Writers keep quiet over drinks as Pete’s Candy Store series enters its ‘senior year’

At Pete’s Candy Store in Williamsburg, Tuesday evenings from 5 to 7 p.m. belong to people who come to a bar to write without saying a word. Silent Writing Happy Hour has returned for a fourth year.

Organizers have dubbed the season the “senior year,” and it brings fresh programming. Once a month, on the first Tuesday, there are now senior seminars.

How the Williamsburg silent writing night works

An honorary host kicks things off by reading something that inspired them, which can be anything from a John Steinbeck novel to a Boar’s Head Company report. At 5:15 p.m. sharp the pens come out, and nobody talks for roughly 30 to 45 minutes.

Once time is up, that night’s host, nicknamed the “sacrificial lamb,” must read aloud what they produced, whether it turned out good or bad. Anyone else who wants to share goes next. Only one rule applies: you may read only work written in the room that evening. Pieces can also be posted to the event’s website.

Writing is a solitary pursuit, said co-creator Jamie Hook. “But I find that it’s best practiced in a group,” he said. A small handful of regulars has grown into a real community, and every writer who shows up leaves with an audience.

First-Tuesday submission party

Monthly, after the usual session, an extended edition follows from 7 to 9 p.m. It doubles as a submission party, the one time attendees get to revise their pages and swap ideas with fellow writers about where to send them.

Hook launched the series in fall 2023. He and a few friends had been writing together in his apartment and found the group setting kept them productive. His friendship with Andy McDowell, who owns the bar, gave the idea a home. To close out the senior year, a graduation ceremony is planned for May or June 2027, and nothing has been decided about what happens next.