The Deeper Meaning of Non-Fiction Narrative with Bob Kunzinger

The countdown is officially on with the conference a little over a week away and we're especially looking forward to the variety of workshop opportunities. Another of our faculty workshop leaders is non-fiction writer and Professor of Humanities Bob Kunzinger. Kunzinger's forte is essay and memoir where he is able to explore his topics on a smaller scale. He knows the importance of a narrative that packs a punch. Kunzinger discusses his writing approach below: 

"The label "non-fiction" writer is as vague as saying I am a musician or a painter. My background and comfort zone is in journalism--my undergraduate degree is in journalism and the primary influences of my writing life, including Ernie Pyle, Ernest Hemingway, and a few others were all journalists. My earliest writing assignments were feature stories about small adventures I took, so I suppose my subject matter hasn't changed much. I approach writing from a very lyrical perspective both on the page and in the research; I like to let go of labels and modes and see what happens, make a few left turns. As far as the "flash" aspect, I like the haiku mentality: focus on the most narrow of aspects as deeply as possible.

My constant thought process includes asking myself "so what's the point?" It isn't enough for me in non-fiction writing to write about Spain or Russia or Africa, I feel the need to digress to some universal reaction to the narrative. Ideally when you read something I don't want you to see my pain, I want you to see your own. Of course, it's a very good and rare day I reach the ideal!"

Kunzinger's creative nonfiction workshop "So Who Cares?" will be held from 11:45-1:00 pm on Friday, November 6th (location TBA). To secure your spot, check out FLAC registration for more information.

Story Searching in Nonfiction with Jocelyn Bartkevicius

Our next workshop faculty member is Jocelyn Bartkevicius, an Associate Professor of English at the University of Central Florida and a former editor of The Florida Review. She is also an accomplished creative nonfiction writer. When crafting personal essays, many writers struggle with the act of revealing personal information. We asked Jocelyn for her rule of thumb when it comes to this balancing act. She explains her approach below:

"For me, nonfiction is above all a process of discovery. And so when writing early drafts, I never hold back. At that point in my writing, I'm less focused on sharing (on readers), and more focused to figure out through writing what the story is. I believe there must be discovery while writing. That nonfiction--when it is taking the form of a personal essay or memoir--must do much more than simply report what has happened. I let the words take the lead as I search for story. No holds barred. Later, several drafts into a piece, if I think I've found the story and have crafted the sentences and found details, rhythm, and imagery as well, I'll start to think about both readers and any people I may have included in the piece of writing. At that point, I will consider whether identities need to be protected. In such cases, I'm more likely to use an initial or change a name than I am to omit details.

All this may sound as if I spill it all. But I'm not a particularly 'confessional' writer. I'm not interested in memoir as recovery or tell-all. I'm more likely to explore how the personal intersects with cultural moments. For example, I've written about guns and being first-generation Eastern European and growing up in a family that ran a Burlesque nightclub. I like to find the cultural and historic nuances of personal experience."

Bartkevicius' creative nonfiction workshop "Savage Desire: Discovering Story in Literary Nonfiction" will be held from 11:45-1:00 pm on Saturday, November 7th (location TBA). To secure your spot, check out FLAC registration for more information.

Aesthetic Conversation with Poet Terri Witek

The 2015 Other Words Literary Conference is less than a month away and as always, we're excited to bring talented writers to St. Augustine. Our workshop faculty are not only recognized in their fields, but are passionate about their craft. We are interested in creating a dialogue with our writers-- to learn more about their personal writing approaches and creative methods. Our first interview was with poet and Stetson English professor Terri Witek. We inquired about her favorite themes and how art (and other visual elements) impacts her poetry and artistic expression. Her meditations are below:

"I believe in the poem as a way of simultaneously seeing and moving. What are the limits of language? Can we, by writing things down, make them vanish? These may be the deeper subjects—what I’m probably usually writing about is love and its overlaps, lapses and betrayals. Though perhaps this is for readers to say---I was astonished to be called  a “water poet” recently, for example (seems right, though I never would have said this).  Poems don’t start with a theme for me—it’s more often a situation--a piece of language plus something I see-- that gets me going.  And  I only seem to be interested in things I don’t quite understand.  

Other art forms offer different mysteries for writers to walk with. I love to workshop in museums for the instant challenge of cross-arts vitality--at the Crisp-Ellert, the whole workshop is set alight by Julie Dickover’s well-curated contemporary shows. A pleasure to watch writers catch and burn there during Other Words. This kind of magic I don’t examine too closely. But believe in so strongly I continue to return. And in January it becomes official, as my university (Stetson) begins a new low-residency MFA of the Americas, where I’ll team teach Poetry in the Expanded Field with visual artist Cyriaco Lopes."

Witek's poetry workshop will be held from 11:45-1pm on Saturday, November 7th in the Crisp-Ellert Museum. It's not too late to sign up! Check out FLAC registration for more information.

Joseph Millar at Literature for Lunch

 FLAC Member St. Leo University will feature award-winning poet Joseph Millar at their Literature for Lunch, Wednesday, January 29, 12:30-1:20 in TECO Auditorium on the Saint Leo University campus.

Millar grew up in western Pennsylvania and was educated at Penn State and the Johns Hopkins University, where he earned an MA in poetry writing. He worked as a commercial fisherman and telephone repairman for more than 20 years.

Millar is the author of several poetry collections, including Blue Rust (2011), Fortune (2007), and Overtime (2001), which was a finalist for the Oregon Book Award and has recently been reissued by Carnegie Mellon. He has received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Montalvo Arts Center, and Oregon Literary Arts. His poetry has been featured on Garrison Keillor’s National Public Radio program The Writer’s Almanac and won a Pushcart Prize. Millar, who has taught at Pacific University, the University of Oregon, and Oregon State University, lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, with his wife, poet Dorianne Laux.

Millar’s accessible narrative poems, influenced by the work of poets Philip Levine and James Wright, often take working life as a means of engaging themes of class, family, and romantic love. In a 2009 interview for Pirene’s Fountain with Charles Morrison, Millar stated, “We must have the ambition for our poems that they reach toward the sublime, that they speak from our own true selves and are grounded in the experience of our daily lives, including our dreams and hopes.”

St. Augustine Record article

The St. Augustine Record reports on the Other Words Conference. #FLACFlagler

Philip Deaver's Other Words Fiction Workshop

Here's an update to the Other Words schedule:

On Friday Philip F. Deaver will give a Fiction Workshop for those who register for it. Here's his description: "Why write fiction? People are always saying, 'I'd rather read something that's true.' Why write fiction? Because people love stories? Because stories can reshuffle 'what really happened' and find the central truths and emotional core? Why write fiction? Because, truthfully, our fictions are only partly fiction and are mostly true? Because sometimes the true story is hard to tell even though it urgently needs telling? Why write fiction? Because telling stories and hearing stories and learning from stories, whether as the reader or the writer, is in our DNA? Yes, all of that...."

Ira Sukrungruang on the FLAC Writer's Circuit

Ira Sukrungruang will be on the FLAC Writing Circuit soon! He will visit Edison (11/4), Valencia (11/5), CCF (11/6) and then at Flagler for the Other Words Conference. Ira Sukrungruang was named first winner of the Anita Claire Scharf Award from Tampa Review. His book of poetry, In Thailand It Is Night, was published in Spring 2013 by the University of Tampa Press.

Anna Ross Writer's Circuit Dates

Anna Ross Tour Dates! 
Tues, Nov. 5th: University of Tampa
Weds, Nov. 6th: Eckerd College
Thurs and Fri, Nov. 7th and 8th: Flagler College and Other Words Conference

Anna Ross’s 2012 award-winning book If a Storm, received the Anhinga Prize for Poetry.  Her chapbook, Hawk Weather, won the 2008 New Women’s Voices Prize from Finishing Line Press and the 2009 Jean Pedrick Chapbook Award from the New England Poetry Club. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in journals such as The Paris Review, The New Republic, Southwest Review, AGNI Online, Salamander, and Barrow Street.  Her translations have appeared in Rattapallax and Poetry Wales, and she has twice been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She has received fellowships from the Sewanee Writers' Conference, Grub Street, Inc., Fishtrap, and the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Anna also writes and is a contributing poetry editor for Guernica: A Magazine of Art & Politics. She holds an MFA in poetry from Columbia University.She teaches writing and poetry at Boston University and Grub Street, Inc.

YellowJacket Press Eighth Annual Chapbook Contest

FLAC Member YellowJacket Press's Eighth Annual Chapbook Contest for Florida Poets is October 1-December 1, 2013. 

All entrants must be permanent adult residents of Florida. Manuscripts should be no longer than 24 pages, including title page and acknowledgments. No e-mail submissions. Include a brief bio, date you became a Florida resident, and SASE, along with $10 reading fee (Check or money order made payable to Gianna Russo). Include notice of previous publications of specific poems, if applicable. Manuscripts will not be returned.

The winner(s) will be announced by March 15, 2014 and will receive $200 and 30 copies. All entrants receive a copy of the winning book.

 The Other Words Literary Conference schedule has been posted.  Check it out and share with friends!

Other Words Open Mic

Open Mic Night at the Other Words Conference at the Café Alcazar, Friday, Nov. 8 

You will not want to miss this exclusive opportunity to share you work! This year, conference participants have the ability to participate in an Open Mic Night in a historic location: the Café Alcazar. Located at 25 Granada Street, this charming café is tucked in the back of the Lightner Museum in a space that was originally the location of the largest indoor swimming pool. Take in the 19th century architecture as you listen to fellow conference participants share a variety of work.

Burrow Press, YellowJacket Press and Writers Ink jointly host the Open Mic Night. David Axelrod of Writers Ink will serve as the moderator for this event. The Open Mic Night is open to all conference participants, but sign-up to read is limited and open on a first-come, first-served basis. The Open Mic will commence after the Friday Night Reading at the Other Words Conference.

Florida Poets Happy Hour and Prime Time Show

Join FLAC Member YellowJacket Press (YJP) for a night of poetry, music and fun! The 6th Annual Florida Poets Happy Hour and Prime Time Show will take place on Friday, September 27, 2013 from 7-9pm at Kahwa Coffee at The Element, 808 N. Franklin St. Suite 117, Tampa. The Happy Hour and Prime Time Show has become a favorite fall event, celebrating Florida poetry with readings, refreshments, YJP’s famous raffles, book signings and all-around frivolity. Taking place at one of downtown Tampa’s hippest establishments, this year’s event will feature new YellowJacket Press poet George Bishop, winner of the 2013 Peter Meinke Prize for his manuscript Following Myself Home. Mr. Bishop will be joined by local poets Melanie Graham, Winnona Elson Pasquini, and Nikita Hernandez; staff members of Sweet: A Literary Confection, K.C. Wolfe and Melissa Carroll; and Alison Powell of the Oxford Exchange bookstore. Gloria Munoz will sing Lorca poems. A $5.00 donation will support YellowJacket Press. The 6th Annual Florida Poets Happy Hour and Prime Time Show Friday, September 27, 2013, 7-9 P.M. Kahwa Coffee at The Element 808 N. Franklin St. Suite 117, (Corner of Tampa & Polk St.) Tampa, FL

Other Words Conference Readings

Nightly Conference Readings

November 7 - 9 Join us Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night for unforgettable readings. Our nightly readings feature a compilation of poets, novelists, and memoirists. Thursday, Nov. 7 Novelist Mark Powell and poet Gianna Russo kick-off the conference. Powell is the author of four novels and has received fellowships for the National Endowment of the Arts. Russo is a Florida Book Award Bronze Medalist. These two will kick off this year’s conference. Friday, Nov. 8 D.K. Roberts will continue to delight audiences on Friday November 8. Roberts’ latest book Dream State: Eight Generations of Swamp Lawyers, Conquistadors, Confederate Daughters, Banana Republicans, and other Florida Wildlife promises to keep us all entertained. Saturday, Nov. 9 Poet Campbell McGrath and novelist Rhonda Riley wrap up our conference readings. McGrath won the 2012 Florida Book Award for his In the Kingdom of the Sea Monkeys. Riley's first novel, The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope, was described as “an incredible, otherworldly love story. Both whimsical and deeply satisfying..."

Rhonda Riley added to Other Words Conference readings

Other Words News! 
Novelist Rhonda Riley will be reading on Saturday night, Nov. 9th with Campbell McGrath. Of her first novel, The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope, Julianna Baggott writes “it is an incredible, otherworldly love story. Both whimsical and deeply satisfying, it’s a tale about the fluidity of love, the importance of family, and the meaning of home. It’s a debut that reads with the urgency of a lifelong secret finally confessed.” Riley received her MFA at the University of Florida.

It’s mid-year 2013, and it’s time for an update on the status of our organization.

The Florida Literary Arts Coalition (FLAC) is thriving. Success at and knowledge of our craft requires connection to a large community of writers, and our board and our members are dedicated to the philosophy that writers must stay connected.

Bringing Florida writers together
Florida has many quality writing organizations, but none are more dedicated to producing contemporary literature, supporting quality independent publishing, improving creative writing pedagogy, and broadening access to publishing writers than FLAC. The distance between Florida’s writers and readers, its towns and cities, its colleges and universities, makes cultivation of our community a challenge; however, the Coalition’s projects, such as the Other Words Conference and the Writer’s Circuit, and our mission to connect academic writing programs and writers to Florida’s writing community, bridge this distance.
 
Committed leadership
My first exposure to FLAC was in the fall of 2006 when I decided Flagler College would join as a member of the Writer’s Circuit. I did not know then I would become so personally involved and professionally motivated by this coalition. I was able to watch and learn from then President Richard Mathews and Treasurer Rick Campbell as they grew the Writer’s Circuit from five member institutions to ten and held the Other Words Conference each year. Since then, I have co-hosted the conference, served as secretary, and was recently elected president. My story is not unique. I am only one of many dedicated professionals across Florida who bring their passion, energy, and ideas to FLAC by joining its membership and leadership. One of our founding fathers, Richard Mathews stepped down as president in January to focus on new projects at the University of Tampa, such as their new MFA program, but he remains involved in FLAC as President Emeritus.

What’s in the future for FLAC?
We are preparing to celebrate our tenth anniversary next year.  We have submitted a panel proposal for the Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) Conference in Seattle in February. Rick Campbell is planning the schedule for the Other Words Conference for November, and he is even planning the conference for next year. Gianmarc Manzione and Rick have risen to the challenge of a growing Writer’s Circuit by splitting it into a two-part, two-coast tour, which begins this fall.

An area of future service for FLAC is in after-school programs for children. Reduced funding of the arts in public schools has caused a growing need for writers to work with schools. As an organization of writers, we have the resources to create and support creative writing projects across the state for after school and under served students. We recently secured partial financial assistance from Publix for this project. Lisa Lanser-Rose and I attended the Empower 500 Symposium to prepare for it.

Our future plans include incrementally growing the Other Words Conference while retaining its intimacy. The Writer’s Circuit will continue its high quality of visiting writers. FLAC will continue to support independent publishing, and increase the number of our member institutions. We have pursued grant opportunities to support our projects where appropriate.
 
Stay involved
Ideas? Comments? Post on our Facebook page or email me at jim@floridarts.org. 

Keep writing.  

Cheers,

Jim

Dr. James M. Wilson
President, Florida Literary Arts Coalition

By Decree: St. Augustine’s Proclamation

2013 marks the 500th anniversary of Juan Ponce de Leon’s voyage and discovery of Florida. The 2013 Other Words Conference honors this historic milestone. Themed “Writing Florida: The First 500 Years,” the 2013 conference expressly focuses on Florida’s varied historical and literary masks while also providing a platform for seasoned and novice writers to continue the imagining of Florida.

The annual conference is held in St. Augustine, the nation and Florida’s oldest settlement. The historical backdrop of the city adds to the importance of this year’s honorific conference. St. Augustine Mayor Joe Boles also recognizes the significance of the 2013 Other Words Conference.

The Mayor issued a City Proclamation officially declaring November 7-10 “Other Words” Conference week. The proclamation reads:

P R O C L A M A T I O N

Whereas, the Ninth Annual 2013 Other Words Conference, sponsored by the Florida Literary Arts, has been held for six consecutive years at Flagler College, in St. Augustine, FL; and

Whereas, the goal of the 2013 conference is to bring together writers, editors, agents, publishers, book sellers, grant administrators, directors of writers' colonies and retreats, and other interested folk in one place; and

Whereas, themes for discussion include but are not limited to Fountains of Youth, Conquistadors and Missionaries, Robber Barons, Land Scams, Mosquitoes, Hurricanes, Hanging Chads, Spring Break, Retirement Villages—the Stuff of Life; and

Whereas, the discussion of Writing Florida: The First 500 Years, will include panels, readings, workshops, discussion of the literary arts such as how to write stories, make the information accessible to a large audience, how to sell it, how to fund it, and nurture it is a major emphasis of the 2013 Conference; and

Whereas, sessions will offer writers in-depth work with Other Words core faculty members; and

Whereas, the objective of the conference is to bring together hundreds of the region's literary arts people and form a regional coalition that promotes our mutual literary efforts in as many ways as possible.

Now Therefore, the City Commission of the City of St. Augustine does hereby proclaim November 7-10, 2013 as Florida Literary Arts Coalition “Other Words” Conference Week.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I hereunto set my hand and do cause the Seal of the City St. Augustine, Florida, to be affixed on this 11th day of February in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and in the four hundred and forty seventh year of the founding of St. Augustine, the Nation’s Oldest City.  



Signed, Mayor Joe Boles

We're looking forward to seeing you there! Register Today!

FLAC at Empower 500

The Florida Literary Arts Coalition will be making more friends at the Empower 500 Symposium on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. We will invite Florida English teachers to come to our Other Words Conference, see our writers on the Writer's Circuit, and, perhaps, assist us assist them in our new literacy initiatives. See you there?   Empower 500 Symposium

Other Words Workshop Opportunities

Join us for the Ninth Annual Conference of the Florida Literary Arts Coalition “Writing Florida: The First 500 Years”

Workshop Opportunities Whether you're a novice or an advanced writer, three full days of workshops are designed to help you hone your craft. Friday, November 8: Writers of all skill levels can depict believable characters and memorable moments with Jeff Bens Make personal life experiences accessible to readers in a poetry workshop led by Erica Dawson Learn to visualize scenes in Pete Duval’s fiction session Saturday, November 9: Join Terri Witek for a hands-on poetry workshop, re-imagining the Crisp-Ellert museum Balance scene and exposition in Ira Sukrungruang‘s memoir workshop Mark Powell’s Fiction workshop will discuss Fiction “from the Bottom to the Top" Sunday, November 10—Advanced Workshops Non-Fiction by Ira Sukrungruang on the “Lyric Essay” Mark Powell on “Reading Like A Fiction Writer”  Take to the streets of beautiful historic St. Augustine to poetically remap the nation’s oldest city with Terri Witek. Be sure to bring good shoes, a camera, and a notebook for this one! For more information on workshops, please visit our website. Lodging in Historic St. Augustine For 2013, 24 Bed and Breakfast Inns are offering a discount to Other Words Conference attendees. For a full list of participating inns, click here. A two-night minimum is required to receive the 15% discount. More discounted hotels can be found on our conference information page. Be sure to ask for the Other Words Conference rate to ensure you get the best deal!

2013 Other Words Conference Nov. 7-10, 2013 Details Workshops Lodging

YellowJacket Press Submissions open for 2013 Meinke Prize

FLAC Member YellowJacket Press is pleased to announce the 2013 Peter Meinke Prize for a poetry chapbook by a Florida poet.  Submissions must be postmarked June 20-July 5, 2013.  The contest is free, but only one manuscript per contestant may be submitted.  All entrants must be permanent adult residents of Florida.

Poetry manuscripts for the Peter Meinke Prize should be no longer than 20 pages of poetry, along with a title page, table of contents and acknowledgments.  Include a brief bio, date you became a Florida resident, notice of previous publications of specific poems, if applicable, and SASE.  Manuscripts will not be returned.  

Long considered a Florida treasure, Peter Meinke was the director of the Writing Workshop at Eckerd College for over 20 years and is the author of over a dozen poetry, fiction and nonfiction books, including The Contracted World: New and Selected Poems (University of Pittsburgh Press) and The Shape of Poetry, (The Writer, Inc.).  In 2009, Meinke was appointed the first ever Poet Laureate of St. Petersburg.  Currently, he teaches for the MFA program at The University of Tampa.  For more information about Peter Meinke, see his website at http://petermeinke.com

YellowJacket Press, Florida’s premier publisher of poetry chapbook manuscripts, and a non-profit organization, established the Peter Meinke Prize in 2011. Previous winners include Melissa Carroll won for her chapbook The Karma Machine, and J.D. Scott for Night Errands. 

The winner(s) of this year’s contest will be announced by August 20, 2013, will receive $100, 30 copies of the book, and will be invited to read with other YJP poets in September.  Members of the YJP Advisory Board will judge the manuscripts anonymously.

Send submissions to:

YellowJacket Press, Peter Meinke Prize

1410 E. Paris Street,

Tampa, Fl. 33604. 

No e-mail submissions.

YellowJacket Press is a non-profit, independent literary press.  The mission of YellowJacket Press is to support emerging and established poets in Florida with an annual chapbook contest, chapbook publications, and public readings. YellowJacket Press creates a means for poets to share and promote their work, and nurtures a sense of community among poets and audiences across the state.

For more information about YellowJacket Press or the chapbook contest check the website at www.yellowjacketpress.org,  the YJP Facebook page or contact yellowjacketpress@gmail.com

Other Words Conference Update

Call for Proposals and Book Fair Participation

The Other Words conference welcomes proposals for 1:15 minute panels on the theme of "Writing Florida: The First 500 Years” for the 2013 Conference, to be held on the historic Flagler College campus. The conference is open to all who are interested in the contemporary practice of literary writing, and will offer a mixture of panels, workshops and readings.

Proposal Themes

The theme can be a variety of topics: Fountains of Youth, Conquistadors and Missionaries, Robber Barons, Land Scams, Mosquitoes, Hurricanes, Hanging Chads, Spring Break, Retirement Villages—the Stuff of Life.

However we entertain all ideas—the conference includes panels and readings on a variety of topics, from a special tribute to Edmund Skellings, late poet laureate of Florida, to the nuts and bolts of writing and publishing.

Details and Registration

Click here for details about registration, plus creative writing workshops, manuscript consultations and more.

Publishers and journals may sponsor readings by their authors—details to come on the FLAC/Other Words blog, Facebook page, and website.

Stay tuned to the blog for updates about scheduling, participating writers, conference hotels, and more.

Enter Your Proposal Today

Please include:

 

1. Panel Title

2. Description (up to 500 words)

3. List of up to 4 participants with names, affiliation (for example, which university, museum, press, etc.) and complete contact information including e-mail addresses. Please indicate if you are conference sponsors or institutional members of the Florida Literary Arts Coalition when you submit. Indicate which participant will be the main contact; that person will hear from the conference by mid-summer. Please submit early: we regret that the number of available slots means only the most competitive proposals will be considered.

4. List any AV or other special requests for your panel.  

Deadline: June 1, 2013

Submit proposals to:
Rick Campbell, FLAC