Iowa Summer Writing Festival


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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	Marc Nieson Writing With Sense(s) Weekend Workshop June 14–15 and July 27-Aug 1 Memoir: On Self And Society One-Week Workshop June 15–20 The Art Of Metaphor Weekend Workshop June 21–22 and July 26-27 Writing With Sense(s) One-Week Workshop June 22–27 Biography Writing With Sense(s) Weekend Workshop June 14–15 and July 27-Aug 1 When we say we are moved by a story or poem, what precisely do we mean? Where do we go? Is this place new and uncharted or merely a return? The best of books or music or art often leaves us speechless. For the moment, we step outside the world of words and intellect and enter the realm of the senses—the world we once inhabited as children, before we read or wrote or even named things. This highly participatory workshop will focus on sensory perception. Through a host of visual, aural, and tactile exercises, we will re-explore physical environments and landscapes of memory—finding ways to rename them and thus help our writing become fresher and more evocative to both ourselves and our readers, to take it backwards and forwards toward a place that is sensory, sensual, sensible. The class invites writers of all genres. Memoir: On Self And Society One-Week Workshop June 15–20 We all have stories inside of us. In fact, one might argue that we are stories—creating our lives, day to day, every day. The personal memoir is one narrative option and publishing entry for writers willing to embark on journeys of self. Yet for a memoir to speak with any resonance or relevance, the writer must achieve a fragile balance between the self and others, between content and form. In this workshop, we will critique each manuscript from the standpoint of localizing what in your individual tale has communal and cultural context, then explore the varied narrative means and structures to best convey that tale. We will also consider such questions as: What precisely is the difference between a reflective and narrative voice? Between fact and truth? Between the private and the public? Expect model readings, discussions, and varied written exercises designed to help tap and shape your own life stories. The class invites writers working on book-length memoirs and/or individual essays. The Art Of Metaphor Weekend Workshop June 21–22 and July 26-27 From Melville’s white whale to Walker’s color purple. Cervantes’ windmills to Woolf’s lighthouse. Carver’s cathedral to Basho’s pond. We all recognize the precision and poignancy of these metaphors. Those crystalline choices their creators made to deeply and simultaneously etch into our minds both image and meaning. As writers, how can we bring that kind of consciousness into the ongoing process of our own work? How can we make a single image signify and resonate throughout our narratives, poems, essays? How can we start recognizing potential metaphors in both our working drafts and our everyday lives? Through varied exercises and readings, this workshop offers a vibrant study and practice of this often overlooked though highly resonant element of our craft. Writing With Sense(s) One-Week Workshop June 22–27 When we say we are moved by a story or poem, what precisely do we mean? Where do we go? Is this place new and uncharted or merely a return? The best of books or music or art often leaves us speechless. For the moment, we step outside the world of words and intellect and enter the realm of the senses—the world we once inhabited as children, before we read or wrote or even named things. This highly participatory workshop will focus on sensory perception. Through a host of visual, aural, and tactile exercises, we will re-explore physical environments and landscapes of memory—finding ways to rename them and thus help our writing become fresher and more evocative to both ourselves and our readers, to take it backwards and forwards toward a place that is sensory, sensual, sensible. Expect model readings and discussions, as well as short exploratory field trips. While our emphasis is on generating new work and approaches, this course will allow for in-class sharing of cumulative assignments. The class invites writers of all genres and levels. Biography Marc Nieson (M.F.A., The University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop) has lived in New York City, Italy, Iowa and Minnesota. His background includes filmmaking, children’s theatre, building construction, and a season with a one-ring circus. Currently he’s on the faculty of Chatham College and The Loft. An excerpt from Schoolhouse: A Memoir from the Heartland appeared in the Literary Review and short fiction in Great River Review and American Way. His filmscripts include Bottomland, The Dream Catcher, and Superheroes. Currently, he’s living in Pittsburgh and finishing work on a novel, The Myth of Return.

	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 June 27, 2008