Meaning to Writing or Writing Meaning
Friday, April 10, 2015 9 AM to 3 PM
First Unitarian Church, 1011 SW 12th Ave., Portland, OR
Details: $55. Bring sack lunch; tea and coffee provided
To register: kradditz@firstunitarianportland.org
Whether you have never gotten around to writing before or you are an accomplished, like most of us, you have probably faced a blank page thinking you don’t know what to say. Often this feeling can prevent you from writing anything at all. In this workshop we will explore the way that the process of creative writing is less about knowing than discovering meaning. From developing trust in intuition, to listening to the sounds words make, to exploring metaphorical and mythic resonances, to exploring the significant “accidents” we call synchronistic, to allowing endings to develop naturally, often surprising us, literature gives us a different path for finding meaning. We will do some writing in class and talk about all the angels and monsters we have encountered along this path.
Susan Griffin is an internationally celebrated writer whose books have been translated into 17 languages and widely anthologized. Among twenty books, Woman and Nature is considered a classic of the environmental movement and A Chorus of Stones: the Private Life of War was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. The recipient of an NEA Grant, a Guggenheim Fellowship, an Emmy Award, and the Commonwealth Club’s Silver Medal for poetry, she has taught writing on college campuses and in community centers throughout the United States and internationally.