Lectures
Literary Citizenship: What It Is and How to Do It
Crystal Oliver
In this lecture, we will explore the concept of literary citizenship and discuss ways to become more engaged in the literary community. We will define literary citizenship, discuss the benefits of being a literary citizen, and provide tips on how to get involved.
The Great Art of Writing Trauma
Eva Freeman
There has been a recent spike in narratives that deal with intergenerational trauma. Voices that we have never heard before are articulating these experiences in vivid detail. And yet they find themselves very much within an ongoing American literary tradition. This lecture will explore Faulkner, Morrison, Ward, and that master of writing trauma, Hemingway, in an effort to identify hallmarks of the form and perhaps most importantly, the impact writing this material has on the writer.
Craft Talks
How to Plot a Novel
Matt Burgess
As a group, over the course of an hour, with much second-guessing and argument, we will plot an original novel from start to finish.
A Clover and One Bee: Writing Texts with Vitality
Heather Green
What differentiates memorable writing from work that’s merely competent? How do we write poems and prose that feel alive? Emily Dickinson suggests “To make a prairie it takes […] one clover and one bee / And revery.” We’ll read a few texts, and consider and test several strategies for writing and revision to develop the spark of a text, removing what obscures it, and clarifying its light. If each imagined prairie opens a space for a reader, how do we find and introduce the bee?
Architect of Your World: Build Strong Stories with Structure & Revision
Melissa Scholes Young
This talk will consider craft approaches to structure in stories and the role of revision. From beat sheets to heroine journey models to world building, we’ll discuss creating our own maps for the stories we most want to tell.