Local paper gives YWW some love

Thanks to Brent Stewart of the Southern Illinoisan newspaper for visiting the Young Writers Workshop!
His article is linked below:

the Southern

Young Writers strut their stuff!

The Young Writers Workshop concludes on Saturday, June 30 with a public reading from the Young Writers Workshop participants themselves!
They will read at 1 PM in Pulliam Hall's Cisne Auditorium. This reading is free and open to the public.

Jacinda Townsend's Got Soul

And this blog forgives her for not bringing this article to our attention earlier:

Southern Illinoisan

YWW Continues with a Visit from Curtis!

Looking forward to seeing alum Curtis L. Crisler (MFA '04) take the stage at this year's Young Writers Workshop! Curtis's reading is free and open to the public, as is this afternoon's graduate student reading:

Friday, June 29, 4 p.m., in the Harry T. Moore Auditorium, Faner 1326 – Graduate student reading with fiction from Josh Woods and Rachna Sheth and poetry from Helena Bell and Tracy Conerton.

Friday, June 29, 8 p.m., in the Harry T. Moore Auditorium, Faner 1326 – Guest reader Curtis L. Crisler. Crisler graduated from the MFA program at SIUC and served as assistant director of the workshop. Front Street Press published his first book of poems, "Tough Boy Sonatas," this year. He currently teaches in Fort Wayne, Ind.

Today's YWW Public Readings

Come one, come all! Today's Young Writers Workshop readings are listed below. Free and open to the public!


Thursday, June 28, 4 p.m., in Faner Hall, Room 1005 – Graduate student readings featuring poetry by Sara Burge and fiction by Nathan Beck, Mary Keck and Renee Evans.

Thursday, June 28, 8 p.m., in the Harry T. Moore Auditorium, Faner Hall 1326 – Graduate student and faculty reading, featuring MFA students Andrew McFadyen-Ketchum and Kerry James Evans with poetry and John Flaherty with fiction, and poetry from Allison Joseph.

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Young Writers! 30 students from 4 different states will be joining the graduate students and faculty here at SIUC to read, write, eat and talk writing. The first public event happens tonight with Pinckney Benedict's reading:

Wednesday, June 27, 8 p.m., in the Harry T. Moore Auditorium, Faner Hall 1326 – Faculty reading by Pinckney Benedict. Benedict joined the SIUC faculty in 2006. He is the author of two collections of short stories – "Town Smokes" and "The Wrecking Yard" – and a novel, "Dogs of God." His work appears in anthologies and magazines including Esquire, StoryQuarterly, The O. Henry Award Collection and The Oxford Book of American Short Stories.

Poemspotting, Meyerhofer Edition

Michael Meyerhofer (MFA '06)'s "Ode to Dogs" appears in the new issue of Mid-American Review. It won first prize in the 2006 James Wright Poetry Award Competition.

Mid-American Review

Young Writers Workshop Update

Here's the latest press release on Young Writers:

Young Writers

Ben Percy Update

Ben Percy (MFA '04) will be a Fellow at this summer's Bread Loaf Writers Conference!
Congrats, Ben--and look for Chad Simpson ('05) while you are there!

Breadloaf

Poemspotting, Meyerhofer Edition

Michael Meyerhofer (MFA '06) is featured today on Verse Daily with a selection from his award-winning full-length collection, Leaving Iowa:

Verse Daily

Kerry James Evans Forthcoming. Hungry Young Poets to Read

from current poetry MFA student, Kerry James Evans:

"Just wanted to let you know that I got a poem, "Blue Ribbon
Tomato Soup" accepted for the Sylvia Plath Dossier in Court
Green. It's due out in late January 2008."

Congrats, Kerry!

And a reminder:
Kerry James Evans, Sara Burge, and Andy McFadyen-Ketchum will read from their poetry
on June 18 at Duff's in St. Louis as part of the Hungry Young Poets Series.
Duff's is at 392 N. Euclid in Saint Louis, MO. The reading begins at 7:30 PM.
Cover charge at the door: $5/$4 (for River Styx members, students, and seniors)

Summer Reading Series: Young Writers Workshop

Coming Soon: The Young Writers Workshop--June 27-June 30, 2007
SIUC's annual creative writing workshop for high school-aged writers.

We're looking forward to the arrival of this year's group of Young Writers!
Here's the schedule of upcoming readings:

Wednesday: June 27: Faculty Reading, Harry T. Moore Auditorium (Faner 1326), 8PM
Pinckney Benedict
Pinckney Benedict joined the faculty at SIUC in 2006. He is the author of two
collections of stories — Town Smokes and The Wrecking Yard — and Dogs of God, a
novel. His short fiction has appeared or is forthcoming in a number of magazines
and anthologies, including Esquire, StoryQuarterly, Zoetrope: All-Story, Best New
Stories from South, The O. Henry Award Collection, the Pushcart Prize series, and
The Oxford Book of American Short Stories.

Thursday, June 28, Faner 1005, 4PM
Graduate Student Reading with MFA students Nathan Beck (fiction), Sara Burge
(poetry), Rachna Sheth (fiction) and Renee Evans (fiction)

Thursday, June 28, Faner 1326 (Moore Aud), 8PM
Graduate Student/Faculty Reading with MFA students Andrew McFadyen-Ketchum
(poetry), John Flaherty (fiction), Kerry James Evans (poetry) and YWW Director and
Associate Professor of English Allison Joseph

Friday, June 29, Faner 1326 (Moore Aud.) 4 PM
Graduate Student Reading with MFA students Josh Woods (fiction), Helena Bell
(poetry), Tracy Conerton (poetry), Mary Keck (fiction)

Friday, June 29, Faner 1326 (Moore Aud.) 8PM
Guest Reader: Curtis L. Crisler
Curtis L. Crisler is a graduate of Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne
and of the MFA Program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. During Curtis's
time in Carbondale, he served as Assistant Director of the Young Writers Workshop.
His first book of poems, Tough Boy Sonatas, was published this year by Front Street
Press. He currently teaches in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Poemspotting, Matejka Edition

"Maggot Brain," a poem by Adrian Matejka (MFA '01), appears in the new issue of Gulf Coast.

Checking in with Lucia Perillo

Former poetry faculty member Lucia Perillo has a new collection of essays. Here's the scoop from Lucia herself:

"I've Heard The Vultures Singing, essays, coming out soon from Trinity University Press.

I read on 6/28 at Open Books in Seattle (a great store solely devoted to poetry.) Orca Books in Olympia on 6/30, Village Books in Bellingham on 7/20. Other events to come..."

One Happy Matt! Official Book Announcement

Received this happy news from Matt Guenette (MFA '99):

"Dream Horse Press has announced: my manuscript, Sudden Anthem, has won
the 2007 American Poetry Journal Book Prize. The award carries a
$1000 prize and book publication, with the book slated for a
Winter/Spring 2008 release. The book will be available via Amazon,
Barnes & Noble, and other bookstores that see fit to order it.

For information about American Poetry Journal, click here:
http://www.americanpoetryjournal.com/

The biannual journal features a mix of established poets and rising
stars. One of my favorite poets today--Bob Hicok--sits on the
advisory board. That he might have had a hand in selecting my manuscript is,
for me, an incredible honor...

For information on Dream Horse Press, click here:

Dream Horse

Last years APJ winning manuscript, Ted Worozbyt's The Dauber Wings, is
an excellent--and excellent looking--book. Ted most recently won the
prestigious Juniper Prize (UMass Press) for his second poetry
collection Letters of Transit, so I guess that means I'm following a
strong tradition. Pretty cool.

The editor of Dream Horse is poet and activist J.P. Dancing Bear.
He's the author of one full-length collection, Billy Last Crow, as
well as six chapbooks. Click here to learn more:

Dancing Bear

Everyone--this is down the road a piece, but when the book gets
released, if you know someone who works at a bookstore, library,
college or university--anywhere they hold a poetry reading series--you
might turn them on to my book once its ready for release. Like any
small press, Dream Horse depends on its poets to do their part in
marketing books. Essentially this means doing readings, anywhere and
everywhere. Some poets shy away from readings, but I actually enjoy
them.

Excited here in Madison."


Congrats, Matt!

Alessio on the Airwaves

Carolyn Alessio, former SIUC lecturer, current Crab Orchard Review prose editor, and all-around friend of the program, will be on TV this upcoming weekend. In her own words:

"It will be with great trepidation that I make my debut on BookTV on CSPAN this Sat. And yes, I am interviewing the original teacher from "Freedom Writers." Much better book than movie. So if you're bored to death or masochistic, I'll be on live from the Printer's Row Book Fair on Sat. at 11 a.m.

Help me."

Knowing Carolyn, she'll be utterly charming as usual.

Rodney Jones Goes Canadian, eh?

As part of the festivities for the Griffin Poetry Prize, our own Rodney Jones read to an audience of 900 in Toronto last night.

Details here:

Toronto Star

Adrian Matejka Update

from Adrian Matejka (MFA '01):

Thanks for the shout out about Sou'wester and the job. I also wanted to mention I've some poems forthcoming in Gulf Coast, Painted Bride Quarterly, and Pleiades along with a poem in a great new anthology, Kiss the Sky: Fiction and Poetry Starring Jimi Hendrix.