Iowa Summer Writing Festival


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Workshop Descriptions & Instructors Marilyn Abildskov Mary Allen Kate Aspengren Thomas Fox Averill Nancy K.Barry Timothy Bascom Kyle Beachy Karen Bender Linda Bendorf Maudy Benz Venise Berry Bruce Bond David Bouchier Michael Dennis Browne Maggie Conroy Mary Cross Thomas K. Dean Amber Dermont Janet Desaulniers Kelly Dwyer Hope Edelman Josh Emmons Jill Esbaum Sarah Fay Hugh Ferrer Katie Ford Geoffrey Forsyth Cecile Goding Douglas Goetsch Sands Hall Christine Hemp Jim Heynen Rick Hillis Charles Holdefer Richard Jackson Rebecca Johns Cheryl Fusco Johnson Wayne Johnson Daniel Khalastchi Carolyn Lieberg BK Loren Peter Markus Fritz Mc Donald James McKean Gordon Mennenga Sharelle Byars Moranville Michael Morse Barbara Robinette Moss Marc Nieson Shannon Olson Diana Ossana Lon Otto Juliet Patterson Kiki Petrosino Mark Jude Poirier Leslie Carol Roberts Anjali Sachdeva Sarah Saffian Sam Samuels Sandra Scofield Mary Kay Shanley Robert Anthony Siegel Carol Spindel Karen Subach Mary Vermillion Kris Vervaecke Ashley Warlick Michelle Wildgen Bart Yates	Wayne Johnson Novel Solutions One-Week Workshop June 7–12 Telling the Tale, a Nonfiction Workshop One-Week Workshop June 14–19 Story Structure for the Screen Weekend Workshop June 20–21 Biography Novel Solutions One-Week Workshop June 7–12 You’ve been working on this thing for . . . how long? Months, years? It’s supposed to look like a novel, but now that you’ve got it in front of you, it looks more like a six-legged cow, or a bus with wings. You’ve begun to wonder what exactly a novel is. Maybe you’re not writing one. You might be writing a cycle of stories. Or a reminiscence. Or a book, with some unifying structural element. In this class, we’ll look at ways of ordering narrative to create a variety of satisfying longer works. We’ll examine traditional linear plot structures, as well as the episodic and cyclic, using examples from contemporary literature. Students will not bring novels to class; rather, they will bring an opening chapter, or a middle chapter. Or even notes, or notions. We’ll consider the possibilities. Always, the structural solution will be novel to the writer, will fit his or her narrative impulses. Telling the Tale, a Nonfiction Workshop One-Week Workshop June 14–19 All of us encounter dramas in life that seem tailor-made for narrative. But when sitting down to pen these “ready-mades,” we often find that they don’t come to life; they drag, or simply seem to lose their once-brilliant shine when committed to paper. So, we ask, how do writers such as Bill Bryson, Jon Krakauer, and Sebastian Junger write such engaging narratives? Or Tobias Wolff, Mary Karr, and Jeannette Walls? This class will examine a variety of nonfiction forms, from the memoir to the specific-subject yarn drawn from a decades old once-hot news item. We’ll discuss the two major necessities of writing nonfiction, compression and conflation, and how to use both with integrity and confidence, along with a host of powerful techniques drawn from fiction. Participants will write and share with the class a variety of exercises that develop core craft for the nonfiction narrative. By the end of the class, all members will see the world of story in a fresh and inviting way, and that the story is in the telling. Story Structure for the Screen Weekend Workshop June 20–21 We all love well-made movies—in fact, so much so that we sometimes think of our experience of them as “movie magic.” But how is this magic created? In this class, we’ll take a look at a number of films to examine the basic elements of story structure that burst onto the screen to create engaging movement, riveting visual experience, and emotionally satisfying drama. We will also read and discuss portions of award-wining screenplays such as Chinatown and The English Patient, identifying the techniques and strategies employed by writers of these very successful film narratives. This is an interactive lecture course; participants, through immersion in written and visual media, will gain a greater appreciation for film narratives that will enable them to create their own movie magic. Biography Wayne D. Johnson (M.F.A., The University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop) is a recipient of an O. Henry Award, a Transatlantic Review award, a Teaching-Writing Fellowship from The Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and a Wallace Stegner Fellowship from Stanford University. His stories have appeared in The Atlantic, Ploughshares, Story, and other magazines, as well as in various anthologies. Johnson’s first novel, The Snake Game, was a London Times Bestseller. Don’t Think Twice was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and Six Crooked Highways chosen as a “Booksellers Summer Bestseller.” His latest novel, The Devil You Know, was released in 2004. Johnson has been a Chesterfield Film Fellow in Hollywood and has projects with major and independent studios. His most recent book, White Heat: The Extreme Skiing Life, was released by Simon and Schuster in 2007; a book on motorcycling is to follow.

	Site Map \| Welcome \| Workshops by Session Date \| Workshops by Instructor Workshops by Genre \| Registration & Housing Information \| Registration Form Sponsored by the Division of Continuing Education Iowa Summer Writing Festival C215 Seashore Hall The University of Iowa Iowa City, IA 52242 Phone 319-335-4160 FAX 319-335-4743 iswfestival@uiowa.edu Last updated on February 10, 2009