Workshop Descriptions & Instructors

Faith Adiele
Mary Allen
Kate Aspengren
Thomas Fox Averill
Nancy Barry
Timothy Bascom
Linda Bendorf
Venise Berry
Bruce Bond
Michael Dennis Browne
Susan Taylor Chehak
John Dalton
Thomas K. Dean
Amber Dermont
Kelly Dwyer
Hope Edelman
Josh Emmons
Katie Ford
Patricia Foster
Laura Fraser
Cecile Goding
Douglas Goetsch
Kevin González
John Griesemer
Sands Hall
Christine Hemp
Jim Heynen
Rick Hillis
Charles Holdefer
Richard Jackson
Cheryl Fusco Johnson
Wayne Johnson
Bret Anthony Johnston
Daniel Khalastchi
Zachary Lazar
Carolyn Lieberg
BK Loren
Fritz Mc Donald
James McKean
Gordon Mennenga
Katherine Min
Sharelle Byars Moranville
Michael Morse
Barbara Robinette Moss
Marc Nieson
Shannon Olson
Lon Otto
Juliet Patterson
Anjali Sachdeva
Sarah Saffian
Sam Samuels
Leslie Schwartz
Sandra Scofield
Mary Kay Shanley
Carol Spindel
Karen Subach
Mary Vermillion
Ashley Warlick
Jan Weissmiller
Bart Yates

Carolyn Lieberg

A Crash Course On Short Forms: Short Stories and Essays
Weekend Workshop
June 14–15

Ten Thousand Words
One-Week Workshop
June 15–20

29 Points Of Departure
Weekend Workshop
June 21–22

Biography

A Crash Course On Short Forms: Short Stories and Essays
Weekend Workshop
June 14–15

This class is for people who want to explore two short forms—stories and essays. We will run (or race!) through a crash course in the world of short stories and what makes a story work. We will look at portions of short fiction by a few classic writers and by a few lesser knowns as we discuss structure, character, dialogue, setting, and development. We will then turn to the essay and pay some attention to the elastic rules that guide the form. Again, we will use some examples as a springboard into our discussion, part of which will focus on how an essay develops into a polished wholeness. In order to give you time to read complete pieces and digest what happens on Saturday, we will split each day of the workshop into two sections—one portion for fiction and one portion for nonfiction.

Ten Thousand Words
One-Week Workshop
June 15–20

How many words would you like to write in a week? During the five days of classes, you will be invited to respond to a wide range of writing prompts, which will focus on different aspects of character, background, and plot. Some of them will be imaginative and some will be from the rich mine of your memory. You will write about various settings, stories, and people, in unlikely voices and from fresh perspectives. Out-of-class assignments will focus on further development of these aspects.

If you are considering a large writing project, the week might serve as an opportunity to write background material. If you would simply like to produce a lot material and exercise your imagination, this class will give you a chance to discover new ideas and reveal the solemn, the outrageous, and the beautiful. If you have wanted to venture into the world of writing but did not know where to begin, this class is for you, too. Occasional sharing of these drafted bits will be optional but always welcome. Writers of all levels are welcome.

29 Points Of Departure
Weekend Workshop
June 21–22

Would you like to plump your files for new projects or add to background material for current ones? In this intense session, you’ll be invited to mine your memory and experiences and to exercise your imagination. By the end of the weekend, you’ll have twenty-nine (or more) fresh ideas for stories, characters, viewpoints, or scenes. Exercises will include inventing characters and their backgrounds, writing dialogue, riffing on single words, adopting fresh viewpoints, and rediscovering some memories. What you produce may set you off in new directions or give you ideas for stalled projects. We’ll take an occasional break to share some of your writing. Past participants have found the session to be exhausting and satisfying. Bring your favorite pen and lots of paper—or laptop. Writers of all levels are welcome.

Biography
Carolyn Lieberg is the author of a young adult novel, West with Hopeless,and two nonfiction books, Little Sisters—The Last But Not the Least and Calling the Midwest Home. A book on college teaching came out in January. She has edited two magazines and published short stories and essays. Her graduate degree is in creative nonfiction from The University of Iowa, and she lives in Washington, DC, where she teaches, edits, and continues to work on her current novel, Lost.

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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 January 10, 2008