Writers Workshops
Creative Writing Workshop
March 3, 2010
Margaret-Love Denman, former director of the creative writing program at the University of New Hampshire and currently coordinator of off-campus writing programs at the University of Mississippi, will offer a special workshop in conjunction with the 2010 Oxford Conference for the Book. The daylong workshop, titled “Mining Your Raw Materials,” will take place Wednesday, March 3, at the Downtown Grill on the Oxford Square. An outline of the day’s schedule is given below.
The workshop is open to 20 writers. The workshop fee of $250 includes evaluation of up to 20 double-spaced pages of fiction submitted beforehand, a private 20-minute session with the instructor during the March 4–6 conference, attendance at all conference events, lunch and refreshments on Wednesday, lunch and dinner on Thursday (dinner with the authors on Thursday night at the Barksdale-Isom Place), and lunch on Saturday.
Also, each registrant will receive a copy of Novel Ideas: Contemporary Authors Share the Creative Process, by Denman and novelist Barbara Shoup, writer in residence at the Writers’ Center of Indiana. They also collaborated on Story Matters: Contemporary Short Story Writers Share the Creative Process, a collection of interviews with 23 authors, including Larry Brown, Richard Ford, Lee Smith, and Sena Jeter Naslund. Denman grew up in Oxford and received BA and MA degrees at the University of Mississippi. She joined the faculty at the University of New Hampshire, Durham, in 1991 and directed the creative writing program there from 1993 through 2007. Her first novel, Scrambling after Circumstance, was nominated for both PEN/Faulkner and PEN/Hemingway awards. Her latest novel is Daily, Before Your Eyes. Among her many honors is selection for the Hawthornden Fellowship in Edinburgh, Scotland, for November 2008. For more info, e-mail slyon@olemiss.edu.
9:00 a.m. Registration, coffee, and opening remarks
9:30 a.m. Learning to tell time
10:30 a.m. Observations—conversation and readings
11:00 a.m. Moving from memory into imagination
Noon Observations—conversations and readings
1:00 p.m. Lunch
2:30 p.m. Conversation about where memory and imagination can lead the writer
3:00 p.m. Discovering the necessary language
4:00 p.m. Readings
5:30 p.m. Evaluations
During the course of the Oxford Conference for the Book, each participant will have the opportunity to have an individual conference with Margaret-Love Denman based upon the manuscript submitted before the workshop. These sessions will be arranged during the course of the next four days. The workshop is still open, but it will fill up. Apply no later than Friday, February 26.
Southern Arts Federation Workshops
The Southern Arts Federation has awarded a grant to support special workshops during the Oxford Conference for the Book. Poets Mark Jarman and E. Ethelbert Miller will present readings and also conduct poetry workshops. Donna Hemans will present a reading and conduct a fiction workshop. The two authors of books for young readers—Ingrid Law and Watt Key—will join literacy advocates Elaine H. Scott and Claiborne Barksdale in a discussion about reading and writing problems and opportunities. Teachers from local schools, Teach for America schools in the Mississippi Delta, Mississippi Teacher Corps schools, librarians, education students, writers of poetry and fiction, and other interested persons are invited to attend. Continuing Education Units are available for conference and workshop participants.
Poetry Craft Talk
“The Craft of Writing the Political Poem”
Lafayette County & Oxford Public Library
Friday, March 5, 2010, Noon
The public is invited to attend a presentation by noted poet E. Ethelbert Miller. His presentation will be a craft talk, of interest to writers and readers of poetry. The event will include lunch and is open to the public without charge. Reservations for lunch may be made by telephone (662-234-05751), fax (662-234-3155), or e-mail: dfitts@firstregional.org. Deadline for Reservations: Monday, March 1, 2010.
Fiction and Poetry Writing Workshops
Overby Center Rooms TBA
Saturday, March 6, 2010, 9:00 a.m.
Writers of poetry and short fiction are invited to submit a short manuscript for critique by two acclaimed authors, fiction writer Donna Hemans and poet Mark Jarman. Interested individuals should send one poem or no more than 10 pages of fiction to Blair Hobbs, Department of English, The University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677; e-mail vhobbs@olemiss.edu. Manuscripts should include name and contact information. Depending on number of manuscripts received, workshop manuscripts may be selected on basis of quality. These workshops will meet concurrently on Saturday, March 6, at 9 a.m. The workshops are free and open to the public. Deadline for submissions: Wednesday, February 24, 2010.
“The Endangered Species: Readers Today and Tomorrow”
Overby Center Auditorium
Saturday, March 6, 2010, 9:00 a.m.
Claiborne Barksdale, Watt Key, Ingrid Law, and Elaine Scott will discuss reading and writing problems and opportunities and address written questions submitted prior to the Saturday morning session. Teachers should send their questions to Rosemary Oliphant-Ingham, School of Education, The University of Mississippi, University, MS 386777; e-mail ringham@olemiss.edu. Deadline: Wednesday, February 24, 2010.
Book and Author Publicity Session
At this year’s Oxford Conference for the Book, Lynda and James O’Connor, who operate a husband-and-wife public relations firm in Chicago, will once again lead a workshop titled “Promoting Your Book and Yourself.” The O’Connors will discuss effective ways to acquire media coverage beyond book reviews, explain how to find and contact members of the media, and explore creative ways to get favorable exposure. In addition, Lynda and Jim will cover such topics as using the Internet and viral marketing, overcoming fear, and the pros and cons of hiring your own publicist.
Lynda and Jim O’Connor have operated their own public relations firm in Chicago for 21 years and have specialized in promoting books and authors since 2006, beginning with Jim’s book, Cuss Control: The Complete Book on How to Curb Your Cursing. Cuss Control took the duo to over 100 television programs, all the way from Oprah to the O’Reilly Factor. Their clients call the O’Connors “tireless, tenacious, creative, enthusiastic and dedicated.”
The workshop will be at Off Square Books on Friday, March 5, at 7 p.m. The O’Connors, in addition to leading the workshop, have offered to schedule individual meetings with conference registrants. To schedule an appointment, sign up at the registration desk or give one of them a call: Lynda’s number is 847-863-5017. Jim’s is 847-863-3591.