Writers Writing Together.
To say I’m honoured and grateful would be an understatement. This past year has been challenging, it’s true. But aside from the obvious weirdness of it all, for me there has been a lapfull of gifts. I have met the most remarkable people right here in my home – people from various states in the U.S., New Zealand, Switzerland, Turkey, Costa Rica, Panama, and from east to west to north here in Canada. We’ve been writing. And writing. And reading. And offering the kind of feedback that makes one want to keep writing.
The writing, the writing, the writing… it just gets richer, deeper, more honest with every Zooming workshop. Just by listening, my own writing finds new shapes and textures.
Some of the writers have seen success in publication and some are teachers of creative writing. There are playwrights, children’s book authors, Young Adult novelists, and poets. There are seasoned writers and those returning to the page after years of absence, and there are those whose stories simply need to be told. It’s thrilling to me to have this chorus of voices join me.
There is Fiona Raye Clark who is on fire with a children’s television show after completing a play, a novel, and several other projects. There is Kelsey Andrews, whose breath-taking poems often leave me quite speechless, and for whom I’ve felt absolute delight in witnessing her first poems accepted by Prism and The New Quarterly. Kari Jones writes magical stories that make the reader trust in magic. Laurie Elmquist writes compassionate, tender stories for young readers. Barbara Krasner writes, among other topics, deeply considered historical and genealogical tales from a Jewish perspective. Julian Gunn writes captivatingly lyrical stories and poems. This is only some of what I’ve witnessed being created on the spot by these fine writers. They all have a writing life away from my screen, of course. Such as Mimm, who has an honest, engaging blog. Check them out, you won’t be disappointed but you may well be surprised and delighted.
Those are the published writers. Dozens of other stunning voices show up at Write Your Way In workshops – all of them worthy of publication and acclaim. The Amherst Writers & Artists method of workshop facilitation offers free range for the voice to roam. It provides a safe net for the words to be caught and held with respect.
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