SIERRA NEVADA COLLEGE NEWS RELEASE
Sierra Nevada College is presenting another stellar literary lineup with Writers in the Woods 2011 featuring readings and workshops by a cast of luminary literati.
Maine’s Poet Laureate Baron Wormser will kick off the series with poetry reading on Friday, Sept. 16, followed by a Saturday morning poetry workshop on Sept. 17.
Kim Wyatt, writer, publisher and founder of Bona Fide Books publishing will talk about entrepreneurship and book publishing on Oct. 14 followed by a workshop on how to submit work for publication on Saturday, Oct. 15t.
Chris Ware, award-winning graphic novelist, cartoonist and author of Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth, will talk about the graphic novel as a literary genre on Nov. 4 followed by a workshop focused on experimenting with this form on Saturday, Nov. 5.
Author Suzanne Roberts joins Sierra Nevada College as the Writer in Residence for 2011 and will teach poetry and travel writing classes at SNC as part of the regular curriculum.
Workshops are open to the community for a $50 registration fee and may be taken for credit or non-credit. This eclectic group of writers offers something for a wide range of interests–from history to science, drama, politics, comedy and, of course, literature. The Friday night readings remain free and open to all.
Writers in the Woods: The lineup
September 16 and 17 with Baron Wormser, poet and teacher, was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1948. He attended college at the Johns Hopkins University and graduate studies at the University of California, Irvine and the University of Maine. In 2000 he was appointed Poet Laureate of Maine. Since 2002 he has taught in the Stonecoast MFA program at the University of Southern Maine. He works widely in schools with both students and teachers and will speak and teach about the transformative nature of poetry. Wormser has received the Frederick Bock Prize in Poetry and the Kathryn A. Morton Prize along with fellowships from Bread Loaf, the National Endowment for the Arts and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. He directs the Frost Place Conference on Poetry and Teaching at the Frost Place in Franconia, New Hampshire.
October 14 and 15 with Kim Wyatt, writer, publisher, founder of Bona Fide Books will speak on entrepreneurship and the art of writing during her visit. Bona Fide Books was established in May 2009 to publish provocative literature and build a community of writers and readers. Wyatt aims to promote bold, unsung writers and connect them with readers, and plans to publish literary fiction, nonfiction and poetry in a variety of media, from monthly guerilla-style broadsheets to traditional bound books to downloadable flash fiction, serials and guides for modern life. In an alleged age of declining readership, Bona Fide wants to give everyone a reason to read. Wyatt is a freelance editor and writer with over decade of experience in publishing; she also holds an MFA in creative nonfiction from the University of Alaska, Anchorage.
November 4 and 5 with Chris Ware, award-winning graphic novelist, cartoonist and author was born in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1967. His graphic novel Jimmy Corrigan — the Smartest Kid on Earth received an American Book Award in 2000, the Guardian First Book Award in 2001 and the French comics award “L’Alph Art” in 2003. In 2009 Jimmy Corrigan was named one of the “100 Best Books of the Decade” by The Times (London). Ware is also the author of The Acme Novelty Datebook Volumes 1 and 2, Quimby the Mouse, was the editor of the 13th issue of McSweeney’s and was the guest editor of Houghton-Mifflin’s Best American Comics 2007. He is a contributor to The New Yorker and was the cartoonist chosen to inaugurate the New York Times Magazine’s “Funny Pages” section in late 2005. He is currently at work on two long-form graphic novels, Rusty Brown and Building Stories.
Writer in Residence Author Suzanne Roberts joins Sierra Nevada College English Department this year and will teach classes as part of the regular curriculum. Suzanne Roberts is the author of Three Hours to Burn a Body: Poems on Travel and two previous collections of poetry, Shameless and Nothing to You. She was named “The Next Great Travel Writer” by National Geographic’s Traveler. She holds a doctorate in Literature and the Environment from the University of Nevada-Reno and currently writes and teaches in South Lake Tahoe.
The literary focus continues in the spring with the college national High School Writing Contest Awards and many more exciting author visits to be announced. In April, the ever-popular annual slam competition will return, offering contenders a chance to win the coveted title of Tahoe Slam Champion 2012.
Sierra Nevada College is a private liberal arts college offering undergraduate and graduate degrees with campuses in Lake Tahoe, Las Vegas, Reno and online. The interdisciplinary curriculum emphasizes entrepreneurial thinking, professional preparedness and sustainability. To learn more about Sierra Nevada College, call 775.831.1314 or visit www.sierranevada.edu.