This week, I’ll be going to Tampa for the 2018 Association of Writers and Writing Programs conference. As always, it will be a very busy few days—inspiring and exhausting.
This year, it will be a little different, since I’ll get to hang out with some of my students who are taking a Short Residency class centered around the conference. They will attend panels, help at our book fair table (T1411 if you want to find us!), and explore the book fair in their free time. They’re required to go to some professional panels on writing or the business of writing, as well as some panels that feature readings. They’ve already learned a lot just from scouring the schedule to see what they most want to attend.
I’ll go to the directors panels, both the general one and one for the Southeast region, and I’ll try to catch the Low-Residency Caucus panel, too, so I can hear about the latest developments that affect our program. But much of my time will be spent in the book fair, where in addition to our program and our literary magazines Ponder Review and Poetry South, I’ll also be giving out copies of A Writer’s Craft, my multi-genre intro to creative writing textbook.
And to top it all off, as if seeing old friends, working with students, and connecting with other writers and directors isn’t enough, this year I’ll be moderating and participating in a panel to celebrate the 30th Eudora Welty Writers’ Symposium, which will be held Oct. 18-20, 2018!
It should be a lot of fun! See you in Tampa, if you’re going to #AWP18!
Kendall Dunkelberg 