|
|
|
Festival Brings Emerging Writers to Campus
|
|
|
Emerging writers answer students' questions about the writing craft during the second annual Emerging Writers Festival. |
|
|
Five up-and-coming authors read from their work and shared their views on writing during the University of San Francisco's second annual Emerging Writers Festival.
Presented by the English department and the MFA in writing program, the April 11-12 festival showcased talented writers who have had one or two books published but who have not yet become well known throughout the publishing world. The event was also a chance to highlight USF's emerging writers--throughout the festival, students had the chance to spend time with the writers. The students also took an active role in organizing the festival and in introducing the authors at the readings.
"The idea is to narrow the gap between our emerging writers and these emerging writers," said Dean Rader, associate dean for arts and humanities. "It gives our students an opportunity to see people who are not that far from them in terms of age and who can easily be identified as role models."
Susan Steinberg, assistant professor of English and one of the event's organizers, came up with the idea after participating in a similar festival at Franklin & Marshall College. The event was amazing, Steinberg said, and USF's initial festival had the same impact.
"The response last year was incredibly positive," Steinberg said. "We had a huge turnout for each event, and everyone has been talking about it since."
Because the writers have not yet become celebrity authors, they have more time to interact with students. In turn, students feel comfortable asking them about their craft. The questions, Rader said, often focus on pragmatic concerns. How often do they write? Where do they write? Where do they find their inspiration? How often do they revise their work?
This year's writers represented a variety of writing styles, and several have won awards for their work.
- Paige Ackerson-Kiely's first book of poems, In No One's Land, won the 2006 Sawtooth Poetry Prize.
- Daniel Alarcon, whose stories have appeared in The New Yorker, has been widely praised for his story collection War by Candlelight.
- Michael Mejia, recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, is the author of Forgetfulness, a novel-as-montage that assimilates a variety of forms.
- Oliver de la Paz is the author of Names above Houses, a book of prose and verse that won the 2000 Crab Orchard Award, and of the forthcoming Furious Lullaby.
- Ann Joslin Williams is a former Stegner fellow and won the Spokane Prize for short fiction for her story collection, The Woman in the Woods.
In addition to reading from their works, the authors participated in a panel discussion, "Becoming a Writer," and answered students' questions about writing. 
 Back to Top
|
|
