Vol. 15 No.3
March 2009
Community Workshop for non-MFAers
Life of a Writer
Faculty Advisory Committee for Spring 2009
Previous Newsletters
See other issues of On Extended Wings
Samantha Thornhill, a Trinidadian writer, has performed her work, lectured, and delivered writing workshops throughout the Americas and in South Africa. Her performance poem Little Odetta, inspired by a folk legend, is forthcoming from Scholastic Press in the form of a picture book for children and adults. In addition, her young adult novel Seventeen Seasons is being published by Penguin Books. Samantha earned her MFA in poetry from the University of Virginia while coaching Virginia’s only slam team, leading them to two consecutive victories. Raw and refined, diverse in subject matter and style, Samantha’s work has touched a wide spectrum of audiences regardless of age, ethnicity, level of education, and interests. In New York City she serves as writer in residence at the Bronx Academy of Letters where she teaches writing courses to middle- and high-school youth. She also fulfills her position as professor of poetry and performance at the Juilliard School. You can learn more about Samantha by visiting her website at www.samanthaspeaks.com.
Information about the Spring 2009 featured speaker, Claudia Emerson, and other residency guests lecturers is available in the March 2009 “On Extended Wings.” (top)
MFA Offers Community Workshop in Creative Writing
As previously announced, the MFA Program is offering a “Community Workshop” to creative writers May 23-30, during the spring residency. Ten Community Workshop students will participate in an 8-day non-credit writing workshop led by MFA alumna Erin Keane (Spring 2004). These students are invited to attend all MFA Residency events, including lectures and panel discussions.
Information About
the Spring 2009 Residency
Preparation for the Spring Residency
All students attending the Spring 2009 residency read and bring the assigned scripts/texts for residency (Workshop Booklets, scripts/books in common, etc.), and students (except for graduating students) should further prepare by giving serious thought to their Spring 2009 Student Semester Study Plans.
Before residency, students download the “Introducing Yourself to Your New Mentor” form from Blackboard under SEMESTERS/SPRING 2009/PREPARING FOR THE SPRING . . . The form is to be completed at home and brought to the residency. Students also put together a tentative list of titles for their individual reading lists for the upcoming semester.
In addition, returning students bring two copies of their cumulative bibliography for the group and individual conferences. For more information about what to bring to the residency, see the MFA Student Handbook, pages 65-66.
Suggested dress for the residency is casual. Do come prepared for changes in the weather. Dressing in layers is always suggested because the temperature in May can range from the 40s to the 90s, and often the temperatures inside and out are at odds. Bring an umbrella and/or raingear. (top)
Safety and Security at the Spring Residency
The MFA Office is aware of two petty-crime incidents on or near campus, both in February. In one case, a man grabbed a woman’s cell phone from her on the sidewalk during daylight hours. Another woman’s purse was snatched. Following is the memo from Campus Safety after the cell phone incident:
“Campus Safety urges the community to use caution and be aware of your surroundings while in public areas. Difficult economic times can bring out the worst behavior in people facing desperate situations.
“We ask everyone to please program our direct phone number into your cell phones: (502) 588-7180. This number will transfer to the radios we carry if we are not in our office.
“Please call Campus Safety for an escort across campus, or to your car at anytime. We have officers on duty 24/7.”
In addition, when leaving your car parked, please make sure no items of value are visible, even small items such as spare change or articles of clothing.
In general, please simply use common sense to keep yourself and your possessions safe. Travel in groups, do not flash valuables, be aware of your surroundings, and when in doubt, contact Campus Safety at the number listed above. (top)
Sign Up for Residency Student Readings
Each student (except graduating students) is encouraged to sign up for a five-minute reading. Because there are limited slots for these lunchtime and afternoon readings, third- and fourth-semester students are given the opportunity to sign up on the first Friday. Students willing to be moderators also sign up on the reading schedule on Friday. (Moderators introduce students before the reading and time the students during the readings.)
First- and second-semester students may sign up for five-minute student readings at the back of the Lectorium after Friday if slots are still available. Students who wish to read need to bring their material with them to the residency. Students should not read from their current workshop piece. Practicing beforehand ensures that the reading is within the five-minute limit.
Reminder: Thesis Discussion
During their graduation residency, graduating students meet with their mentor and two students for a 40-minute discussion of the Creative Thesis. The Thesis Discussion is a pleasant conversation about what the student has accomplished by producing a completed thesis of original writing.
At the beginning of the Thesis Discussion, the author speaks briefly about the literary influences on the writing in the thesis and about the processes of writing and revising the work. The author also speaks about a feature of the thesis that is a particular source of pride or sense of accomplishment. The author should prepare a few questions to ask the readers. Student readers prepare for the Thesis Discussion by carefully reading the thesis and taking a few notes for comments/questions to make during the discussion. The mentor facilitates and participates in the discussion. This is not a workshop session. The author does not make substantive changes to the thesis after the Thesis Discussion.
ECEs for Review
Students who would like to review Extended Critical Essays from previous semesters may do so in the MFA Office; however, all ECEs must remain in the MFA Office. ECE models for formating guidelines can be found on Blackboard. (top)
Two Sessions for Graduating Students
Graduating students meet with faculty and staff members during class orientations to discuss life after the MFA.
In a second session, graduating students meet with Post-Graduate Residency Assistants to discuss the transition from student to alumnus. This session, which was suggested by our Spring 2007 graduates and has been well received, might include discussion about how to continue setting writing goals without a packet mailing schedule, how to keep in touch with other MFAers, and how to find support from other writers.
Evaluations and Reports:
Policies and Time to Write
MFA students submit four Lecture Reports through the MFA Evaluations and Reports course on Blackboard during each residency. The Program’s policy is that three of these reports must discuss faculty or guest lectures in the student’s area of concentration. The fourth lecture report may, if students wish, discuss a plenary session. In addition, students complete one report on a faculty reading.
On the Residency Curriculum and Events Evaluation, also submitted through Blackboard, students are asked to rate faculty and guest lectures on the following scale: 4=superior, 3=good, 2=fair, 1=poor, 0=not acceptable. Students also record attendance at graduation readings and lectures. Students may use blank spaces in the residency schedule for notes.
All but rising ENG630 and graduating students complete an Editorial Reading Report, based on reading for The Louisville Review. This paper form is turned in at the end of the week. (top)
In response to student requests for more time to complete evaluations and reports, the spring residency schedule provides three periods: Tuesday evening, Friday evening, and during lunch on the last Saturday.
All ENG610 Students
In addition to orientations during the MFA Residency, all new students attend Kathleen Driskell’s lecture “Writing about Writing: Introduction to Critical Analysis.” This session introduces expectations for critical analysis and expository writing during the Spalding MFA Program. Before coming to residency, students are asked to carefully read Isabel Allende’s “And of Clay Are We Created.” The story is posted on Blackboard under Semesters>Spring 2009>Preparing for the Spring . . . Please print out and bring copy of this text to the lecture. Though this lecture is required of all ENG610 students (or any new student), all are welcome.
All ENG620 Students
All ENG620 students participate in small expository writing workshops with the Expository Writing Coach, Marcia Dalton. A few weeks before the residency, the MFA Program posts workshop booklets containing students’ Book-in-Common essays, previously submitted. ENG620 students download and print these out; they then read and annotate the collected essays and bring the booklets to the residency in order to participate fully in small workshop discussions scheduled at various times during Spring 2009 Residency.
All ENG630 Students
All ENG630 students attend two events that focus on successfully developing and writing the Extended Critical Essay. The first session is an orientation that presents the ECE schedule and introductory materials to develop for the individual conference with the ENG630 mentor; the second session is a discussion of research techniques given by Jackie Young, the director of the Spalding library. (top)
Graduating Students
All graduating students must attend a practice graduation session in The Gallery at the Brown Hotel at 4 p.m. Wednesday, May 27.
Professional Readings for Playwriting/Screenwriting
As part of their ENG640 coursework, playwriting and screenwriting students have their scripts presented in professional readings during the Spring 2009 residency. Faculty-led discussions follow each of the readings by professional actors. Please refer to the residency schedule (posted on Blackboard a few days before the residency) for times and locations. All MFA students and faculty are welcome to attend these sessions.
Playwriting Scripts
Happiness Is Overrated by Lisa Jayne
The Visit by Amina McIntyre
Screenwriting Script
Paradise by Maritza Gonzalez
Schedule Posted May 18
Times and locations for all sessions are announced in the Residency Curriculum and Events Schedule posted by noon, Monday, May 28, on Blackboard. All students should consult this schedule in order to attend the required sessions. (top)
Information About
the Summer 2009 Residency
Summer 2009 Workshop Submission
Due Date: May 20
Workshop submissions for Summer 2009 residency are due May 20. For information on selecting, formatting, and submitting material, including required page counts, see the MFA Student Handbook.
Free Wireless Internet in Barcelona
Barcelona students and faculty can access the Internet for free via the wireless connection available at each of our hotels. The Program’s experience suggests that free wireless access is a rare commodity in European hotels, and we are pleased it is available for the convenience of students and faculty members.
For students and faculty who choose not to bring a laptop computer, several Internet cafes are located near the hotels. These cafes charge an hourly rate, typically less than 2 Euros per hour.
Because You Asked
Q: Will I need to access Blackboard in Barcelona?
A: Students and faculty have two options for completing residency evaluations and reports while in Barcelona. Those who bring a laptop can take advantage of our hotels’ free wireless Internet access to submit evaluations on Blackboard (see previous article). Students who prefer to complete their evaluations and reports by hand may access and print out blank forms before they leave the country, taking the forms with them to complete in Barcelona. The MFA Office will make the blank forms available on Blackboard about a month before the residency. Watch the Thursday Memo for an announcement that the forms are available for printing. (top)
Fall 2009 Course Offering: ENG660: Teaching Practicum in Creative Writing
Students interested in registering for ENG660: Teaching Practicum in Creative Writing should contact Kathleen Driskell by Spring 2009 midsemester, August 28. The course enrollment is limited to 6 students (a minimum of 4 students is required). Names of those interested in enrolling are placed on a list, and students register in order of contact date. In some cases student seniority may also be considered for admission to the class. ENG660 is a 16-hour semester course. It augments the core courses of English 610, 620, 630, and 640, but does not substitute for any of them.
During residency, students meet in a cross-genre teaching workshop and lead discussions on submitted Worksheets. Students attend lectures outside their major areas of concentration in order to gain a wider view of the other genres they may be called upon to teach in introductory-level courses. Students not only benefit from lecture content, they also comment on the teaching methods used during those lectures. The number of residency reports required remains the same as for students enrolled in the other courses. Refer to the March 2009 “On Extended Wings” for complete information or contact Kathleen Driskell with questions at kdriskell@spalding.edu.
MFA Alumni Association
The website for the MFA Alumni Association is http://www.spaldingmfaalum.com. If you have questions or are interested in working with this group, send Terry Price an email at terry@terryprice.net. Check out the Spalding MFA Alumni Facebook page. (top)
Homecoming May 29-31
The MFA Alumni Association is planning Homecoming for May 29-31. The schedule and registration form has been sent to all alumni and is available on the MFA Alumni webpage at http://www.spaldingmfaalum.com.
While the deadline for Homecoming registration has passed, reservations are still welcome.
Alumni who are planning to attend may want to make reservations at the Brown Hotel now (502-583-1234). Be sure to ask for the Spalding Friends and Family rate, which is $129. We’ve been told the hotel is nearly full for those dates. (top)
5-year Reunion Brings Out Alums
More than thirty alumni will attend the reunion for the graduating classes of Spring 2003, Fall 2003, and Spring 2004. The event is planned in conjunction with Homecoming at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 29, at the Brown Hotel. Alumni in other classes may also attend. Faculty and staff are invited also. The cost is $30 per person/$50 for two. While the registration deadline has passed, reservations are still welcome. Email Katy at kyocom@spalding.edu.
Life of a Writer
Students, faculty, and alumni: Please email writing news to mfanewsletter@spalding.edu
Becky Browder’s short story “Fishing the Yenisei” has been accepted for publication in the Spring 2010 issue of the South Carolina Review. (top)
Kate Buckley taught a poetry workshop at the Imagination Celebration in Laguna Beach earlier this month, and recently learned that her poem Neshoba County, Mississippi, 1964 was accepted for publication by Shenandoah. Buckley also had the pleasure of attending a reading by Cecilia Woloch last week at the Ugly Mug Café – unfortunate name, fabulous reading.
Barry George’s “Myrlie’s Lament” was a winner in the 2009 Intro Journals Competition sponsored by AWP. It’s a persona poem in the voice of Myrlie Evers about the murder of her husband, civil rights leader Medgar Evers. This was Barry’s revision poem for workshop during the fall residency. In March, he read at a Philadelphia Free Library event—also featuring poets Sonia Sanchez, Lamont Steptoe, Penny Harter, and J. C. Todd—honoring the late haiku and tanka scholar, William H. Higginson.
Angela Jackson-Brown was invited to read two of her poems “Country Folk” and “Naked Communion” at the Limestone Dust Poetry Festival in Huntsville, Alabama, on April 25. Both poems will be published in the Festival’s anthology.
Holly Jensen’s 10-minute play Class Act: Version 379 was accepted into the 11th Annual Boston Theater Marathon, which will be presented by Boston Playwrights’ Theatre on Sunday, May 17. For more information, visit http://www.bu.edu/bpt/btm/index.html (top)
Russ Kesler published reviews of Molly Peacock’s The Second Blush and Daniel Anderson’s Drunk on Sunlight in the April edition of First Draft, the online magazine of the Alabama Writer’s Forum, at http://www.writersforum.org/
Cindy Lane attended a writer’s conference at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, Virginia, in March. Many of the presentations concerned writing historical fiction, which fits in perfectly with her proposed thesis, a novel set in 1865 Virginia. Her short story “Lillian” won first place in the fiction category of the associated writing contest. Many thanks to her mentor, Ellie Bryant, whose astute comments and encouragement helped her improve the story.
Caroline LeBlanc’s poems “Crazy for Praise” and “January Thaw” were published in The Black River Review, Spring 2009. Her poem “Whole Milk Sounds” was published in the Spring 2009, inaugural issue of The Breakwater Review, an online journal ( www.breakwaterreview.com ). (top)
Michael R. Malone facilitated “Dare to Disturb the Universe,” an open-mic poetry event in celebration of National Poetry Month 2009 and its theme. More than 20 poets (a few reading in public for the first time) turned out to read their own works—critiques of the Iraq war and on human rights abuses, poems by an ADD poet, and others of lighter fare composed during the event—as well as poems by their favorite poets—e.e.cummings, Lord Tennyson, Langston Hughes, and many others. “Dare to Disturb” was held April 17 at The Bookstore in the Grove in Miami.
Mindy Beth Miller’s short story “The Cost of Living” will be published in the summer issue of Appalachian Heritage. The story was awarded the 2008 Jean Ritchie Fellowship in Writing by the Mountain Heritage Literary Festival at Lincoln Memorial University.
Barbara Sabol has had two poems “Her Things” and “The Moon and Stars” and an essay “Shifting and Layering of Tone” published in the online journal Public-Republic and the poem “Little Starling” published in the 12th issue of Blood Lotus. Another poem “To the Vocal Cords” was read on Katerina Stoykova-Klemer’s radio show Accents on WRFL 88.1 Lexington. Barbara was also a call-in guest on Molly Peacock’s public radio program Poetry Circle.
Cristina Trapani-Scott’s poem “Keeping Up Appearances,” which she wrote and revised under the mentorship of Jeanie Thompson, earned second place in the 2009 Kentuckiana Metroversity Competition and will be published in the anthology Human Voices. In addition, she had a busy National Poetry Month, attending a reading held at the Tecumseh Center for the Arts to open the month’s activities. She also attended a reading at the Ann Arbor District Library on April 13 that featured Michigan poet Robert Fanning. She read during the open mic, as did her daughter, Kiki, who sang an original song. She and Kiki also read and sang at the regular monthly Writers Reading at Sweetwaters reading, which featured another Michigan poet Zilka Joseph. As a general partner in Writing Consultants Network, www.writingconsultantsnetwork.com, Cristina scored her first gig writing humorous stories to enhance the website of a group of Woodstock-inspired sandwich shops that go by the name Menna’s Joint. Her story of the history of Menna’s Joints and of Dubby, the dog, should soon be up at www.mennasjoint.com. (top)
Anna West read an excerpt of her novel-in-progress Frank at the Detroit Artist’s Market on April 3. She also had four poems accepted for Naomi Shihab Nye’s forthcoming anthology 25 Poets Under 25.
Reba White Williams’s opinion piece “Grattitude?” appeared in Art and Auction, April 2009, and her essay “Christie on Christmas” appeared in the Spring 2009 issue of Mystery Readers Journal. In late March, Reba and Dave Williams attended the Jane Austen Society/Mystery Writers of America event “Jane Austen, Mystery Writer” at which speakers discussed how Austen used suspense in her novels.
Dianne Aprile will be one of three faculty leading Kentucky’s Retreat for Women Writers on June 19-22. The three-day writing retreat takes place annually in Owensboro and is co-sponsored by Kentucky Wesleyan College and the Hager Kentucky Masters Series Fund. Dianne will lead a CNF workshop and give a craft lecture. For more information: http://www.kwc.edu/academics/women_writers/index.aspx (top)
On April 4, Susan Campbell Bartoletti received the Washington Post/Washington Children’s Book Guild Nonfiction Award and $2,000 prize money for her body of nonfiction work. So far, she has spent the prize money on a pricey, ergonomic office chair and a glider rocker with matching ottoman that is perfect for reading and for burping her new twin grandbabies. She is hoarding the rest.
In April, Ellie Bryant spoke about MFA in Writing programs at a League of Vermont Writers conference with Linda Cruise (Spring 2008) and Tamara Smith. Ellie visited a book group in New Hampshire discussing her nonfiction book, While in Darkness There Is Light. Most recently, she gave a talk and read from While in Darkness There Is Light at the Hamilton-Wenham Library in Massachusetts at their “Two Towns, Two Books” series (Katherine Paterson was the March author). The talk was recorded and will appear on cable access TV on Boston’s North Shore.
K. L. Cook taught a five-day seminar titled “Literary Environments,” May 16-20, for the University of Oklahoma honors program, part of their distinguished scholar program. His craft essay “Narrative Strategy and Dramatic Design,” which was first delivered as a Spalding MFA lecture, has been accepted for publication by AWP’s The Writer’s Chronicle.
On March 31, Debra Kang Dean, who has been teaching introductory literature classes at Indiana University, visited a poetry-writing class to talk about Precipitates, which the class had read, and about poetry in general. On April 25, she was recorded reading “Medicine Ball” in Bloomington’s Bryan Park for the month-long “Poetry Sites” program on WFHB Community Radio, and on April 27 she recorded three five-minute segments of poetry readings that will be broadcast on WFIU’s “Poet’s Weave.” She has poems forthcoming in a special issue on teachers and students in Solo Café.
In an irony that only writers can fully appreciate, Bob Finch and his wife, Kathy Shorr, who were scheduled to deliver one of the keynote lectures “Surviving as a Writer in Trying Times” at the 29th Annual Writing Today conference in Birmingham on March 13, were unable to do so because of—trying times! It turned out that the conference was cancelled at the last minute due to a lack of registrants, but Bob and Kathy went anyway and spent a couple of delightful days hosted by Glenny Brock (Spring 2007), Bob’s former student and Spalding graduate, who gave them a tour of the Civil Rights Institute, the 16th Street Baptist Church, Glenny’s offices at the Birmingham Weekly, the Garage Restaurant, and other highlights of Birmingham. (top)
In April, Silas House published his fifth book, Something’s Rising (with co-author Jason Howard), a book of investigative journalism. Studs Terkel called the book a “revelatory work,” and it has received starred reviews as well as being chosen as a Southern Living Read of the Month. His second play, Long Time Traveling, premiered at the Actor’s Theatre Guild of Lexington in April and runs until May 17. Silas was recently chosen as the Appalachian Writer of the Year by Shepherd University and in the fall Emory and Henry College is organizing the Silas House Literary Festival in honor of his work. His novel Eli the Good will be published by Candlewick Books in September. This year he will speak at both BEA and ALA.
Jody Lisberger has had three new reviews of her story collection, Remember Love: “Short and Frisky,” Women’s Review of Books, January/February 2009, Rain Taxi Review of Books 13.4, Winter 2008/2009, and The Short Review, March 2009, http://www.theshortreview.com. She’s also published an essay in a new book called (Re)Interpretations: The Shapes of Justice in Women’s Experience, published January 2009 by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. The essay is called “DES and Diflucan: Pharmaceutical Marketing Choices—Why Women Should Take Heed.” In February, Jody hosted an intensive weekend fiction workshop for The Writer’s Circle, the major writing group in Providence, R.I.
In recent months, Robin Lippincott has written reviews of Susan Sontag’s Reborn: Journals and Notebooks 1947-1963, and Cheever: A Life, by Blake Bailey, both published in the Courier-Journal. On April 6, Robin gave a reading at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, with thanks to Neela Vaswani and Cyn Kitchen. (top)
Nancy McCabe’s creative nonfiction piece “Still Dancing” appears in the current issue of Gulf Coast, and her piece “Can This Troubled Marriage be Saved: A Quiz” is forthcoming in Bellingham Review. She gave a reading at the Shinglehouse, Pennsylvania, public library in March and hosted four writers this year for the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford’s Spectrum Arts series: poets Kevin Prufer and Aimee Nezhhukumatathil, journalist David Laskin, and fiction writer Joyce McDonald.
Sena Jeter Naslund spoke to a convocation of students at Anderson University (Indiana) at the invitation of alum Deborah Miller Fox on April 2 and also gave a talk to creative writing students on her novel Four Spirits and a craft lecture to the community. On April 24, Kentucky Writers Day, Sena read, as a former poet laureate, her creative nonfiction piece “Two Spirits” about a visitation by Abraham Lincoln and Walt Whitman, in the rotunda of the Capitol in Frankfort. On May 16, she gives the luncheon address “When I Write Women, I Write Friendship” at the Kentucky Women’s Book Festival at the Ekstrom Library of the University of Louisville. May 19 is the publication date for the Modern Classics edition of her novel Ahab’s Wife and also a new cover edition of Four Spirits. Sena celebrated the wedding of her daughter Flora Naslund and Ron Schildknecht on May 9.
Greg Pape has poems appearing or forthcoming in Great River Review, Northwest Review, State of the Arts: Montana Arts Council Magazine, and the anthology Poets of the American West. As Montana Poet Laureate he has traveled extensively to do readings and presentations at Brigham Young University Idaho, Western Montana University in Dillon, Montana State University in Bozeman, Bozeman Public Library, Great Falls Book Festival, and the Myrna Loy Center in Helena. He was interviewed twice on KMMS radio in Bozeman. He served as judge for the state finals of the Poetry Out Loud! competition. He attended AWP in Chicago and served on a panel titled “Collaborative Vision: The Poetic Dialogue Project at the Chicago Cultural Center.” He also served as guest poetry editor for The Louisville Review Spring 2009 issue. (top)
Jeanie Thompson’s fourth poetry collection, The Seasons Bear Us, appeared in April from River City Publishing (Montgomery, Alabama). To follow her blog, with links to all appearances go to http://jeaniethompson.blogspot.com. Jeanie and her staff at the Alabama Writers’ Forum helped produced the 4th annual Alabama Book Festival on April 18 in Montgomery’s Old Alabama Town and were the special producers of the Poetry Tent, starring Spalding poets Kathleen Driskell and Molly Peacock and eleven other poets. (top)
Charlie Brady (Fall 2008) is happy to announce his second-place finish in the Ozark Foothills International Screenwriting Competition on March 26. His entry Black Masque was his creative thesis at Spalding. Charlie has also recently been hired, on a deferred basis, to pen the first draft of a biography by a private party, which has been completed. He was also hired to write a treatment for children’s writer, Anthony Franklin. Charlie and Franklin are in negotiations for Charlie to pen the screenplay Beep. Charlie is also happy to announce the publication of his short screenplay Consequences in the Summer 2009 Edition of 94 Creations Literary Journal. Consequences, the completed short film, can be seen at www.youtube.com/charlieuca. (top)
Susan Christerson Brown (Fall 2003) has recently had work published in the anthology Women. Period. and in the journal Alive Now. This spring she has written and defended her master’s thesis, completing the work for her degree from Lexington Theological Seminary.
Bobbi Buchanan’s (Fall 2004) essay “A Life Away” has been accepted for publication by New Madrid. Bobbi’s magazine New Southerner (newsoutherner.com) has taken on a new format and re-defined itself as a blog and literary journal dedicated to promoting self-sufficiency, environmental stewardship and local economies. The magazine’s annual literary contest is now open for submissions, and this year’s judges will include James Baker Hall (poetry), Cathleen Medwick (nonfiction) and Janna McMahan (fiction). Bobbi is collaborating with an independent press on a reading that will be take place at Carmichael’s in Louisville on October 9. The reading will feature authors published by the press and New Southerner contributors.
Kelly Creagh (Spring 2008) has accepted an offer from Simon and Schuster for the first two books in her young adult fantasy/horror trilogy. The series, which focuses on the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of Edgar Allan Poe, follows the story of Isobel Lanley, a modern-day high-school cheerleader who is paired in her English class to collaborate on a project about Poe with a goth boy named Varen Nethers. The publication date of the first book, Nevermore, and its as-yet-untitled sequel is to be announced. (top)
Dave DeGolyer (Fall 2006) was recently a guest of Mrs. Milliken’s fifth-grade class at Cohen Middle School and was asked to read some of his alter-ego, Lafayette Wattle’s, original poetry. Six of Lafayette’s poems have appeared or are forthcoming in five poetry journals, including Eclectica and Blood Orange Review. Lafayette was nominated by Boxcar Poetry Review for Best New Poets 2009.
Daniel DiStasio’s (Fall 2006) short story “Broken Thread” was accepted for publication by Steam Ticket.
Joan Donaldson’s (Spring 2008) essay “Dignidad” was published in Rosebud Magazine. On April 25, she spoke about Tasha Tudor and the creative process at the Michiana Herb Society’s High Tea at Fernwood, a nature preserve and garden.
Stacia M. Fleegal (Fall 2006) recently took second place in the Cervená Barva Press chapbook competition, and her chapbook The Lines Are Not My Friends was selected for publication. She has poems forthcoming in Fourth River, Skidrow Penthouse, The Kerf, and Babel Fruit. The editor of Babel Fruit, Ren Katherine Powell, also interviewed her for the journal’s blog. (top)
Foust (Fall 2008) gave a reading at Chop Suey Tuey Books in Richmond, Virginia, in March. Her short story “Sunshine State” will be in the April 30 edition of Flash Me, an online magazine for flash fiction. Check it out at http://www.flashmemagazine.com/index.html.
Thea Gavin (Spring 2005) is leading a six-week nature writing workshop this spring, with each session taking place at a different remote location on the Irvine Ranch Wildlands in the sagebrush-covered hills of Orange County, California. She led two short nature-writing sessions at the Irvine Ranch Conservancy’s Open Art Day on May 2. She was recently commissioned to write a poem commemorating the retirement of the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Concordia University, Irvine, where she works as Associate Professor of English.
Elementary schools in Victor, Idaho; Driggs, Idaho; and Sayreville, New Jersey, received grants to have Lydia Griffin (Fall 2008) present full-day creative-writing workshops this winter and spring. At the schools, Lydia read her first book, BeBa and the Curious Creature Catchers, to large assemblies, then visited individual classrooms for thirty minutes, teaching students about main character, setting, plot, solutions, title (and alliterations), and work banking. Lydia also gave a workshop to teachers at Teton Valley Community School in Victor, Idaho, in April. As the Resident Artist in Writing for Teton County, Idaho, Lydia hosts a monthly writers group and will offer three full-day writing workshops for children and adults this summer.
Dave Harrity (Fall 2007) has poems forthcoming in Existere and The White Pelican Review. He currently is working on a MA in Teaching. This summer and fall he will be teaching at Lexington Catholic High School, Asbury College and Seminary, and The Carnegie Center. He and his wife just had their second child within one year—Gabriel Elias—on April 4.
Patty Houston (Fall 2008) won first place in graduate fiction in Kentuckiana Metroversity’s writing competition for her story “Questions and Other Fubars From Women at the 10th Annual Getaway.” She read from her work at the awards ceremony in Louisville on April 19. Also, her short story “Knitting As a Revolutionary Act” will be published in July in Timber Creek Review. On May 16, she will give a lecture titled “Writing From the Heart” at Earth Connection in Cincinnati. Her short story “The Moon Is an Outdoor Sandwich” has been accepted for publication in an upcoming issue of the journal Alimentum. (top)
Although Juyanne James (Fall 2007) has been a little out of touch, she is busy writing fiction (working on short stories and two novels, City of Orphans and The Four Families) and a couple of essays. She gave a reading at her school’s Literary Festival on April 21. And she is happy to say she has upcoming work in New Stories from the South: The Year’s Best. Juyanne has also been asked to sit on a panel of contributors for the 2009 New Stories anthology, in October, at the Louisiana Book Festival in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
A staged reading of Heather Jones’s (May 2008) play Every Creature’s Shadow was presented at the Asheville Area Arts Council on April 21. The reading was sponsored by a Regional Artists Project Grant from the Asheville Area Arts Council and the North Carolina Arts Council.
Cyn Kitchen’s (Spring 2005) short story, “Every Earth Is Fit for Burial” has been named a 2008 Notable Story and is eligible for the 2009 storySouth’s Million Writers Award. Cyn’s flash fiction, “Time and Time Again” appears in the April 2009 issue of Menda City Review. Her short story “Diagnosis” will appear in Ars Medica, a Canadian publication that describes itself as a literary medical journal. Cyn is Visiting Assistant Professor of English at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. Knox’s curriculum committee recently accepted her proposal for the humor writing course she has developed, and she will get to teach it the first time this fall. Cyn has a collection of short fiction and a collection of nonfiction that she is currently shopping, and she is finally at work on her first novel.
Zola Troutman Noble’s (Spring 2005) nonfiction piece “Adam Harman, German Pioneer on the New River” is the featured story in Issue 13 of The Smithfield Review, which can be ordered online at http://civic.bev.net/smithfield/review.html. Also, on April 2, in conjunction with Anderson University’s Vision/Revision Week, Noble assisted Deborah Miller Fox (Fall 2005) in organizing and hosting AU’s first writer’s conference. Featured speaker at the conference was Sena Jeter Naslund, and leading a session on publishing in literary magazines was David Hassler (Spring 2004). (top)
Dan Nowak (Spring 2007) recently gave a reading to promote his book Recycle Suburbia. Quercus Review Press flew him to Modesto, California, to wine and dine him before he shared a reading at Modesto Junior College with fiction writer Daniel Chacn. A lively Q&A session followed the reading. Dan has also been accepted to the PhD in Creative Writing program at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and will be transferring from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to UWM’s program, with full funding via a teaching assistantship, in fall 2009. Lastly, Dan has been named co-winner of the Heartland Review’s 2009 Joy Bale Boone Poetry Prize, and two of his poems will be published in a forthcoming issue.
Diana M. Raab (Fall 2003) did a book signing at the LA Times Festival of Books on Sunday, April 26. She was a featured author at the CALM Luncheon in Santa Barbara, California, an organization which prevents, assesses, and treats child abuse. The event was moderated by Jack Canfield of Chicken Soup for the Soul. Diana sold 55 copies of Regina’s Closet: Finding My Grandmother’s Secret Journal, a memoir she began during her MFA in nonfiction writing. In April she also gave a reading and led a journaling workshop to the Ventura County Writers’ Club. In honor of National Poetry Month and the release of her most recent poetry book, Dear Anaïs: My Life in Poems for You, she gave reading at the Karpeles Manuscript Museum in Santa Barbara. Her poem “My Navigator” appeared in the March 2009 issue of Poetica. Her poems “Dictionary of Secret Lovers” and “A Sketch of a Writer’s Studio” appeared in the annual issue of A Café in Space: The Anaïs Nin Literary Journal. Her poem “Tides of Wonder” also appeared in Literary House Review. (top)
Kim Stinson-Hawn (Fall 2007) is to be awarded a grant from the United Arts Council of Catawba County (UACCC) in North Carolina for a project this summer. Sprung from Red Clay: Stories of Catawba County Women is to be a full-length play exploring the similarities and differences of the women of Catawba County both past and present. The grant is to fund both the preliminary research and interview phase of the project as well as the writing of the play. More information on the UACCC can be found at www.artscatawba.org.
Kathleen Thompson (October 2003) presented her “Road Scholar” poetry workshop (Alabama Humanities Foundation) at Gadsden Public Library on April 8. She gave a poetry reading at Leeds Library for the April Poetry Wednesdays on April 8. On April 17, she attended an all-day workshop on Montgomery with Andrew Hudgins (poetry) and his wife, Erin McGraw (fiction), as a kick-off activity for the Alabama Book Festival. She participated with other local poets at the Shelby County Library in reading their favorite poems at noon on April 21. On April 22, Kathleen was the guest reader at the Writers Club at Jacksonville State University, prior to an awards ceremony for the annual student writing competition. Afterwards there was a reception and book signing for her two new poetry books The Shortest Distance and The Nights, The Days. On April 25, she attended the Alabama State Poetry Society’s spring meeting in Trussville. The next afternoon, April 26, she read from her new poetry books at the Autauga County/Prattville Library in Prattville. On April 27, she and Alicia Zeski, a local artist, paired up to present a PowerPoint program on spiritual symbolism for the women of Highlands United Methodist Church. Excerpts from Kathleen’s novel Remembering Fire (currently being marketed) will be interspersed among the symbols. They include scenes of the protagonist writing icons, and scenes which include something of the Tibetan monks performing a sand painting/mandala at the Telfair Museum in Savannah.(top)
Vickie Weaver (Fall 2005) was awarded a fellowship for the month of May at the Spiro Arts Community in Park City, Utah. She also attended a reading by T.C. Boyle at Butler University (Indianapolis) in April.
Jonathan Weinert (Fall 2005) has poems appearing in the new online journals Slush Pile (www.slushpilemag.com) and White Whale Review (www.whitewhalereview.com).
Sylvan Dell Publishing has accepted Patti Zelch’s (Fall 2003) creative nonfiction picture book Ready, Set, Wait! for publication in 2010.
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Book in Common
for Spring 2009
All students and faculty read the Book in Common, Claudia Emerson’s
Late Wife, in preparation for a book discussion led by Kathleen Driskell on the first night of residency. (Bring the book to this session.)
Spring 2009 Faculty
Books/Scripts in Common
Students attending the Spring 2009 residency read the Faculty Book/Script
in Common in the area of concentration they are to study in the Spring
2009 semester in preparation for a discussion with authors at the residency.
(Bring the book to the first Friday night residency session.) All MFA
students add the book/script to their cumulative bibliographies.
Students should check Blackboard periodically as other pre-reading assignments may be added.
Summer 2009 Pre-Reading List
Students attending the Barcelona residency read the following book in their area of study.
Students entering ENG620 in the Summer 2009 semester also write an essay on the book in their area of concentration. For more information, see SEMESTERS/COURSES/SUMMER 2008/ on Blackboard. (top)
Faculty Advisory Committee (FAC) for Spring 2009
FAC members are announced by the MFA Office at the beginning of each semester. The Program Director consults with the FAC about recommendations for admissions and about programmatic and administrative development and changes. Both faculty and students are invited to make suggestions to the FAC for exploration by the Program Director and larger faculty. However, students and faculty should directly and immediately consult the Associate Program Director about any issues concerning specific individuals’ performance in the program. (top)
Fall 2009 Faculty Books/ Scripts in Common
Students attending the Fall 2009 residency read the Faculty/Guest Book/Script in Common in the area of concentration they are to study in the Fall 2009 semester in preparation for a discussion with authors at the residency. All MFA students add the book/script to their cumulative bibliographies.
Personals
Our heartfelt sympathy to Karen George on the death of her father, Joseph Riedinger, on March 4.
Our heartfelt sympathy to Julie Brickman on the death of her mother, Molly Brickman, on April 23.
Classifieds
A few of us over 50 years of age have connected and plan to gather for networking at the residency. We will meet Sunday during the first half of the lunch and would like any others who are interested to join us. I'll get a table in the cafeteria and post a sign. If you are interested, it would also help if you would email me: Caroline LeBlanc at wildernessheart@msn.com. Thanks. (top)
The Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Writers Conference of the Southwest, is inviting Spalding’s students and alumnus to its 5th annual conference, July 24-26 at the Hilton DFW Lakes Executive Conference Center in Grapevine, Texas, five minutes from the DFW Airport. This year’s conference features a diverse group of storytellers from genres unexplored in previous years, including travel writing, broadcast, nature writing, and documentary film. Keynotes include one of America’s literary lions, Paul Theroux, author of acclaimed travel literature, short-story collections, novels, criticism and children’s books; Ira Glass, National Public Radio’s host and producer of This American Life and editor of a breathtaking anthology called The New Kings of Nonfiction; Alma Guillermoprieto, Latin American correspondent for The New Yorker and The New York Review of Books. The nation’s foremost humor writer, Roy Blount Jr., will also be speaking at the conference, along with Stephanie Elizondo Griest, the “accidental memoirist” of Mexican-American society; Vogue’s renowned narrative essay writer, Julia Reed; the nation’s leading authority on Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, Michael Kauffman; Gordon Grice, “the Stephen King of nature writers”; Wall Street Journal foreign correspondent and hunger expert, Roger Thurow; internationally acclaimed documentary filmmakers Allen Mondell and Cynthia Salzman Mondell; and a number of other storytellers. Bob Shacochis, a National Book Award Winner (Swimming in the Volcano) who spoke at last year’s conference, says the Mayborn is “the most compelling, remarkable writers’ conference I’ve attended in more than 20 years of writers’ conferences around the nation. Thanks to the Mayborn tribe of storytellers, I think of Dallas as a preferred destination,, a center of literary gravity, perhaps the very heart of the universe these days for nonfiction writers in America.” The conference includes a book manuscript and essay writing contest. The manuscript winner will receive a $3,000 cash prize and an option to enter into a provisional publishing contract with UNT Press. The article and essay writing contest offers $12,000 in cash prizes. The 10 best articles or essays, including the six cash award winners, will be published in a literary journal jointly published by Hearst Newspapers and the Mayborn Graduate School of Journalism. Several Spalding students and graduates have won cash prizes and publication in Ten Spurs. Conference fees are $295 for the general public. Educator fees are $270. Student fees are $225. The fees include fine dining. Conference seating is limited. To register, visit http://www.TheMayborn.unt.edu. For more information, call George Getschow at 972-746-1633
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Reminders and Notes
Financial Aid: The MFA Program offers scholarships to students entering their first semester in the program. Returning students who desire financial assistance other than student loans should apply for graduate assistantships. Applications for scholarships and assistantships should be directed to the MFA Office. Information for assistantships is on Blackboard under SEMESTERS/[your semester]/ DOCUMENTS: GENERAL INTEREST. Federal student loans are available to all eligible graduate students and are available for the fall, spring, or summer semesters. For help with financial aid questions, call Vickie Montgomery at (800) 896-8941, ext. 2731 or email vmontgomery@spalding.edu. Students may enter or update their FAFSA information online at www.fafsa.ed.gov. (top)
Summer 2009/Fall 2009/Spring 2010 students: Fill out the FAFSA for the 09-10 school year, using 2008 tax information.
Classifieds in the newsletter: Submissions of writing-related advertisements, such as calls for submission, services for writers, etc. may be made to mfanewsletter@spalding.edu
Online information: Newsletters are archived online at http://www.spalding.edu/mfanewsletter. For convenience, bookmark this page. The web address is case sensitive. (top)
Life of a Writer: Please remember to email Life of a Writer news to the Program. The Program wants to share good news with everyone and compiles records of publications, presentations, readings, employment, and other related information on faculty, students, and alums.
Life of a Writer pieces should be written as a paragraph in third person. It is helpful for alums to include their graduation semester, such as Jake Doe (Fall 2003). Spell out month and state names. Include title(s) of the work, publishers, date of publication, and website addresses, when appropriate.
Examples of kinds of activities that might be included in the Life of a Writer column are
On Extended Wings archives: To see previous issues of the newsletter, click here
Sena Jeter Naslund, Program Director
Karen Mann, Administrative
Director
Kathleen Driskell,
Associate Program Director
Katy Yocom, Program
Associate
Gayle Hanratty,
Administrative Assistant
Email Life of a Writer information to Cristina Trapani-Scott at mfanewsletter@spalding.edu