Local writers will have the opportunity to hone their skills with UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program workshops in poetry and prose.
Classes will be held in Asheville, Black Mountain, Hendersonville and Burnsville. Class size is limited, so early registration is suggested.
10-week courses for writers of various levels of experience:
Poetry – Tina Barr will lead “Twenty Questions on Poetic Technique,” which will explore the question of form, rhythm and the history of line breaks, revision and the challenge of developing an individual voice. Barr’s latest book of poems is Kaleidoscope (Iris Press, 2015). Her poems also have been published in The Gettysburg Review, Brilliant Corners, Hotel Amerika and elsewhere. She is the recipient of numerous fellowships and awards, including the Tupelo Press Editor’s Award for her book, The Gathering Eye. Class meets Mondays, 1-3:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 14, in Black Mountain.
Poetry – In “Can I Write a Poem About That?” with Kenneth Chamlee, participants will use a variety of fun techniques of generating ideas for poems, searching for connections that create surprise and resonance, and exploring free verse options. Chamlee is a professor of English at Brevard College in North Carolina. His poems have appeared inThe Asheville Poetry Review, The Cumberland Poetry Review, The Greensboro Review, and many others. Class meets Mondays, 2-4:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 14, in Hendersonville.
Writing Strategies—Patti Digh will lead “Organizing Your Writing Life,” an intensive course designed to help writers create a functioning and sustainable organizing system for their writing work in progress, whether a large book-length project, journaling or shorter essays. Digh is an essayist, memoirist, and award-winning blogger. She is the author of eight books, including Life is a Verb (Skirt!, 2008), a finalist for the national Books for a Better Life Award and a nominee for the Southern Independent Booksellers’ Association Book of the Year. Digh is the founder of VerbTribe, a series of online writing classes with over 250 alumni. Class meets Mondays, 4-6:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 14 in Asheville.
Fiction – Vicki Lane, author of the Elizabeth Goodweather mystery series (Bantam Dell) and the stand-alone novel, The Day of Small Things (Dell, 2010), will teach “Forty Pages.” Each student will submit forty pages of work for discussion and critique by the class and close editing with written comments by the instructor. The goal will be to polish those forty pages until they are ready to catch the attention of an agent, editor or publisher. This class is for intermediate and advanced writers. Class meets Tuesdays from 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 15, in Asheville.
Children’s Books – Linda Lowery will lead “Imaginary and Unimaginary Friends: A Children’s Picture Book Writing Workshop,” in which participants will learn specifics of the genre, including the art of weeding out words, of rhythm and rhyme, prose text and pacing for spot-on page turns, and the thinking process of an illustrator. Assignments include writing the text for two picture books, choosing one manuscript to revise and polish, and creating a 32-page book dummy. Lowery is an award-winning author of more than 60 fiction and nonfiction books for readers from preschool to middle grades. She has illustrated 13 of her books, including Trick or Treat, It’s Halloween (Random House, 2000), a bestselling picture book co-authored with her husband, Richard Keep. Class meets Tuesdays from 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 15, in Asheville.
Creative Nonfiction – In “Writing the New Appalachia” with Jennifer McGaha, participants will explore new ways to reflect and write on the Appalachian region, including the ways Appalachian traditions have been continued, and in what ways people are now breaking from these traditions. McGaha is an Appalachian writer, teacher, and humorist whose creative nonfiction work has appeared in dozens of magazines and literary journals, including Deep South Magazine, The Good Men Project,SalonZine, PANK, and The Chronicle of Higher Education, and others. Class meets Mondays, 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 14, in Asheville.
Children’s Books – In “Heart of the Story,” participants will focus on storyboarding as a powerful tool for generating material or revising work for young readers. With a special focus on point-of-view, students will learn about ways to develop dynamic characters and compelling plots. Neaves was senior editor at Front Street for a decade and is now a freelance editor of children’s books at namelos.com. Class meets Thursdays, 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 17, in Asheville.
Fiction – Heather Newton, author of the award-winning novel, Under the Mercy Trees(HarperCollins 2011) will lead “Not Like Me: Creating Fictional Characters Who Do Not Share Your Race, Gender, Sexual Orientation, Etc.” This workshop explores how authors can write such characters plausibly, with respect, and with an eye to cultural blind spots. Class will include readings, guest speakers, in-class writing exercises and critique of student work. Class meets Wednesdays from 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 16, in Black Mountain.
Poetry, Prose Poems and Flash Fiction – Poet Katherine Soniat will lead “Thistles and Sharp Stones: The Art of the Deep Image.” In this workshop, participants will combine archetypal imagery with personal experience to discover new levels of imagination in their poetry and short fiction. Soniat’s collection of poetry, The Swing Girl (Louisiana State University Press), was selected as Best Collection of 2011 by the Poetry Council of North Carolina. Her seventh collection, Bright Stranger, is forthcoming from Louisiana State University Press, spring 2016. Class meets Tuesdays from 4–6:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 15, in Burnsville.
Creative Nonfiction – In “The World According to You,” led by Molly Walling, participants will experiment with various forms of creative nonfiction, including letters, memoir, autobiography, personal essay, narrative or literary nonfiction and journalism. Walling has taught at UNC Asheville, Mars Hill College and Virginia Highlands Community College. Her book of creative nonfiction, Death in the Delta: Uncovering a Mississippi Family Secret, was published in 2012 by the University Press of Mississippi, and her essays and articles have appeared in regional arts publications in Virginia and North Carolina. Class meets Thursdays from 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Sept. 17, in Asheville.
15-week courses:
Creative Prose Workshop with Tommy Hays – For advanced prose writers who have projects underway (or who want to start something new) GSWP Executive Director Tommy Hays offers “Keeping Ourselves Company: An Advanced Creative Prose Workshop.” Emphasis will be on reading and critiquing each other’s work. The instructor will respond at length to submissions. Instructor’s permission is required for admittance. Hays is the author of What I Came to Tell You (EgmontUSA, 2013), a SIBA Okra Pick and 2015-16 Nominee for the North Carolina Young Adult Award. His novel,The Pleasure Was Mine (St. Martin’s Press, 2005), has been chosen for numerous community reads and was a finalist for the SIBA Fiction Award. His In the Family Way(Random House, 1999) was winner of the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award. Class meets Wednesdays from 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Aug. 26, in Asheville.
Prose Master Class with Elizabeth Lutyens – Elizabeth Lutyens, editor-in-chief ofThe Great Smokies Review, presents this master class for experienced writers seeking an intensive writing and critiquing experience in a small-group workshop. Master Class members will begin the semester with pages ready for critique and will submit three times during the 15-week course. Admission is by invitation; for more information, contact Tommy Hays ([email protected]) or Elizabeth Lutyens ([email protected]). Class meets Tuesdays from 6-8:30 p.m. beginning Aug. 25, in Asheville.
The 10-week courses qualify for two UNC Asheville credit hours in Literature and Language; the 15-week courses earn three credit hours. For in-state residents, the cost is $292.02 for 10-week courses and $438.03 for 15-week courses.
The costs are higher for out-of-state residents. A $20 non-refundable application fee for new students also is required. For more information or to register, visit agc.unca.edu/gswp or call 828.250.2353.