Imagination and Justice: Meditation and Free-Writing Circles

with Lisa Freedman

An activist’s faith can never be unquestioning … can never oversimplify, as believers and activists are often tempted or pressured to do. Adrienne Rich

A question is a pursuit, an invitation to envision and explore a series of possibilities, to struggle and empathize and doubt and believe. The question moves, whereas our sense of what an answer is can often be static, a stopping point. Tracy K. Smith

We women writing in the fall of 2024 are blessed and cursed to live in interesting times. For just one example, we have the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025,” which the Center for American Progress calls “the playbook of a dictator.” But extremists don’t have a monopoly on ideas for the future. What does your vision for 2025 and beyond consist of? How do your identity and life experiences shape your priorities? How might we come together and contribute to the process of imagining a more just United States, a more perfect union, a process that started to unfold and has gotten derailed repeatedly over the past 400 years?

This round of the Imagination and Justice meditation and freewriting circles will pursue and move with the questions above. The I and J circles are both intimate and expansive. We hold space for the complexities of our own and each other’s stories and dreams. Each time we meet, we start with a few minutes of silence followed by a brief guided free-write and share to check in. Then Lisa guides us in two more rounds of meditation, free-writing, and sharing. The sharing is always optional.

Holding silence together is a bonding activity, and as the weeks progress, we connect more deeply through our writings. This is how we help each other take writerly risks to reveal ourselves and our imaginings. And this is how we support each other as we dare to share our voices and visions.

Meditators, writers, activists, skeptics, and idealists at every level of experience are welcome. All genres are welcome. These circles are a place to write or re-write material that dwells (or wants to dwell) in the realm where the personal is political. You may already be working on a relevant project, or you may be starting a new one. Either way, you and your stories, your writings are welcome here.

Participants receive the prompts and background materials each week. These come from Tracy K. Smith’s writings and a wide community of other voices that complement hers.

While this is a generative, free-writing circle, participants are often surprised by the power of the words that land on the page. Those of us in the first Imagination & Justice Circle, which took place in the fall of 2021, are delighted to have our writings collected by the IWWG in this anthology, which you can read here: Roots/Trunk/Sky.
https://issuu.com/guild2021/docs/imagination_and_justice_an_iwwg_writing_circle

Lisa Freedman is an author, activist, and professor of creative writing. She holds an MFA from the New School and is certified as a mindfulness meditation teacher by Dhama Moon. She founded and directs Breathe/Read/Write, an online community where mindfulness and writing come together.

Featured Author/Open Mic with Angela Siew

Angela Siew is a multilingual poet with a BA from Brown University and an MFA from Emerson College. She is the recipient of fellowships and scholarships from the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Kenyon Review Writers Workshop and the City of Boston. Her work has been published in Salamander, Crab Orchard Review and Art New England, among others. A former private tutor and English language teacher, she has taught overseas in Chile and Italy. She currently teaches online poetry workshops for IWWG.

Angela's poetry chapbook, Coming Home, is available from Cut Bank (University of Montana): https://angelasiew.com/books/

12 DAYS OF GUILD GIVING

Register for all events at one price: $149/$199

If you register by November 1, you can choose either

Lisa Freedman's (Imagination & Justice) or Carmen Bugan's writing circle.

Please email writers@iwwg.org for details

December 2: Mirjam Frosth : 2 part workshop  (for first 12 registrants) - Meeting 1: Ekphrastic Poetry

In our first gathering, we’ll read and discuss work by poets like Terrance Hayes, Arda Collins, Frank O'Hara, Jo Shapcott, Mark Doty, and Natasha Trethewey, examining how each writer leverages ekphrasis within their work. Participants will then have a week to create their own ekphrastic poems.

December 4:  Joan Ramirez - How to Become an Author-preneur 

Joan will go into detail regarding

1, How to Present Your Company in a Written Proposal

2. How to Present Your Product/Service in a Verbal Presentation

3. How to Market Yourself as an Authorpreneur
4. How to Promote Your Current Books vis a vis your Authorpreneur platform
Joan will be using a bit of her Entrepreneurial Training Handbook, The Write Rules, which is in the London Consortium of Libraries.

December 9: Mirjam Frosth - Meeting 2: Poetry Workshop (for first 12 registrants)

After a week of writing, we’ll reconvene to share and workshop poems, offering feedback and insights. This session is designed to help each poet refine their work and deepen their understanding of ekphrasis as not only a creative bridge between mediums, but as a new way of thinking and creating.

December 10:  Angela Siew - Writing Joy and (De)light 

Why is it that we don’t write more often about joy and delight, gifts or blessings – how can we more easily access these moments? What themes/images do joy and delight work with or against in memorable writing? For those who celebrate the upcoming holidays, this can also be an opportunity to explore how your faith connects to joy or delight, particularly through the theme/image of light. During this session, we will discuss poems and other short prose from writers such as Ross Gay/Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Chen Chen, Marie Howe, and others. Our aim will be to learn from and be inspired by their work, as well as freewrite from prompts to generate the beginnings of our own pieces. There will be time at the end for us to share our work with each other. All levels of experience and all genres are welcome. This workshop builds upon the Writing Joy workshop offered at IWWG’s Summer 2024 conference. Both returning and new participants are encouraged to attend.

December 11: Melisssa Michal - Flashes of Fiction 

In this 90-minute workshop, we will discuss the palpable and rich textures these tiny, but mighty, stories can evoke through how other authors weave their fiction elements with so few words. Examples will include works from today’s literary journals and past notable iterations, and we will use such examples to help us define how character, point of view, description, and setting play key roles in this form not being pegged a prose poem. Throughout the workshop, we will engage in several writing exercises to practice the form and try new craft techniques. This workshop is for any level and will inspire all, even those previously nervous to try to write in under 1000 words.

Note: First 12 only for Ekphrastic Poetry Series. More workshops will be added for December 1-12 and you will automatically be registered. 

Ekphrasis in Poetry: Writing With Art

2-part workshop (Dec 2 and Dec 9)

with Mirjam Frosth

Meeting 1: Ekphrastic Poetry
In our first gathering, we’ll read and discuss work by poets like Terrance Hayes, Arda Collins, Frank O'Hara, Jo Shapcott, Mark Doty, and Natasha Trethewey, examining how each writer leverages ekphrasis within their work. Participants will then have a week to create their own ekphrastic poems.

Meeting 2: Poetry Workshop: After a week of writing, we’ll reconvene to share and workshop poems, offering feedback and insights. This session is designed to help each poet refine their work and deepen their understanding of ekphrasis as not only a creative bridge between mediums, but as a new way of thinking and creating.

Mirjam Frosth is a multi-hyphenate cultural worker with a background in poetry and visual art. Her work has been recognized by the likes of Harvard Review and Hyperallergic. As the leader of the creative community Konstwrite, Mirjam develops events and workshops in the arts.

How to Become An Entrepreneur of Your Own Enterprise ($25)

The presenter will go into detail regarding 1, How to Present Your Company in a Written Proposal
2. How to Present Your Product/Service in a Verbal Presentation
3. How to Market Yourself as an Authorpreneur
4. How to Promote Your Current Books vis a vis your Authorpreneur platform
Joan will be using a bit of her Entrepreneurial Training Handbook, The Write Rules, which is in the London Consortium of Libraries.

Joan Ramirez’s company trains entrepreneurs-all levels. For years she wrote for the staff of a large engineering firm and trained them in nuances of business writing and verbal presentations. Her latest publication The Write Rules, a handbook with guidelines for becoming an entrepreneur.

Abby Jiang is a Chinese-American author born in Shanghai. She grew up during the Chinese Cultural Revolution (文化大革命), a time when she was sent to a factory and the countryside to learn from workers and peasants as part of the movement's policies.

After the Revolution ended in 1976 and China reopened its universities, Abby took the national entrance exam and graduated from the Library Science program at the Fudan University branch school in Shanghai, now known as Shanghai University. Following her graduation, she worked as a librarian at a research institute in Shanghai, where she was soon promoted to chief librarian.

In 1987, Abby immigrated to the United States and settled in New Jersey. She is married and has one daughter. Over the years, Abby has worked at the library of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, as well as in other public and research libraries. She has also gained experience as a bookkeeper for a law firm and as a licensed Realtor.

Writing Joy & De(light) (starting at $45)

Why is it that we don’t write more often about joy and delight, gifts or blessings – how can we more easily access these moments? What themes/images do joy and delight work with or against in memorable writing? For those who celebrate the upcoming holidays, this can also be an opportunity to explore how your faith connects to joy or delight, particularly through the theme/image of light.

During this session, we will discuss poems and other short prose from writers such as Ross Gay/Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Chen Chen, Marie Howe, and others. Our aim will be to learn from and be inspired by their work, as well as freewrite from prompts to generate the beginnings of our own pieces. There will be time at the end for us to share our work with each other.

All levels of experience and all genres are welcome. This workshop builds upon the Writing Joy workshop offered at IWWG’s Summer 2024 conference. Both returning and new participants are encouraged to attend.

Angela Siew is a multilingual poet with an MFA from Emerson College. She is the recipient of fellowships and scholarships from the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Kenyon Review Writers Workshop and the City of Boston. A chapbook, Coming Home, is available from Cut Bank: https://angelasiew.com/books/

Flashes of Fiction (starting at $45)

In this 90-minute workshop, we will discuss the palpable and rich textures these tiny, but mighty, stories can evoke through how other authors weave their fiction elements with so few words. Examples will include works from today’s literary journals and past notable iterations, and we will use such examples to help us define how character, point of view, description, and setting play key roles in this form not being pegged a prose poem. Throughout the workshop, we will engage in several writing exercises to practice the form and try new craft techniques. This workshop is for any level and will inspire all, even those previously nervous to try to write in under 1000 words.

Melissa Michal is of Seneca, Welsh, and English descent and is a fiction writer and essayist. Melissa has work appearing in the SFRA and other spaces. Her story collection, Living Along the Borderlines, was a finalist for the Louise Meriwether first book prize and she writes Indigenous futurism novels.

COMMUNITY MEETING & CONFERENCE OPEN MIC ANTHOLGY

Community Meeting & Discussion 6 pm to 7 pm

Conference Open Mic Anthology Reading 7 pm to 8 pm

Featured Author/Open Mic with Carole Duff

Carole Duff is a veteran teacher, flutist, naturalist, and writer who lives in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains with her husband, author K.A. Kenny and two large dogs. She posts weekly to her long-standing blog Notes from Vanaprastha, and has written for Brevity Blog, Cleaver Magazine, Huffington Post, Mockingbird, Please See Me, Streetlight Magazine, The Sage Forum, for which she is a regular contributor, and Women Writers, Women's Books, among others. Carole's memoir Wisdom Builds Her House released in August 2024 and is available in paperback, e-book, and audiobook.

Three Tools for Creating Believable Characters (starting at $50)

Three Tools for Creating Believable Characters: How do writers make characters "come to life" on the page for readers--including agents and editors? This course will delve into three tools (character timeline, setting timeline, identifying characters' wants and needs) that authors can use to create vivid, believable characters. Further, this course will show how all three tools work together and intersect with plotting and theme.

Sharon Short is the author of more than fifteen published books. Her newest, Trouble Island, is historical suspense (Minotaur Books), set in 1933 and inspired by true family history. Short is a contributing editor to Writer’s Digest, for which she writes the column, “Level Up Your Writing (Life).”

Gateway to Memoir (starting at $199)

Interested in writing memoir but not sure where to begin? Got a memoir in the works but could use some guidance? “Gateway to Memoir” is a foundational workshop that will show you the basics of the genre. We will spend four weeks discussing time in memoir, the ethics of writing memoir, establishing place and how to turn the people who populate your past into characters. The final two sessions will be reserved for workshopping writing submissions.

Minda Honey’s essays have appeared in Harper’s Bazaar, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the Oxford American, Teen Vogue, and Longreads.

Her debut memoir, THE HEARTBREAK YEARS is a hilarious and intimate portrait of a Black woman finding who she is and who she wants to be, one bad date at a time.

Putting Our Grandmothers on the Page: Poetry, Prose, Memoir & Monologue (starting at $150)

“Grandma, come back, I forgot
how much lard for these rolls.”

Carolyn Forche’s poem, "The Morning Baking," is an address to her dead grandmother that evokes powerful longing and confronts the limits of memory. Grandmothers are a universal archetype––those from whom we are descended, the grandmothers we are, as well as those who influence us from fairy tale and myth. Grandmothers are rich thematic territory for poetry and prose, but we face challenges of writing past cultural stereotypes or into historical silences. How do we leap beyond sentimentality to grapple with shifting cultural norms? Grandmothers both illuminate and shadow our personal, family and cultural identities. In this writing generative workshop, participants will use prompts of personal photos, objects, and memory to excavate and expand our ideas and feelings about “grandmother.” New and experienced writers are welcome.

Kelly is a poet, playwright and workshop facilitator and author of four poetry collections. Her award-winning plays are produced around the US and Canada, and published by dramatic publishers. A past IWWG Board Member, Kelly teaches creative writing, including Monologue Play Labs & Showcases.

Elevate Your Fiction in Any Genre (starting at $50)

Elevate Your Fiction in Any Genre: Readers love stories that fit genre expectations. That's why stories and memoirs are classified into genres--so readers can narrow down the numerous options to a subset of books they think will interest them. But how can you make your story really stand out to readers--even while fulfilling genre expectations? This course focuses on how to overcome this seeming conundrum to create stand-out stories that readers will remember--and tell other readers about.

Sharon Short is the author of more than fifteen published books. Her newest, Trouble Island, is historical suspense (Minotaur Books), set in 1933 and inspired by true family history. Short is a contributing editor to Writer’s Digest, for which she writes the column, “Level Up Your Writing (Life).”

6-Week Intensive: Transitions, Translations, Transformations

with Carmen Bugan

This minicourse explores literary language through the Protean lens of transitions (life transitions, travel and exposure to other cultures, languages, and ways of thinking); translations (work on producing several versions of a poem from another language); and transformations (reflecting on how the language of our writing changes over time). What does creative language know but keeps to itself—like wise Proteus who changes shape and is able to see into the future?  We will devote two sessions to each of these lenses, and participants will be asked to bring to class a favorite poem, an excerpt from a story, or a memoir. Each two-hour session will involve reading and discussion of example poems and guided writing exercises.  Work we will discuss: “When Giving is All We Have” by Alberto Rios, “Transformation” by Adam Zagajeswski; excerpts from The Snow Geese by William Fiennes (review here); and excerpts from “The Wonderful Adventures of Nils” by Selma Lagerloff. This course will help ease writers’ block and help writers meditate on the vast possibilities of creativity.

Dr. Carmen Bugan, a George Orwell Prize Fellow, is a prize-winning poet and writer who has published ten books including poetry, memoir, and literary criticism.  Her new and selected poems, Lilies from America was a Poetry Book Society Special Commendation. Her memoir, Burying the Typewriter won the Bakeless Nonfiction Prize, was shortlisted for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize and the Orwell Prize for Political Writing, and was serialized for radio as a BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week. Her book of essays, Poetry and the Language of Oppression (Oxford University Press) was named an “essential book for writers” by Poets and Writers.  Bugan appears at book fairs and festivals such as the London Book Fair, the Cork Literary Festival, The Goteborg Book Fair, and Le Livre sur les Quais (Morges, Switzerland) and lectures widely at universities in Europe, Middle East, and the United States. She is a member of the Geneva Writers Group and of the Association of Literary Scholars, Critics, and Writers. She teaches memoir, creative writing, and provides book doctoring and private tutorials. Her forthcoming book of poems, Tristia, will be out this winter.

Paths to Publishing (starting at $50)

Paths to Publishing: You've written a memoir, novel, or book! Or a story or essay! Now... how do you get your prose into the hands of readers? There are many paths--traditional, self-publishing, or a hybrid approach. And all can seem daunting. This course defines these paths, explores each path's pros and cons, helps participants discern which might be the right one(s) for them, and gives practical how-tos and next steps.

Sharon Short is the author of more than fifteen published books. Her newest, Trouble Island, is historical suspense (Minotaur Books), set in 1933 and inspired by true family history. Short is a contributing editor to Writer’s Digest, for which she writes the column, “Level Up Your Writing (Life).”

Having the Last Word: Obituary Writing 101 (starting at $45)

This workshop presents end-of-life storytelling in the form of obituary as a life-affirming privilege and gift. Instructor Andi Penner shares her extensive experience with eldercare, her passion for end-of-life planning, and her expertise as a writer and editor to teach you the craft of writing bespoke personal remembrances. In this generative workshop, you will learn to compose stories, instead of filling in a template, that recall and honor a life (perhaps your own). You can find some of Andi's writing at andipenner.substack.com, but you won’t find her obituary online just yet!

Andrea (Andi) Penner, whose poetry and prose has been published in literary magazines, anthologies, and academic journals, lives and writes in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She is passionate about end-of-life planning, including obituary writing, as a way to honor our loved ones.

Writing Gender (starting at $45)

In this workshop, we will draw on literary examples and exercises to learn ways to create our own stories, anecdotes, and images of gender, stories that began before we were born, in the ways our families understood maleness and femaleness, and grow and change throughout our lives, as we do.

Joy Ladin (www.joyladin.com) has published eleven books of poetry, including recently published Family and National Jewish Book Award winner The Book of Anna, and three books of about gender, Once Out of Nature, Through the Door of Life, and The Soul of the Stranger.

The Modern Publishing Landscape (FREE)

The publishing industry today looks much different than it did a decade ago. In that time, self-publishing has outgrown its longstanding 'vanity' stigma and become a viable publishing option for many writers. The traditional publishing industry has also experienced great changes and as a result it just isn’t what it used to be, even for those who’ve found success within the system.

This workshop provides an overview of the modern book publishing landscape and gives advice to authors on how to successfully navigate it. We’ll discuss the general publishing options of Traditional Publishing, DIY, and Assisted Self-Publishing — how it all works and the logistics of moving your book from the computer screen to the bookshelf.

Emily Perkins is the Senior Publishing Consultant at FriesenPress – the largest publishing services provider in Canada.

Her publishing career spans over 20 years – and the globe. She spent years in Amsterdam working in graphic design and later worked as a typesetter and proofreader in the financial printing industry.

Emily’s eclectic experience allows her to provide a holistic approach to her part in guiding the FriesenPress sales team, which ensures authors self-publish the best possible books.

World Building for Any Novel (starting at $129)

A character’s world greatly impacts how that character responds to the obstacles they face and ultimately shapes who that character becomes. This mini-course will discuss the techniques necessary to create and/or strengthen works with complicated and layered worlds and timelines. This course is for any project with large worlds, whether that be science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, intergenerational novels, or a mystery novel, or if you simply want to understand how to incorporate diverse characters and perspectives. We will explore how to keep your readers engaged in such layered storylines. Considering writers such as Octavia Butler, N.K. Jemisin, and Margaret Atwood, we will be inspired to write stories that immerse readers in worlds that illuminate today’s conversations. We will spend four weeks learning world-building techniques, developing the character of multiple protagonists, incorporating diverse characters and world settings, and keeping track of your world’s details/rules. The final two weeks will be spent generating materials or making plans for revisions using your new tools. Start a novel, strengthen one already begun, or even finish a short story during our exploration of world-building techniques.

Melissa Michal is of Seneca, Welsh, and English descent and is a fiction writer and essayist. Melissa has work appearing in the SFRA and other spaces. Her story collection, Living Along the Borderlines, was a finalist for the Louise Meriwether first book prize and she writes Indigenous futurism novels.

Gateway to Memoir II (starting at $199)

In this 6-week workshop we will build on the foundation and skills developed during Gateway to Memoir I with more of a focus on:
Developing and strengthening your voice as a writer
Identifying narrative arcs at the chapter and book level
How to do self-research to aid your memory

The final two sessions will be reserved for workshopping writing submissions.

Minda Honey’s essays have appeared in Harper’s Bazaar, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the Oxford American, Teen Vogue, and Longreads.

Her debut memoir, THE HEARTBREAK YEARS is a hilarious and intimate portrait of a Black woman finding who she is and who she wants to be, one bad date at a time.