Telling Our Histories Our Way
United States History, with a capital “H.” Let’s face it. The official record pretty much ignores (and more recently, erases) the lives and stories of people of color unless these stories happen to intersect with white lives and stories. And even then, when POC history is considered, it’s often told from an outsider perspective that feels inauthentic; even, at times, condescending. In this four-week class, we’ll directly address this. We’ll consider how we pass along our stories in the face of official disinterest—oral history, family lore, “folk” tales, songs—and how different writers have used these valuable resources to bring our past to life. We’ll conduct our own research and identify potential story ideas. We’ll discuss and make decisions about character, POV, and milieu. And we’ll come away with material for a new project that will help us shed light on our pasts, connect us to our current communities, and work to expand the narrow frame of official history. Come prepared to read, write, conduct research, and discuss. Please note: there will be a bit of research conducted before the class begins, as well as a small amount of reading.
Are You Surreal 2.0
Ever wanted to bring your imagination and dreams to a state of logic and reason? Melting art, psychology, philosophy, and so much more, surrealism makes those links possible. Through this 3 hour course, you will
practice, analyze, and borrow from automatic and traditional surrealist writing
be exposed to the poetic toolbox and how it aids in contemporary uses
learn the value of intentional distortion and how it differs from being avant-garde
make palpable connections between what’s real and true about the world and the absurdities from beyond
There will be plenty of opportunities to discuss, read, generate new writing, and even revise some old! You will walk away with something to continue—ways to brainstorm and create new ideas, methods to increase your poetic prowess, and permission to be strange and illogical, golden with treasures that beckon you seamlessly through and out of the dark. This course is for you if you enjoy exploration, risk-taking, and bending all the rules. Further develop your craft. Deepen your poetic psyche. Enter the scope of strange masters and literary wizards, come out with your own conjured world.
The Writer’s Gaze: Art Criticism in a Literary Writing Practice
Many writers engage with art and culture in their work, and that critical eye can help illuminate other artistic practices. The course is for writers of any background and at all stages who are interested in learning more about writing art criticism and how to get started. Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grantee and Word Editor-Writer Mentee Mimi Wong will discuss those skills literary writers already have in their toolbox—whether in poetry or prose, fiction or nonfiction—and adapting them to be able to write thoughtfully about visual art. During the 3-hour workshop, which will include interactive writing prompts, Mimi will cover tips for pitching and submitting work, as well as the myriad of art writing opportunities out there.
Free Your Writing with Free Verse
Join National Book Award Winner and Word Editor-Writer Mentee Shifa Saltagi Safadi in this 90-minute interactive writing workshop all about writing free verse. Shifa will discuss her process of plotting a verse novel, how poetry does not have to be difficult or restricted by historic poetic forms, and how freeing yourself as a writer from expectations can be the key to writing your best work! The course will offer opportunities for writers to try their hand at free verse and get feedback live, as well as questions and answers about writing and publishing in the industry.
Note: This is a virtual workshop hosted on Zoom. If you purchase the Live Zoom Session, you will receive your session an hour before the event. If you purchase the workshop recording, you will receive a link to the session 48 hours after the end of the live event.
Instructor: Shifa Saltagi Safadi
Imagined Histories
This is a space where historical characters, false documents, talismanic objects, and forgotten stories collide with fiction, to seed, inspire, open, and question the authority of the facts as they have already been written. This kind of rigorous re-imagining can be a generative entry point for our work. Together, we will discuss the choices we can make in terms of framing, voice, research, and invention, in order to expand the possibilities of our fictional worlds, and observe the ways in which writers blur the line between fiction and fact to write worlds that are vivid, expansive, and emotionally specific.