In this first podcast of the series, titled, "You Realize You've Been Doing This Thing All Wrong, Right?" Iowa Writers' Workshop alum Janet Desaulniers shares her thoughts on the creative writing workshop, the method by which many writing classes...
In this podcast, recorded on 6/13/07 at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival Elevenses, Sandra Scofield explores what it means to "read like a writer" and how this can aid the creative process. Scofield also offers specific narrative techniques for...
In this podcast, recorded on 6/14/07 at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival Elevenses, Katherine Min divulges the surprises and pitfalls of her first book tour, including advice on finding one's "natural audience." Min offers tips on creatively...
In her presentation, "Yikes! Elysium: Writing About Happiness," Christine Hemp tackles what she describes as a necessary tension between "sunlight" and "the underworld" in fiction and nonfiction writing. Hemp examines how mundane objects such as...
In this podcast, recorded on 6/19/07 at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival Elevenses novelist and poet Jim Heynen discusses the relationship between content and form. Heynen advises writers to revisit thematic "obsessions" and to attempt...
David Hamilton shares his thirty years of experience as editor of The Iowa Review, characterizing the unique world of literary magazines as "ephemeral" and "fugitive." Hamilton compares the mechanics of literary reviews, from local publications to...
Sands Hall imparts her unique perspective as novelist, playwright, director, and actor in this lecture on scene and character building. Hall discusses the differences between writing for print and the stage and shares techniques for making "the...
Marc Nieson proposes the free-writing exercise as a disciplined process of seizing inspiration and later tackling revision. Nieson talks about how to reconcile the writer's often opposing mindsets of creator and editor, the journey of refining the...
Venise Berry offers advice on how to "bring the world into your writing." Berry advises writers to leave their own comfort zone of familiar communities and characters and purposely inject voices from a wide spectrum of experience. Berry asserts...
In his exploration of the writer’s voice, Carl H. Klaus asks the question “How often do we listen to ourselves on paper?” Klaus uses his own experience with the autobiographical essay to examine how a writer's conscious style choices and...
Hope Edelman discusses the difficulty of incorporating real characters and events into fiction and non-fiction. Edelman exposes the “legal aspects and ethical dilemmas” which writers meet with when attempting to create fictional worlds or true...
In this podcast, Lon Otto leads a discussion on how to avoid “literary thin ice”- the insecurities resulting from insufficient originality, tension or authority in a work. Otto suggests strategies for dealing with problematic pieces when one...
In this podcast, poet Katie Ford examines the usefulness of employing the “ghosts” of classical forms in crafting contemporary poetry. Ford advises writers to look to the sonnet and listen for the “inherent music” of popular and tested...
In this Writing University podcast, Marcos M. Villatoro discusses the advantages of writing without waiting for the elusive “muse” to strike. Villatoro claims that inspiration springs from a writer’s own work ethic, the physical act of...
In this Writing University podcast, David Bouchier addresses the struggle of a word-loving writer to be concise. Bouchier discourages “flabby writing” and suggests instead going on a “word diet” to avoid verbosity. Bouchier also advocates a...
In this Writing University podcast, Mary Allen discusses "the mysterious thing" that happens when one sits down to write. She describes her process of finding inspiration and suggests ways to break free of strict "ideas" about writing. She presents...