CHANGE OF DATE! 2017 Writing in the Dark Retreat

CHANGE OF DATE! Saturday, March 11, 9am-4pm

(Rescheduled due to weather)

Bear Gallery

(3rd Floor, AK Centennial Center for the Arts, Pioneer Park, 2300 Airport Way)

Treat yourself to an all-day workshop with guest instructor, Jean Anderson. The retreat includes breakfast and lunch, literary camaraderie and a delightful day of stimulating discussion.

2017 Writing in the Dark Workshop: 

Kindling the Fires: Creating Enduring Prose in a Cold Place

What do you love most in the work of your favorite writer? What brings a piece of prose to life? What magical combination of artistry and technical skill gives a specific piece of fiction or nonfiction its fire? This day-long workshop will focus on finding the fiery raw energy — and the sometimes well-hidden technical skill — in work from a few established writers. Then we’ll set ourselves the ongoing task of applying what we learn to our own writing, beginning with on-site work sessions.  

Bring a notebook or laptop, bits of your own work in progress or your best writing secret to build on today (or later) or to share with the group.  Carry in a favorite novel or story or essay by your favorite writer, some private ideas about what makes it tick, and a willingness to share your thoughts.  

Let’s pool our resources — share our goals, dreams, and insights — and bring some enduring creative fire into our writing.

About the Instructor:

Jean Anderson’s collection, HUMAN BEING S0NGS: Northern Stories (University of Alaska Press, 2017) was a finalist for the annual G.S. Sharat Chandra Prize in Short Fiction from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 2015 and in 2016. Jean holds an MFA from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where she taught for about ten years, and is the author of another collection of stories, IN EXTREMIS and Other Alaskan Stories and coeditor, with Elyse Guttenberg, of an anthology, INROADS. Jean’s fiction has appeared in anthologies and journals including ALASKA QUARTERLY REVIEW, KALLIOPE, PRAIRIE SCHOONER, CIRQUE, CHARITON REVIEW, PERMAFROST, ALASKA WOMEN SPEAK, and a story translated into Russian and published in POLYARNA ISVESDA (POLAR STAR) in Fairbanks’ Siberian Sister City, Yakutsk. Jean and her husband Don recently celebrated their 50th year in Alaska and are parents of a grown son and daughter, with seven young adult grandkids. She enjoys gardening, traveling, writing, and being a part of Alaska’s literary community.

Registration Fee: $45 in advance. $50 at the door. Must be paid online through PayPal, mailed to P.O. Box 72786, Fairbanks, AK 99707, or hand-delivered to Fairbanks Arts Association Office, 1st Floor Centennial Center, Pioneer Park. For more information call: 907.456.6485 ext. 226 or email: literary@fairbanksarts.org