MFA Program to Launch New Reading Series in Louisville

Spalding's MFA Program is joining forces with Louisville's Speed Art Museum for a monthly reading series that showcases short readings by MFA students, alumni, staff, and faculty, as well as writers from the local literary community. Readings take place at the Local Speed, an open gallery conducive for combining visual and literary art.

The series begins with a reading 6:00-7:15 p.m. on April 18 and occurs the third Friday of each month at the Local Speed Gallery, located in the NuLu district at 822 E. Market St. Free street parking is available. A wide variety of restaurants nearby grants the opportunity for further discussion and literary connection at the end of the evening. Those interested in reading are invited to email Karyl Anne Geary (CNF) at kgeary@spalding.edu. Writing groups that would like to participate should also email Karyl Anne.

Please don't miss this exciting opportunity to display the talent and heart of the MFA Program to the local community! The MFA directors hope many members of the MFA and local literary community will want to participate and/or come support the series.

On the first day of residency, Friday, May 23, after the general welcome, Program Director Sena Jeter Naslund leads a discussion of Turn Me Loose. Students should prepare oral comments to contribute to that plenary Program Book-in-Common discussion.

On Thursday, May 29, Frank visits the residency to present a talk about his work to MFA students, alumni, and faculty. The community is also invited to this discussion. A reception and book-signing follow this event. The next morning, Friday, May 30, Frank participates in a Q&A session open only to MFA students, alumni, and faculty.
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AWP Now Accepting Panel Proposals for 2015 Conference

AWP welcomes proposals for the 2015 conference in Minneapolis, which runs April 8-11. The conference committee seeks proposals that feature panelists who are diverse in their backgrounds, pursuits, affiliations, and ages, and who represent a broad range of perspectives and experiences. AWP strongly encourages participation from current and recent graduate students. Proposals are accepted beginning mid-March. The deadline for submission is Thursday, May 1, 2014. Visit AWP's Event Proposals & Acceptances page, http://tinyurl.com/kstqkan, for more information.

The MFA Program encourages faculty, students, and alums to submit panel proposals. The Program pays the conference registration fee for faculty and students. The Program also pays the conference registration fee for the first 15 alumni to request it (beginning August 1), as well as for any alum serving on a panel. Conference registration typically opens in late summer. Watch the newsletter for updates.

AWP 2014: Cindy Brady, Rachel Harper, Shad Farrell, and Lynda Archer

AWP 2014: Karen Chronister and Jerriod Avant

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New Format for Student Readings: Lunchtime Open-Mic Sessions

The MFA Program is excited to relaunch the five-minute student readings in a lively new format at the Spring 2014 residency. For the first time, student readers take the stage for open-mic reading sessions. Instead of signing up at the beginning of residency to read, students sign up at the beginning of each session for reading slots.

The open-mic sessions are to be held in the Egan Leadership Center Lectorium at lunchtime on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of residency. Everyone is welcome to pick up a lunch in the Pelican POD, just outside the Lectorium, or elsewhere and bring it to eat during the readings.

As always, students come prepared with readings of no more than five minutes, including opening comments. Students practice beforehand to ensure that their piece, which should not be taken from the workshop submission, fits within the time allotment. Five minutes of reading equals about two-and-a-half pages of prose.
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MFA Program Travels to Greece for Summer 2015 Residency

The Summer 2015 residency takes place in Greece, June 24-July 6. Details are yet to be finalized, but the MFA Program plans to spend a few days visiting important sites in Athens, including the Acropolis, before traveling to Crete for the remainder of the residency. Site of the Palace of Knossos and the labyrinth of the Minotaur, the island of Crete is known for its archeological sites and its natural beauty.

The upcoming summer 2014 residency is in Prague and Berlin. While the deadline for registration has just passed, it is always possible that cancellation may create a few openings. Those who might be interested should contact Associate Administrative Director Katy Yocom at kyocom@spalding.edu.
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Connecting with Audience Lecture by Loreen Niewenhuis at Spring 2014 residency

As part of the MFA Program's rotating series of sessions about publishing and editing, guest lecturer Loreen Niewenhuis (F '07) delivers a plenary lecture titled "'What we should really talk about when we finally talk about that thing we never talk about,' or 'How to connect your work with a targeted audience, and still honor the creative bubble.'" The lecture discusses ways to identify and connect with the readership of one's work. "Drawing from my experience and from successful techniques other writers have used, I'll present a philosophy of connection that will make getting the word out about your writing not only make more sense, but it will also make your efforts more effective.and possibly even enjoyable," Loreen says. "We will not cover marketing gimmicks or tricks. I will not suggest you 'brand' yourself and develop a signature fragrance. Instead, I'll talk about the work I did to identify and connect with my readership. While I'll focus on a philosophy to help to launch your first book/chapbook/play/movie, this approach can be applied throughout your writing career."

Loreen is the author of the memoirs A 1,000 Mile Walk on the Beach (Crickhollow Books, 2011) and A 1000-Mile Great Lakes Walk (Crickhollow Books, 2013) and the novella Atlanta (Main Street Rag, 2011).

Each residency includes a session from the Editing and Publishing Series. In addition to Loreen's presentation on connecting with audience, the series also includes visits by agents and by editors from large and small publishing houses, sessions focusing on literary journals, panel discussions of faculty members' publication breakthrough experiences, and discussions of revision by genre.
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Award-winning Children's Author George Ella Lyon Visits Spring 2014 Residency

The MFA Program is pleased to announce that picture book author, YA novelist, and poet George Ella Lyon will be our guest at the Spring 2014 residency in Louisville to present a craft lecture in the area of Writing for Children & Young Adults. In addition, her book Holding on to Zoe (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2012), for readers aged 14-18, will be featured as the Guest Book in Common for Writing for Children & Young Adults. George Ella will discuss writing, publishing, and marketing Holding on to Zoe with students and faculty at residency. MFA students and faculty can see a video book trailer for Holding on to Zoe at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKIWoWE-Xpc

Writing in many genres for readers of all ages, George Ella has published more than forty books. Her recent titles include the poetry collection She Let Herself Go and the following picture books: "Which Side Are You On?" The Story of a Song; All the Water in the World; The Pirate of Kindergarten; and You and Me and Home Sweet Home. Lyon's books have received many awards, including ALA's Schneider Family Book Award, a Jane Addams Honor, a Golden Kite, the Appalachian Book of the Year, and the Bluegrass Award. She's had numerous Notable and Best Book citations, and her poem "Where I'm From" is used as a writing model around the world.

George Ella holds a PhD in English from Indiana University, where she studied with poet Ruth Stone. She has taught writing on many campuses and spoken at hundreds of schools, libraries, and conferences throughout the country. The mother of two grown sons, she is married to musician and writer Steve Lyon and lives in Lexington, Kentucky, where she writes songs and works for peace.
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Spring 2014 Faculty and Guest Books/Scripts in Common

Students attending the Spring 2014 residency read a Faculty or Guest Book/Script in Common in the area of concentration they will study during the independent-study session. Exception: Writing for Children & YA students read the book in common for Writing for Children & YA, even if they are spending the semester studying in a focal area.

Students, except those entering ENG612 (new students) in the spring, write an essay on the Faculty Book/Script in Common in their area. Students email the essay by April 30 to mfadropbox@spalding.edu with "[lastname, firstname] FBIC essay" in the subject line.

During the residency, the author leads a session discussing the conception, writing, and publication or production of the work.

The books and scripts for Spring 2014 are

• Fiction: Sena Jeter Naslund, The Fountain of St. James Court; or, Portrait of the Artist as an Old Woman (Morrow, 2013)
• Poetry: Greg Pape, Four Swans (Lynx House Press, 2012)
• Creative Nonfiction: Fenton Johnson, Keeping Faith: A Skeptic’s Journey (Mariner Books, 2004)
  
• Writing for Children & Young Adults: George Ella Lyon, Holding On to Zoe (FSG, 2012)
  
• Screenwriting: Charlie Schulman, Frankenswine (posted on the MFA portal page)
• Playwriting: Larry Brenner, Saving Throw versus Love (posted on the MFA portal page)

Homecoming: Expanded Offerings and a Special Rate at the Brown

MFA alums are invited back to campus for MFA Homecoming, May 29–June 1, featuring an expanded schedule, a host of new events, and a special rate on rooms at the Brown Hotel. Through March 14, alums can book their rooms at the Brown through the MFA Office for $99 a night. Alums received an email on February 14 with registration and hotel reservation information.

There is no charge for Homecoming events, except for the bourbon you consume and the Farewell dinner, if you choose to attend it.

The Homecoming line-up includes:

Thursday afternoon/evening
•  A guided walk along the Urban Bourbon Trail, hosted by Omar Figueras (F/CNF ’13)
•  Featured author presentation with Diana M Raab Distinguished Writer in Residence Frank X Walker (P ’03)
•  Alumni Screenwriters festival (new this year!)
•  After-party literary reading led by Teneice Delgado (P ’06)

Friday
•  Private Q&A session with Diana M Raab Distinguished Writer in Residence Frank X Walker
•  Alumni workshops
•  Literary Explorations lecture on the Transcendentalists, by faculty member John Pipkin
•  Panel discussion by faculty on the art of revision, by genre
•  Lecture for alums by Lesléa Newman
•  Lecture by Loreen Niewenhuis (F ’07) on “How to connect your work with a targeted audience, and still honor the creative bubble”
•  A smorgasbord of faculty lectures
•  Celebration of Recently Published Books by Alumni, featuring Bobbi Buchanan (CNF ’04), Jackie Gorman (F ’10), Michael Hampton (F ’05), Angela Jackson-Brown (F ’09), Erin Keane (P ’04), J. T. Lundy (F ’12), AshleyRose Sullivan (F ’10), and Mary Popham (F ’03)
•  SPLoveFest book expo, showcasing alumni books, literary journals, and other projects
•  Alumni Playwrights festival (new this year!)

Saturday
•  Breakfast mixer with MFA faculty, alums, and new grads
•  Regional breakout session to help alums connect with other alums in their area
•  Panel on teaching
•  Reading by PGRAs
•  Alumni workshops
•  Graduation and dinner

Sunday morning
•  Alumni workshops

To reserve a table at the SPLoveFest book expo, contact Mary Lou Northern at marynorthern@yahoo.com no later than May 1.
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Creating Community

The Volunteer Shift
by Matthew Fadel

I recently had the opportunity to “Paint the Town Red” and volunteer at the 36th annual Starz Denver Film Festival. The festival featured over 250 films from 44 different countries. A successful fest relies on volunteer shift workers to man or woman the necessary gates, booths, tables, doors, and coat checks at various festival venues. I was a volunteer at the secretly located “Late Night Lounge,” where movie insiders and festival VIPs (read: big donors) wet their whistles for free and traded their long day of lounging ina local theater for a long night of lounging in a local art gallery. 

The lounge was abuzz into the wee hours of the morning, so my primary job was to keep partygoers from breaking (read: buying) the many fine art pieces hung around the gallery. This also provided me with a wonderful opportunity to completely fabricate a deep knowledge and appreciation of modern art. While I liberally threw around such wonderful adjectives as enigmatic and seductive, the eclectic crowd chatted up the festival’s award-winning films: One Chance, Code Black, What Do We Have in Our Pockets, A Touch of Sin, Hide Your Smiling Faces, Unorthodox, and Falfurrias.

For my time, I was overpaid with four art house movie passes and the left over cheese tray!  The 37th annual Starz Denver Film fest is in the works for early November, and I’m already looking forward to volunteering with ticket takers to welcome movie makers to our beautiful Mile High City.
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Tell Us About Your Service Projects!
Spalding University tallies students' service hours and has the goal of reaching 1.3 million hours this year. MFA students report their service hours by emailing mfadropbox@spalding.edu with the subject line "service hours." Include the dates of service, total number of hours, the organization, and a brief description of the service. Hours can be added up and reported every few weeks or every few months.
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Deadline dates
MFA deadlines are found in course syllabi (for deadlines involving the independent study course) and on the portal’s “Preparing for the Residency” page (for deadlines related to an upcoming residency). Students are responsible for keeping track of and meeting all deadlines that apply to them. As a courtesy, some deadline reminders appear in the Thursday Memo, but students should not rely solely on the Thursday Memo for deadline information. Faculty find deadline information via the “Faculty” link on the MFA portal page, as well as in course syllabi and on the “Preparing for the Residency” page.
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My Profile on MFA portal page
MFA students and faculty should add their pictures to their profile page on the MFA portal page. This picture shows up when emailing from Spalding email accounts. It's easy to do! On the MFA portal page, click on your name (to the upper right). Click on MY PROFILE. Click on EDIT MY PROFILE. Find the PICTURE section and add the picture.
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Spalding Email Accounts
The MFA staff use student and faculty Spalding email accounts to communicate. Please check your account regularly. To forward your Spalding email to your home email account, see http://spalding.edu/about/technology/portal/. To receive your Spalding email account on your phone (or iPod or iPad), see http://spalding.edu/about/technology/spalding-mobile-access/.
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Check Out the MFA Blog
MFA faculty and alumni blog at blog.spalding.edu/mfainwriting. New posts are added weekly. The comment feature is now available.
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Facebook Fanpage Posts Contest and Other Information
The MFA Program has begun posting announcements regarding contests, calls for submissions, and grants on the MFA Facebook Fanpage. MFAers are invited to share their writerly news on the MFA fanpage. Send news about readings, blog entries, pictures, or other items of interest to mfafacebook@spalding.edu.
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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.
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Alumni Access to MFA News and Residency Lectures
MFA alumni may access the MFA portal page to listen to residency lectures and to see the latest in MFA news. Go to my.spalding.edu. Username: MFAportal and Password: MFAportal! (Note: the password is case sensitive and there is an exclamation mark at the end of it.)

Life of a Writer

Jeffrey Fischer-Smith’s (PW) short play, Reservations, will be published in the inaugural issue of Qu: A Literary Journal at Queens University of Charlotte Low-Residency MFA Program. Reservations, which was a finalist in The Secret Theatre’s Long Island City One Act Play Festival in January, also will be published in a book of ten plays from the festival. Both publications are due out in late spring. Reservations was workshopped at this past year’s summer residency in Ireland.
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Alumni

Deborah Begel (CNF ’06) is a founder and nonfiction editor of Trickster, a new literary magazine whose launch is scheduled for May. It’s published by Northern New Mexico College in Espanola. Her documentary on water contamination problems the Navajo face, “Four Stories about Water,” is traveling with the Uranium Film Festival this winter. Showings are scheduled for Brooklyn and Washington D.C.
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Kristin Brace (F ’12) will co-lead a discussion group in April on the intersection of writing, illness, and faith with Kendra Juskus (P) at the Calvin College Festival of Faith and Writing.
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Lee Anne Fahey’s (P ’08) excerpt from her full-length play The Mute Swan will be published in the spring issue of The Louisville Review.
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Sandra Evans Falconer (P ’05) recently taught a writing workshop for women at the Rosehaven community program for women and children in Portland, Oregon. Sandra is also starting a private practice as a writing and performance coach for writers, authors, and public speakers. Sandra’s poem “Restoration,” from her full-length book The Six o’clock Siren (Otter Bay Books 2009) was read as part of the Healing Expressions Series for cancer survivors at Legacy Hospital in Portland. For further details, please contact Sandra at Evansfalconer@aol.com or through her website, www.Sandraevansfalconer.com.
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Karen George (F ’09) had two poems, “The Dead Live at Hemlock Lodge, Natural Bridge, Kentucky” and “Vibrato,” published in Border Crossing, and the poem “Last Time We Shared a Bed” in Slippery Elm. Her poetry chapbook, Inner Passage, will be published by Red Bird Chapbooks in May. She was first runner-up for the 94 Creations poetry award, and her poems “River Dreams,” “Past Life Flash at Feast of the Flowering Moon, Chillicothe, Ohio,” and “Your Handwriting” will appear in 94 Creations Issue 5.
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Patty Houston’s (F ’08) story “Attack of the Fat Man” is forthcoming in the fall issue of The Packingtown Review; her story “Seven Fishburn, Up” is forthcoming in the fall issue of Nimrod International Journal.
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Rene’ R. (Ketterer) Irvine (SW ’07) contributed a guest editorial titled “Mercy and Grace” to the January 12 edition of the Catholic Moment, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana.
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Corrine Jackson’s (F ’12) young adult novel If I Lie  was recognized by the American Library Association on the 2014 Rainbow List and the 2014 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Readers List . If I Lie was published in August 2012 by Simon Pulse. Corrine also presented a Social Media for Writers workshop to the San Francisco Area chapter of Romance Writers of America in January. On February 13, she joined authors Talia Vance and Katherine Longshore at Books Inc. in San Francisco to celebrate her latest young adult novel, Pushed. On March 7, she took part in Los Altos High School’s Writers Week.
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Richard Newman (P ’04) recently won a $20,000 Individual Artist Fellowship from the St. Louis Regional Arts Commission to finish his next book of poems, All the Wasted Beauty of the World, forthcoming from Able Muse Press later this summer. His poems have recently appeared or are forthcoming in Crab Orchard Review, I-70 Review, Midwestern Gothic, Moon City Review, and Poems & Plays and the anthologies Drawn to Marvel: Poems from Comic Books and the Aspen Poetry Society’s anthology of poets from their reading series. His play Bang! will appear in the next and final issue of Poems & Plays. His song “Heaven Lake,” performed with his junkfolk band The CharFlies, was a finalist and honorable mention in the 2014 Eco Arts Awards’ songwriting category.
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Mary Popham (F ’03) interviewed in January with Katerina Stoykova-Klemer (P ’09) on Accents – A Radio Show for Literature, Art and Culture on WRFL in Lexington, Kentucky. On January 24, her essay “Another Time, Another Life”was published as guest blogger for Literary Labors. On January 18, she did a reading of “Sorghum” at The Bard’s Town as fiction prize finalist for 2013 New Southerner Literary Edition, published by Bobbi Buchanan (CNF ’04). In December, she interviewed with Rachel Short on “Process as a Writer” and read excerpts from her new novel, Back Home in Landing Run, on ARTxFM radio in Louisville. During January and February, she contributed three book reviews to Louisville’s Courier-Journal.
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Colleen Wells (CNF ’10) is participating in a six-week series called Using Our Words to Heal. The writing circle is offered through the Writing for a Change Foundation of Bloomington, Inc., in Indiana. Her essay “Between Two Poles” appeared in the Potomac Review, Issue 54, Winter 2013. http://cms.montgomerycollege.edu/EDU/Alt.aspx?id=18937.
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Patti Zelch (W4CYA ’03) spoke at the Islamorada Writers & Readers Seminar on March 8. Patti’s topic was "Rhythm, Repetition and no Rhyming—What Makes a Good Picture Book."
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Dianne Aprile has co-founded Eastside Writes, a writer’s organization on the east side of Seattle. The group launched in February with the opening of a collaborative gallery exhibition with Puget Sound Book Arts. The gallery show features curated examples of handmade books and framed texts by Dianne, Spalding poet Maureen Morehead, and Spalding alum Katerina Stoykova-Klemer (P ’09). During the exhibition, Dianne and other Seattle-area writers offered free writing workshops at local settings in the community, including the public library.
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Roy Hoffman’s essay “Dancing Across the Generations” was published  in The New York Times on New Year’s Eve (http://tinyurl.com/mgbbcwk). In January, Roy led an audience discussion of the movie “Suskind” after its screening at the Jewish Film Festival in Mobile, Alabama.
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Classifieds

Accents Publishing 2014 Poetry Chapbook Contest. Two winners—one selected by independent judge Patty Paine, and one by founding editor Katerina Stoykova-Klemer. $300 prize, publication of perfect-bound chapbook and 30 copies. All entries are considered for publication. Send manuscript plus $15 reading fee by April 30. http://tinyurl.com/ke6dnfy.
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Faculty Advisory Committee (FAC) for Fall 2013

FAC members are announced by the MFA Office at the beginning of each semester. The Program Directors consult 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.

• Rachel Harper, fiction
• Jeanie Thompson, poetry
• Nancy McCabe, creative nonfiction
• Edie Hemingway, writing for children and young adults
• Gabriel Dean, playwriting/screenwriting

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 (mfa@spalding.edu). Information for assistantships is on the MFA portal page.

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 Michelle Standridge at 800-896-8941, ext. 4333 or 502-873-4333 or email mstandridge@spalding.edu. Students may enter or update their FAFSA information online at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

Student Loans for Spring 2014 semester: If you have not already filled out the FAFSA for the 2013-14 school year, using 2012 tax information, do so now. Refer to MFA Financial Aid FAQs on the MFA portal page.

Student Loans for Summer 2014 semester: Fill out the FAFSA for the 2014-2015 school year, using 2013 tax information. Refer to MFA Financial Aid FAQs on the MFA portal page.
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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.
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Newsletter Archive: Newsletters are archived online at spalding.edu/mfanewsletter. .
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Life of a Writer: Please remember to email Life of a Writer news to the program because this is a vital part of our community—sharing writing successes. 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. Include area of concentration in parenthesis after name. For example, (F) for fiction, (P) for poetry, (CNF) for creative nonfiction; (W4C) for writing for children and young adults, (SW) for screenwriting, and (PW) for playwriting. For alumni, please include the year of graduation, such as Jake Doe (SW ’08). Spell out month and state names. Include title(s) of the work, publishers, date of publication, and complete web site addresses when appropriate. Send to mfanewsletter@spalding.edu.

Examples of kinds of activities that might be included in the Life of a Writer column are publishing in journals or magazines or in book form, winning awards or other prizes, giving a public reading, visiting a classroom to talk about writing, judging a writing competition, attending a writers conference, serving on a panel about writing, or volunteering in a project about writing or literacy.
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Like our Facebook page
http://www.facebook.com/SpaldingMFA

Find MFA gear and wear
http://www.cafepress.com/SpaldingMFA

About The Masthead: The image in our masthead is the emblem of a photograph of a Louisville fountain, "River Horse," by Louisville sculptor Barney Bright. The sculpture references both the location of Louisville as a river city on the banks of the Ohio and as the host, for more than 125 years, of the Kentucky Derby. The winged horse Pegasus, of Greek mythology, has long been associated with the literary arts and the wings of poesy.
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Sena Jeter Naslund, Program Director
Karen J. Mann, Administrative Director
Kathleen Driskell, Associate Program Director
Katy Yocom, Associate Administrative Director
Ellyn Lichvar, Administrative Assistant
Mark Ervin, Newsletter Editor
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Direct No.	Person	Toll Free Ext. 800-896-8941
502-873-4400	Katy Yocom	4400
502-873-4396	Kathleen Driskell	4396
502-873-4398	Ellyn Lichvar	4398
502-873-4399	Karen Mann	4399
502-873-4330	Michelle Standridge	4333

Email Life of a Writer information, Because You Asked questions, or classifieds to mfanewsletter@spalding.edu
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