For many writers, the payoff comes when they see their work in print, performed onstage or screen. But at this Saturday’s inaugural Cleveland Drafts festival, works-in-progress will be the star of the show. Spearheaded by Brews + Prose, the daylong festival will feature 24 writers of all experience levels across the genres of fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and playwriting.

Chances are you’ve felt a wave of panic after hitting “send” on an email. Ian Charnas has felt it too, and that’s precisely why he came up with Email Strategy Cards—a deck of cards with suggestions on how to navigate the tricky waters of effective email communication.

A cupcake bouquet can make anyone's day—but, for some, it can make a world of difference. Enter Abolition Bakery, the brainchild of Old Brooklyn resident Rita Ballenger. Celebrating its fifth anniversary this year, the home-based bakery operation donates a portion of its proceeds to help combat a devastating issue: human trafficking.

Pop-surrealist sculptor Leslie Edwards Humez is on a mission to make contemporary art accessible to the blind with her Perceiving Art Through Sculpture (PATS) initiative. For the past six months, Edwards Humez has been creating sculptural replicas of paintings and illustrations—which are then scanned and 3D printed as a means to getting visual ideas into the hands of the blind community.

With ample greenspace, inviting residential streets, decent walkability, and an array of businesses, Old Brooklyn seems to check off many of the boxes for the modern urban family—even branding itself as “Cleveland’s accessible, family-friendly neighborhood.” But does it really live up to the hype?

Fresh Water's monthly "Free Stamp" feature rounds up the freshest free events in Cleveland.

St. Edward High School's newly-unveiled Lowe Institute for Innovation is already driving students to give back to Cleveland with an ambitious project: transitional, affordable housing for the homeless in the form of upcycled school buses.

Cities like Austin and San Francisco are typically top of mind when it comes to startup hubs, but thanks to the impact of programs like Venture for America, Cleveland may soon have an indelible spot on that list.

Wide open spaces and peaceful time for connection and relaxation aren’t normally what one might associate with a busy children’s museum, but the new “Meadow” exhibit at the Children's Museum of Cleveland is designed to deliver exactly that. Scheduled to officially open next Monday, October 1, The Meadow caters to the infant and toddler crowd as the newest addition to the museum’s lineup of four existing exhibits.
 

Every tree tells a story, but this one is for the (record) books. Aptly located behind the athletic complex at James Ford Rhodes High School, the Jesse Owens Olympic Oak tree pays homage to the track star of the same name who brought home four gold medals from the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin—and, right now, the tree is having a moment.

Driving down Pearl Road from the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo to its intersection with State Road, it’s hard not to notice the eight whimsical carrot sculptures that dot the streetscape and ponder their significance. “There has been a lot of curiosity about it,” shares Vince Reddy of LAND studio, which helped bring the project to fruition. “People are always wondering, ‘Where did these things come from?’”
 

After four years of planning, Western Reserve Distillers is set to take its spot as one of just a handful of certified organic distilleries in the country. The family-owned business—run by husband-and-wife team Ann and Kevin Thomas—celebrated its grand opening in early September.

Fresh Water's monthly "Free Stamp" feature rounds up the freshest free events in Cleveland.

Barbershops offer much more than traditional haircuts in Old Brooklyn—where barber chairs double as school desks, as psychologists’ couches, as job counselor offices, and as safe spaces. 

Like a trail of cookie crumbs, Vicki Kotris’ whole life has essentially been leading up to this moment—from making Food Network cupcake recipes at age eight to that time she traveled to New York just to try the Cronut. Now she and her husband, Steve, are preparing to launch Cleveland’s first mobile cookie dough business: the CLE Cookie Dough Co.

Where chocolate and cheese intersect, there are always plenty of foodies to be found, and this weekend’s joint pop-up between Lilly Chocolates & Confections and Old Brooklyn Cheese Company was no exception. It’s fitting these two businesses would team up at this moment in time—after all, both are poised to do big things in Old Brooklyn in the near future. 

From Beyonce to David Byrne, it’s been an impressive summer for concerts in Cleveland. As the season approaches its end, denizens of The Land will be treated to one last hurrah: the inaugural InCuya Music Festival, the first contemporary, multi-day music fest to be held within city limits in quite some time.
 

At 10:30 a.m. on September 2nd, Gateway Church Old Brooklyn will hold the first service in its brand-new home at 4542 Pearl Rd. in a shared space with Unity Lutheran Church, located on the southeast corner of Behrwald Ave. It's the hard-earned culmination of five years of community building in Old Brooklyn for pastor Tony Loseto and his wife, Beth.

Lakewood may be a huge hub for the “shop small” movement, but the personalities of the city’s emergent local businesses are anything but small. This summer, the city has welcomed two niche stores: Coven and Cleveland Curiosities. Catering to those with interests that may be off the beaten path, Coven focuses on all things witchy, while Cleveland Curiosities is packed with oddities that can’t be found anywhere else.