Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Iowa Writers Festival

Every summer, I try to take a few classes and LEARN SOMETHING NEW.

I am very blessed to live one hour away from the fabulous Iowa Summer Writer's Festival. If you go all the way back to the beginning of this blog -- you'll see that's where I LEARNED HOW TO BLOG...Here I am at a recent weekend workshop...


Here's what the room looked like -- inside Schaeffer Hall on the campus of the University of Iowa. The workshop format means there are never more than 12 students in a class...

Two of the best writers in the room -- Hardy and his daughter Annie. ISN'T THAT SWEET?? Really -- making it a father/daughter event was pretty darn special.


Attending this particular workshop: Mary, Cecilia, Mary Ellen, Louise, Karen, Hardy, Annie, Nancy, Rita, Joan, Mary Lou. That's the order as we sat around the room (not as we posed for this picture). It's two very intense days -- and you hear amazing stories. It's probably best that I didn't learn anybody's last name.



This is a very nice picture of our teacher, Carolyn Lieberg. She came all the way from Washington, D.C. -- and I highly recommend her class. My other mates came from -- Massachusetts, New York, St. Louis, Portland, Borneo -- WOW!! WHAT STORIES THEY HAD TO TELL...Carolyn promised us "29 Points of Departure" -- and she delivered in a big way.

Maybe one day I'll post one of my writing exercises...(that's a threat -- not a promise...)

On the drive home, I kept thinking about my friend Marion (who has also attended the Festival). Her question is always, "why would anybody write fiction? The truth is so bizarre -- it never lets you down..."

You have nooooo idea how right you are, babe...

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