Santa Fe

"Writing Women's Lives" Conference in Santa Fe - July 21-25

Writing Women’s Lives

Not so much a writer’s conference…as a conference about writing….

The Southwest Literary Center presents its 23rd annual
Santa Fe Writers’ Conference

Join a distinguished gathering of women writers and publishing professionals for workshops, private conferences, and readings in legendary Santa Fe, New Mexico. Now in its twenty-third year, the Santa Fe Writers Conference each summer brings aspiring writers from near and far to work with accomplished and dedicated faculty and guests.

Writing Women’s Lives, the theme of the four-day conference at the Hotel St. Francis, offers varied discussions on writing, includes readings by authors as well as local literary excursions—and provides time for writing. Events related to the annual Spanish Market, held the weekend of July 26-27, are also a part of this year’s program. This year offers a rare opportunity to hear from the most accomplished women writers in New Mexico and the Southwest.

Two unusual experiences have been added to this year’s program that celebrates the Hispanic culture: participants will be treated to the joys of making tacos with the legendary Denise Chávez, author and performance artist. More than a cooking demonstration, the Taco-Rama also includes reading of passages from Chávez’s memoir, A Taco Testimony: Meditations on Family, Food and Culture.

Another hands-on learning experience is the Corridos Workshop led by Elena Díaz Bjorkquist. Corridos are Mexican folk songs full of broken hearts, daring escapes, and adventures. Bjorkquist, author of Growing Up Chicana in the Shadow of the Smokestack, will guide participants in writing their own forms of the traditional songs—with a song fest planned for later in the day. The Corridos that are written will be preformed by Consuelo Luz a Chilean-Cuban singer/songwriter during the Taco-Rama.

A key panel discussion, “What Make a Reader Care about your Story,” explores the necessity of stories and the varied forms of expression for creating a personal narrative. Authors Laura Hays, Sallie Bingham, and Julie Shigekuni discuss the common life events shared by women and how to knit together a narrative from fragments of personal history and universal experience.
Natalie Goldberg, the celebrated author of Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within, who has been conducting writing seminars for some 25 years. She will lead a session on “My Life Is a Storyline.”
Carolyn Wright’s investigative memoir of her experiences in Chile on a Fulbright Study Grant during the presidency of Salvador Allende, The Road to Isla Negra, received the PEN/Jerard Fund Award and the Crossing Boundaries Award from International Quarterly. Wright will be teaching the workshop, “When Politics Gets Personal--The Investigative Memoir in Poetry and Prose”.
Writing children’s books will be explored by award-winning local writers Nancy Wood (who is also a photographer), Barbara Beasley Murphy, and Anna Jane Hays. Susan Gonzales Abraham and Denise Gonzales Abraham, the daughters of Cecilia Gonzales Abraham who created the Cecilia books, will discuss writing for the young adult audience.
The Mystery of Writing Mysteries, Women and the Environment and A Sense of Place are other topics presented by noted writers Ellen Berkovitch, Sandra Blakeslee, Anne Hillerman, Page Lambert and Lesley Poling Kempes. A session on “Getting Published” features Leigh Haber, vice president, Rodale Press, and editorial director of Modern Times, a new imprint of Rodale.
The fee for the five day conference is $575 includes all workshops, talks and receptions. The one-day fee is $130 July 22-24, 2008 and $200 July 25, 2008 (includes lunch and margarita despedida)
Read more at link above.
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from TouchArt.net and OneEarthBlog.blogspot.com
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