Writers at Work Conference begins April 4
The Writers Read Series at College of DuPage will host the week-long Writers at Work Conference beginning Monday, April 4, featuring authors Sonya Huber, David Madden, Garnett Kilberg Cohen, Michael McColly, Carlo Matos and Brett Foster.
The conference allows participants to explore the writing and publishing worlds with authors who have published works in various genres and formats.
“The audience will have a great opportunity not only to experience the guest writers read their work, but also learn the contexts in which these writers create their works and place their works,” said Liz Whiteacre, associate professor of English at College of DuPage and coordinator of the event. “The audience will also have time to ask the writers questions at the end of each presentation and speak with them during the book signings.”
All workshops will take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the Student Resource Center, Room 2800, unless otherwise noted.
Monday, April 4: “The Working Writer” with Sonya Huber
Huber is the author of two creative nonfiction books: “Opa Nobody” in 2008, which was shortlisted for the Saroyan Prize, and “Cover Me: A Health Insurance Memoir.” She also has written a textbook, “The Backwards Research Guide for Writers: Using Your Life for Reflection, Connection and Inspiration.”
Tuesday, April 5: “Imagination Empowers Compassion” with David Madden
Madden is the author of two collection of short stories and nine novels, including “Sharpshooter,” which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, and “The Suicide's Wife,” which was made into a movie in 1979. He is a Robert Penn Warren Professor of Creative Writing Emeritus from Louisiana State University, where he taught for 43 years.
Wednesday, April 6: “Writing as Exploration into Relationships” with Garnett Killberg Cohen and Michael McColly
Kilberg Cohen has published two collections of short fiction – “Lost Women, Banished Souls” and “How We Move the Air.” She has received numerous awards during her career, including the 2004 Crazyhorse National Fiction Prize, and is a professor at Columbia College in Chicago.
McColly is the author of “The After-Death Room,” a blend of reporting and memoir covering his travels as he reported on AIDS activism. His travel pieces have appeared in such publications as the New York Times and Chicago Tribune, and he teaches creative nonfiction, journalism and literature at Columbia College in Chicago and Northwestern University.
Thursday, April 7: “Reading the Past to Write the Present” with Brett Foster and Carlo Matos
Foster is the author of the poetry collection “The Garbage Eater” and has edited volumes on Shakespeare's “Hamlet” and sonnets. He teaches creative writing and Renaissance literature at Wheaton College.
Matos' poems, plays, book reviews and essays have appeared in The Huston Literary Review, Modern Drama and Origins of English Dramatic Modernism. His first book of poems, “A School for Fishermen,” was published in 2010. He teaches English at City Colleges of Chicago.
Friday, April 8, 6 to 8 p.m. in SRC 1750: Open Mic hosted by Oasis Entertainment and Alter Ego Productions
Participants are asked to sign up to read poetry or prose for five-minute time slots. For more information, contact Kyle Wresinski at PB-Kyle@cod.edu.
This is the third conference sponsored by the Writers Read Series. Each night during this year's conference will present a different focus within the Writers at Work theme.
“Writers are not just presenting their selected works but are also talking about how they write, how they publish and how they see themselves connecting to other writers,” Whiteacre said.
In addition, three winners from College of DuPage's Prairie Creative Nonfiction Award contest will meet with Huber in a group workshop before her presentation.
For more information on this free event, call (630) 942-2311, e-mail whiteacr@cod.edu or visit cod.edu/writersatwork.