by Rebecca Thomas

In mid-July we were praying for rain. The sudden downpours and flashing lightning that are synonymous with a West Virginia summer had disappeared. Instead, my lawn had become crispy. My plants weren’t happy.

But then, on the eve of the West Virginia Writers’ Workshop, Christina Seymour, a fellow MFA student, and I were heading over to Stalnaker Hall to help set up when we looked at the sky and saw trouble. “That doesn’t look good,” we said, and then, the heavens broke loose. For four days straight we got rain. Plants grew again. We rejoiced when we weren’t cursing from getting caught in the rain. What was to cause the end of our drought? My theory is that the sky saw the lineup for this year’s West Virginia Writers’ Workshop and was trying to listen to the readings. And who could blame the sky? For four days amazing authors graced our campus.

Every July, writers flock to Morgantown for the writers’ conference, and this seemed to be an exceptionally great year. Celebrating its sixteenth birthday, we participants got to participants to attend craft talks, workshop, read work, and hear professional writers read. From Thursday to Sunday, we immersed ourselves in all things writing.

Our very own poet, Mary Ann Samyn (who just won a big award, by the way. Read the post all about it) kicked off the craft lectures and the public readings. She had us travel through some lovely poems and helped guide us along the way. Let me tell you, Mary Ann as a guide for a Brenda Hillman poem is pretty splendid. And the other craft talks did not disappoint either. Jim Harms examined the question of lying in poetry (you can do it, he says). Stephen Amidon discussed the same question about nonfiction (stay true to the heart of the your topic, he says). Faith Shearin asked what makes for a great poem and led us through a few examples. And, Mike Czyzniejewski challenged us to create vivid nine sentence stories (it’s tough, but the results were great).

But it wasn’t all craft talks and workshops. Every afternoon and evening we were able to snack on refreshments while hearing our lovely lecturers read. And oh the readings we had.
When one of our visiting authors, Faith Shearin, read Thursday night, joy burst through her voice as she read about messy kitchens and the good old days when you could get hurt playing outside. She is the author of three full-length poetry collections, including the May Swenson-award-winning The Owl Question. As if that wasn’t enough, Garrison Keillor has read her poems several times on National Public Radio. Her poetry is poignant yet funny, and, just like her, incredibly warm.

Stephen Amidon was another visiting writer. He is the author of nine books of fiction and non-fiction. His latest is The Sublime Engine: A Biography of the Human Heart, which he co-authored with his brother Tom, a physician. Heart is an appropriate word for Stephen. He was generous with his time and comments. The passion that he brought to writing (turn up the volume on your writing, he kept reminding us) he brought to workshop as well.

Visiting authors seemed to be the theme of this year’s workshop. We had a whopping five of them. Friday afternoon’s reading was all things fiction with Renée Nicholson and Mike Czyzniejewski’s work. Renee, the assistant for the workshop, has appeared in Mid-American Review and Chelsea. Mike Czyzniejewski is the author of two books of fiction, including Chicago Stories. The plethora of readings continued with John Hoppenthaler, the author of two full-length poetry collections, reading Saturday afternoon.

The list goes on, though, as our amazing faculty also visited us and read. Kevin Oderman, Mark Brazaitis, Jim Harms, and Mary Ann all read their work and reminded me of how lucky I am to be a part of this program.

That reminder resonated with Christina Seymour as well. “At the writers workshops (mine led by the bright and welcoming Faith Shearin), I felt an air of excitement that renewed my appreciation for having a constant, dependable outlet for my writing in the MFA program,” Christina said. “The workshop participants offered lots of positive support (delivered with pure, eager appreciation for the musicality of language) and honest critique (delivered with the delicacy and sympathy of friends who know how much writings mean to the writer).”

The workshop is a reminder of how special it is to have communities of writers, and this weekend fostered such a community. The participants and workshop leaders were open, honest, and generous with their time. “It was wonderful to feel visited by the eclectic mix of readers and workshop teachers,” Christina said. “I felt a great sense of what life might be like post-MFA, and thanks to those writers, it looks comfortable, not-so-scary, and sometimes even rosy.”

As I walked away from my workshop, I realized just how special that sense of writing community is. I was able to spend four days immersed in all things writing. Is it any wonder the rain wanted to join us?

Join us next year. Follow the link to find out more about the West Virginia Writers’ Workshop.