MTSU Mondays: Creative Writing Conference registration open; Veteran Impact event held

Nancy DeGennaro, Murfreesboro Daily News Journal
·2 min read

Check out the latest news from Middle Tennessee State University.

Veteran Impact event

Daniels Center Director Hilary Miller, left, presents the inaugural Veteran Employer Award to Jimmy Hiller, owner of title sponsor Hiller Plumbing, Heating, and Cooling & Electrical during the fifth annual Veteran Impact Celebration at MTSU. Nearly 250 people attended the fundraiser for the Charlie and Hazel Daniels Veterans and Military Family Center.

Nearly 250 people gathered for the fifth annual Veteran Impact Celebration at the end of August. The evening event featured stories and music with combat veteran Keni Thomas, who served at the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, a conflict between U.S. forces and Somali militia fighters, featured in the movie “Black Hawk Down.”

The event was highlighted by the award presentations, storytelling of Thomas, and a special live and silent auction. Hazel Daniels and Charlie Daniels Jr. as well as David Corlew, Charlie Daniels’ longtime manager, attended the function.

Jimmy Hiller, the owner of the title sponsor, was awarded the inaugural Veteran Employer Award from Hilary Miller, Daniels Center director who also presented the inaugural Veteran Leadership Award to Doug Kreulen, retired U.S. Air Force colonel who was at the Pentagon on 9/11.

Friends of the Daniels Center assembled to raise funds for the center and learn how it assists both the 1,000-plus population of student veterans and their families. Learn more at mtsu.edu/military.

Combat veteran and entertainer Keni Thomas performs the song, "Not Me," to wrap up his one-hour storytelling and music performance during the fifth annual Veteran Impact Celebration at MTSU in the Student Union Ballroom. A recipient of a Bronze Star for valor and American Patriot Award, Thomas was part of special operations in Somalia in 1993. Outnumbered 10 to one, the 160 men of Task Force Ranger distinguished themselves in an 18-hour battle. Nineteen U.S. soldiers died; 78 were wounded.

MTSU Write

MTSU's at-home creative writing mentorship program, MTSU Write, will host the 2022 Fall Creative Writing Conference on Sept. 23-24.

This year's conference, with a theme of "Truth or Dare: Writing Beyond the Boundaries of Form, Genre, Tough Topics and Taboo," features online and in-person classes and presentations.

It will be anchored by a Saturday lunchtime keynote talk from acclaimed writer Sequoia Nagamatsu, author of the national bestseller, “How High We Go in the Dark,” and the story collection, “Where We Go When All We Were is Gone.”

Registration is free for MTSU Write program students and mentors. A soft deadline of Monday, Sept. 12, is encouraged.

Members of the public can attend all the 2022 conference sessions for $150 or register only for Friday's virtual sessions for $75 or for Saturday's in-person events, including lunch and the keynote address, for $125.

Virtual programming begins at 10:30 a.m. Sept. 23, followed by virtual events at 1:30 p.m. The conference kicks off in person at 7 o'clock that evening in downtown Murfreesboro, 124 N. Church St., with a free public reading. That event, co-sponsored by Poetry in the Boro, will feature visiting writer Lynne Lampe, conference presenter and author Christian J. Collier and limited open-mic opportunities.

Saturday's events will be held in person from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in MTSU's Academic Classroom Building, 1751 MTSU Blvd.

Participants can attend 90-minute discussions on topics including plot development, connections in poetry and prose, revising your work, creating characters and more.

Nagamatsu will present the MTSU Write conference keynote address beginning at the 12:15 p.m. conference lunch.

More information, including registration links and additional details on the conference speakers and presenters, is available at mtsu.edu/write/conference.php.

Reach reporter Nancy DeGennaro at degennaro@dnj.com. Keep up with restaurant news by joining Good Eats in the 'Boro (and beyond) on Facebook and follow Murfreesboro Eats on TikTok.

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: MTSU Mondays: Creative Writing event set; Veteran celebration held