Building Community for A Writer’s Craft

Not long ago, I wrote about setting up the companion website for A Writer’s Craft. That is now up and running, but one thing I had always wanted to add was a discussion area, where teachers could talk about using the book and teaching introductory creative writing in 4 genres, and where students and teachersContinue reading “Building Community for A Writer’s Craft”

Companion Website for AWC

The companion website for my textbook A Writer’s Craft is now available at Bloomsbury Online Resources. Materials for teachers and students are publicly available, including: Teaching with A Writer’s Craft Why Teach 4 Genres Cross-Genre Teaching The Small Group Workshop Full-Class Workshop Midterm and Final Portfolios Teaching Creative Writing with Literary Magazines Plagiarism For Students Journal Exercises OnlineContinue reading “Companion Website for AWC”

Book Review: Always Happy Hour by Mary Miller

Always Happy Hour: Stories by Mary Miller My rating: 5 of 5 stars Mary Miller’s wit sparkles in these stories like a stiff drink with a healthy dash of bitters. They are dry, acerbic, and full of bitter irony. Consider the title, taken from a line on one of the later stories in the collection:Continue reading “Book Review: Always Happy Hour by Mary Miller”

Book Review: Daniel Wallace, Extraordinary Adventures

Extraordinary Adventures by Daniel Wallace My rating: 5 of 5 stars Daniel Wallace has given us another thoroughly enjoyable read. His characters are easy to invest in. Nothing that extraordinary happens in their lives, at least not until Edsel Bronfman receives an offer for a free weekend at a time share in Destin, Florida. ThenContinue reading “Book Review: Daniel Wallace, Extraordinary Adventures”

Book Review: Stripper in Wonderland

Stripper in Wonderland: Poems by Harriell, Derrick My rating: 5 of 5 stars If you think the cover has energy, then hold onto your hat. These poems leap off the page with vibrant language and daring subjects. Harriell is willing to take on race and sex, falling in love and becoming a parent, living theContinue reading “Book Review: Stripper in Wonderland”

More Advice for Poets

This is a follow-up post to the one I made recently about Poetry Submissions. This week, I placed two poems in Valley Voices, and on the recommendation of editor John Zheng, I sent 3 haiku to Asahi Haikuist Network who took them for upcoming issues in October and next May. What I learned from this (or was reminded of)Continue reading “More Advice for Poets”

Poetry Submissions

It’s been a busy period, getting classes started, welcoming new students to our MFA program, and working on the schedule for next semester — yes as an administrator, I always have to be thinking ahead! Yet maybe the most fun part of the new academic year has been spent with poetry submissions, which I’m lookingContinue reading “Poetry Submissions”

Dispatch from the #MSBookfest

This past Saturday, I spent almost 10 hours outside on the capitol grounds in Jackson, Mississippi. Under normal circumstance, you might have to be crazy to do that in August, but this was no ordinary Saturday. It was the 3rd annual Mississippi Book Festival, and I was there in my third role. The first yearContinue reading “Dispatch from the #MSBookfest”

The Life of a Blog Post

Today, I want to take a little trip down my own geek highway. Every now and then (maybe more often than I’m willing to admit), I check the stats on my blog. It’s one of the features I like about WordPress, by the way. I can see who’s reading what and sometimes that affects whatContinue reading “The Life of a Blog Post”

How A Writer’s Craft Came to Be.

Today, I received copies of my introductory 4-genre creative writing textbook, A Writer’s Craft, hot off the presses in both hardback and paperback. So it seemed like a good time to reflect back on how I got to this point. When I began the project, I wasn’t planning on publishing a textbook; in fact, the initialContinue reading “How A Writer’s Craft Came to Be.”