Wilson College hosts creative writing colloquium

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. — Writers 14 and older are invited to take lessons on writing technique, ask questions about the publishing process and hobnob with published authors as Wilson College hosts its 2022 Creative Writing Colloquium from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 5, in the Brooks Science Center auditorium on campus.

The colloquium is an educational event open to writing enthusiasts from south-central Pennsylvania and northern Maryland. Writers from all backgrounds are encouraged to register for the event, including high school and college students, writing and English teachers, published and unpublished authors and anyone interested in putting words on the page. Attendance is an opportunity to exchange ideas and come away with focus, new tools, writing mentors/guides and inspiration.

Workshops include:

• “Genre and Style” presented by Ashley Barner

Barner is the author of five books: the medieval fantasy Blue Feathers (Loconeal); the nonfiction book The Case for Fanfiction (McFarland) and the fantasy books Force Majeure, Freeing Fortune and Mr. Pembroke’s Ward (Notus), all co-authored with her friend Jennifer Sanders.

• “Creating A Sense of Place in Your Work” presented by Alicia Drumgoole

Drumgoole is an assistant professor of English at Hagerstown Community College and wrote her first novel, Premonition, under the pen name Agnes Jayne in 2015. She is the founder of a local writing group called The Mountain Scribes in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., and contributed to two anthologies: Last Writes: Haunting Tales from the Mountain Scribes (2017) and The Appalachian Compilation (2018).

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• “Writing as an Act of Gratitude” led by Wilson College Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Practice Matt McBride

An award-winning poet, McBride is the author of the collection City of Incandescent Light (Black Lawrence Press) as well as two additional chapbooks of poetry. He is the recipient of a Devine Fellowship, a George Elliston Fellowship, an Ohio Arts Council Grant and a Writers in the Heartland residency, and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize.

• “Resources for Writers Who Want to Be Published” led by the chairman of Wilson’s Division of Arts and Letters, Michael Cornelius

Cornelius is the author/editor of 23 books of fiction and nonfiction across a variety of genres, including horror and historical fiction. He has been a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award, the Science Fiction Research Association Pioneer Award, an Independent Press Award and American Library Association prize.

An Author’s Q&A session will be held at the end of the day.

The colloquium is free, but registration is required by Feb. 26 at tinyurl.com/bdhtfpsy. Check-in begins at 8:15 a.m. and lunch is included. More information is available at www.wilson.edu/wilson-college-creative-writing-colloquium, or contact colloquium director Michael Cornelius at mcornelius@wilson.edu

The colloquium is underwritten by the Arts for All grant opportunity of the Greater Harrisburg Community Foundation, a regional foundation of The Foundation for Enhancing Communities.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Wilson College hosts creative writing colloquium