Whether you live in an urban area or in the countryside, this workshop aims to get you out of your head and into nature. We will write about the natural world, yes, but also our place in it and how we can protect our home for generations to come. We will use examples of writing across various genres, from poetry and essayettes to novel excerpts and feature articles, from authors such as Robin Wall Kimmerer, Richard Powers, Rachel Carson, Natalie Diaz, and Helen Macdonald.
In class we will discuss different ways of looking at and interacting with the outside world, techniques for writing about nature, and what constitutes nature writing. Each week there will be a new nature writing assignment that will require you to, in some way, leave your home (even if it is simply sticking your head out the window) and share your findings with the group.
This class is both interactive and active and will include research, observation, and contemplation. It’s also a chance for you to have some time to come home to yourself in the great outdoors, or, if you prefer, to build community with your friends and family as you rediscover place.
This course is open to all writers of any genre who are interested in writing about nature. Prior workshop experience is not necessary, but all members of the class must come to class prepared to discuss the readings, be willing to share their own writing and nature writing, and be generous in their responses to their peers’ work.
COURSE TAKEAWAYS:
Have a strong sense of what nature writing can be, and how you can craft your own style to work with or against what has come before.
Understand the many shapes nature writing can take, and how nature writing is about feeling, emotions, and above all else, stories.
Discuss and contemplate questions such as: How do I interact with the natural world around me? Who is Indigenous to this land and is that reflected in the way my town/city is organized? How can I honor and protect the flora, fauna, and original people of the place I call home?
Write and revise several pieces of original nature writing content and learn where and how to publish them, if so desired.
Above all, we’ll explore and bloom as a writing community and have fun all the while.
REQUIRED TEXT:
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer