorial to a guy named Leroy in a First Ward vacant lot frequented by alcoholic codgers.

And somewhere north of 225 and south of Lawndale, seconds apart in the span of two barrio backstreet blocks, a black cat crossed my path and a loose pit bull bit my ankle. Such is cycling on the East Side.

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Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss! On March 2, everyone's favorite master of rhyme would have been 108 years old. Dr. Seuss passed away in 1991, but his legacy will forever live on. In fact, right now his legacy is as strong as ever with the March 2 release of The Lorax on the big screen.

Not too many people know that Dr. Seuss, a.k.a. Theodor Geisel, has had a checkered past. Surprisingly for someone known to entertain children, Seuss has had his hand in some very grown-up activities. He was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1904 and found his way to the prestigious Dartmouth College. For a while he was editor of the university's humor paper, but was forced to resign because he and his pals threw an alcohol-fueled rager. He went off to Oxford, on his father's wishes, but dropped out soon after.

He pursued a career in advertising, most notably at the New Jersey company Standard Oil, where he would design the company's ad campaigns for 15 years. The work he did there would set the stage for the rest of his career.

Theodor Geisel's print ad for Standard Oil

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​When ReShonda Tate Billingsley was a little girl, she loved making up stories. Her mother called it lying. Today, as a celebrated writer and national bestselling author, she continues to share her passion of storytelling, 24 books later.

ReShonda originally took up journalism, but found it lacking when she realized that she was still drawn to creating her own stories. After being rejected by numerous publishers, ReShonda decided to self-publish her first book in 1999. It eventually caught the eye of an agent at Simon & Schuster/Pocket Books, and she continues to establish herself as a force not only in the publishing industry, but on the silver screen as well. She is currently producing the film adaptation of her novel Let the Church Say Amen, and is also in the midst of turning two of her other novels, Nothing But Drama and Caught Up in the Drama, into movies. 

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What are you doing tonight? Nothing? Great. Grab your theater hat and head over to the Spring Street Studios for Mildred's Umbrella's staged theater reading series "Fresh Ink" -- in their brand-new theater space.

"Fresh Ink" isn't all that "fresh," so to speak. Mildred's originally started the play-reading series back in August and has featured the reading of a new play every few months since. The current reading, which will take place tonight at 7:30 p.m., is a new piece by the Commonwealth Writers' Prize-nominated author Graham Farrow. Farrow's play, Stay with Me Until Dawn, focuses on the unlikely relationship formed between a teenage boy, Nick, and a suspected kidnapper/killer, Redford. Farrow's other works have been produced in London and New York, and one play is currently being translated into French for a film production out of Paris.

Jennifer Decker, Mildred's Artistic Director, says they started the reading series because of the sheer volume of original work they were receiving. "Dozens of playwrights were sending me their new work," she tells us. "Zachary Doss (literary manager and associate AD) and I had a few that we thought were possibilities, but maybe needed some workshopping." And "Fresh Ink" was born!

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The Houston Press is recruiting undergraduate journalism and communications students for its Spring 2012 internship program.

By "student," we do not mean "a student of life"; we mean "currently enrolled in college" student. There's no cash offered with this gig, only college credits. Don't bother applying if this doesn't apply to you.

Still interested? Keep going.

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Inky Improv, courtesy of Spacetaker

Last night, Art Attack stopped by the Spacetaker studio to watch some improvisational artists put pen to paper (or to computer). "Inky Improv," which made its debut last year around this time, combined the forces of drawing team Sketchy Neighbors and flash fiction writers Nano Fiction.

It was a bit confusing at first. We were expecting something like "Pictionary" or Win, Lose or Draw; a fellow attendee told me that he thought it was going to be like Whose Line Is It Anyway? We were both wrong. "Inky"-goers were asked to write down a short, five-sentence phrase and drop it in a bucket. Each sketcher and writer then pulled a phrase to use as a starting-off point for their on-the-fly masterpieces. After ten minutes or so, the artists handed their work off to the writers and vice versa. The opposing discipline would then use the sketch or written piece as their own inspiration. Make sense?

It all came to a fascinating and fun fruition once the pieces were read aloud by each author while the sketch was projected on a large screen against the front wall. Once the combined work was absorbed by the audience, the original phrase was revealed, which, in most cases, made everything that much more hilarious.

Sketchy Neighbors get their draw on.

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www.shutterstock.com

Calling all journalism students! The Houston Press is recruiting undergraduate journalism and communications students for its Spring 2012 internship program.

By "student," we do not mean "a student of life"; we mean "currently enrolled in college student." There's no cash offered with this gig, only college credits. Don't bother applying if this doesn't apply to you.

Still interested? Read on!

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Photo by Nikki Metzgar

John Wayne Comunale reading his winning story.

Tuesday was the premiere evening of Houston's latest reading series, Slinging Ink. Presented by DiverseWorks and hosted at Big Star Bar, the event features four writers who have submitted pieces of fiction, nonfiction and any riff in between that address a certain theme. Initial selections are made by a blind panel and a final winner is determined by the strength of audience applause to go home with a cash prize of $100. It's like a gladiatorial deathmatch, but of words.

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Joan Marcus

Pack your bags and join us at Art Attack.

Here at Art Attack, we're always looking for new writers to go with the wonderful voices we already have.

So if you've even thought about writing for us, now could be your golden moment. We're looking for people who love the immediacy and community of blogdom. And who can be accurate, make deadline, take instruction and have a passion for reporting about their subjects.

We're looking for people who write about fashion, pop culture, architecture or ballet. We need people who aren't just event-based -- though that coverage is important too -- but also able to extrapolate, evaluate and analyze the oddities and triumphs of our time.

If interested, gather up a cover letter and résumé, along with about five samples of journalistic writing you've already done (no poems or books please) and e-mail them to margaret.downing@houstonpress.com. No phone calls please.