me and fellow students (credit: Joey-Lee Campbell)
Having just finished a 10-day creative writing residency, I feel I should write something profound. Not gonna happen. Too exhausted. Here’s the brief flashes I can remember at the moment:
- Met and worked with wonderful, creative, and inspiring people: my fellow students as well as our teachers
- Met Joyce-Carol Oats and asked her about the importance of story ideas and style. Answer: first one better be good, the latter should be better
- Met Chris Offut who left me in stitches “workshopping” one of his early stories … and gave me hope as a writer
- Met Steve Almond who used the workd “fucknut” in a wonderful craft class … and taught me that obsession drives everything
- Learned that my manuscript was not a story but a tale, but plenty is there to make a true story … it has “salvagable weirdness” which made me very happy
- Learned that none of the expensive Lexington restaurants can hold a candle to Richmond’s China King – not even close
- Learned how aware of Freytag’s triangle I should be
- Learned how aware of manipulating Freytag’s triangle I should be
- Learned how difficult writing truly is
- Learned that it’s all about emotion
- I couldn’t complete a thought outdoors in the cold
- I ought to have … damn it was cold!
There is so much more, and all of it positive, I just cannot put it all down in writing right now. Hopefully I can follow up and share more. But the next class starts tomorrow for spring term. Time for dreamy sleep.
