Join the Chesterfield Writers Guild for River Valley Readings the second Wednesday of every month from 7 to 8:30 pm, September through May. Enjoy a chance to mingle with fellow authors and literary enthusiasts in a casual setting. 444 Chesterfield Center, Chesterfield, MO, 63017; (636) 519-1955

The Big Read in St. Louis will focus on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. Activities begin on October 10 with the Big Read Festival through February 2010. The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts designed to restore reading to the center of American culture. The Big Read is presented by Centene Corporation and produced by Cultural Festivals, 863-0278; email: info@culturalfestvals.com; website: www.bigread.net/index.htm

Mid Rivers Review, the literary journal of St. Charles Community College, invites submissions of poetry, short fiction, B & W art, or color cover art for the Spring 2010 issue. Deadline is January 31, 2010. Visit www.stchas.edu/midriversreview for guidelines and excerpts from previous editions.

St. Louis Writers Guild, a cutting edge literary organization, has a lecture every other month starting in January, on the third Thursday from 7-8pm at Barnes and Noble Book Store, 8871 Ladue Road, Ladue, MO 63124. Lectures are free. For more information, contact the Guild President, Rebecca Carron at 314-974-2395 or at stlwritersguild2@gmail.com. Also, check The St. Louis Writers Guild website at www.stlwritersguild.org