John Grogan—Keynoter and Creative Writing Master Class Instructor
John GroganJohn Grogan was a columnist at the Philadelphia Inquirer when he wrote a column saying goodbye to his incorrigible 13-year-old Labrador retriever, Marley. When hundreds of messages flooded his inbox and voicemail the next day, John recalls, "That's when I knew I had a bigger story to tell." The story became
Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog, a book about what a misbehaving dog meant to his family. A touchstone for people worldwide, the book grew into a runaway #1 New York Times bestseller with more than 3 million copies in print in 30 languages and was made into a movie starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. Grogan's latest New York Times bestseller is
The Longest Trip Home. Publishers Weekly called it "a hilarious and touching memoir of his childhood."
www.johngroganbooks.comMorning Fiction Instructor—Hallie Ephron
Hallie EphronHallie Ephron is the author of over 10 books, including the Dr. Peter Zak mystery series and the novel
Never Tell a Lie (HarperCollins, 2009), which Publishers Weekly called "stunning" and a "deliciously creepy tale of obsession." The book has been translated into 7 languages and was nominated for multiple awards, including the Mary Higgins Clark Award. It won the David Award for best mystery of 2009.
Never Tell a Lie was adapted for film as And Baby Will Fall for the Lifetime Movie Network. Ephron is an award-winning book reviewer for the Boston Globe and has taught elementary school, at the college level, and in corporations. In addition, Ephron is active in writing workshops and retreats, combining her love of writing and teaching.
www.hallieephron.comMorning Poetry Instructor—Jeff Gundy
Jeff is Professor of English at Bluffton University in Ohio, teaching creative writing, poetry and literature. His books include
Spoken among the Trees,
Walker in the Fog: On Mennonite Writing,
Deerflies,
Scattering Point: The World in a Mennonite Eye,
Rhapsody with Dark Matter, and
Flatlands. Jeff has also published poetry in numerous journals, including
Exquisite Corpse,
Georgia Review,
North American Review,
Shenandoah, and
The Sun.
www.bluffton.edu/~gundyj/Morning Creative Nonfiction/Memoir Instructor—Jerry Dennis
In the 25 years that Jerry Dennis has earned his living as a freelance writer, he has emerged as one of America’s most celebrated writers about nature and the outdoors. His essays in such publications as
Audubon,
Smithsonian,
Orion,
National Geographic Traveler, and the
New York Times have won many awards and are frequently reprinted and anthologized. His eleven books, most recently
The Windward Shore: A Winter on the Great Lakes, have appeared on national bestseller lists. Among Jerry's awards are the Michigan Author of the Year Award, the Sigurd Olson Nature Writing Award, Michigan State University's Great Lakes Culture Award, and three Best Book of the Year awards from the Outdoor Writers Association of America.
www.jerrydennis.netVisiting Agents—To Be Announced
Instructors for Professional Skills for Writers Class—To Be Announced
First Book Speaker—David Halperin
David attended Antioch Writers' Workshop in 2008. In 2011, his first novel,
Journal of a UFO Investigator was published by Viking Books. From 1976 through 2000, David taught Jewish history in the Religious Studies Department at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Now retired from teaching, he lives in North Carolina with his wife Rose.
www.davidhalperin.netAfternoon Fiction Seminar—Crystal Wilkinson
Crystal is the author of
Blackberries, Blackberries and
Water Street. Nominated for both the Orange Prize and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, she has received recognition from The Kentucky Foundation for Women, The Kentucky Arts Council, The Mary Anderson Center for the Arts, The Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown and is a recipient of the Chaffin Award for Appalachian Literature. Her short stories, poems and essays have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. She currently teaches in the BFA in Creative Writing program at Morehead State University and the brief residency MFA in Writing program at Spalding University.
http://crystal-wilkinson.blogspot.comAfternoon Fiction Seminar—Linda Gerber
Linda is the author of acclaimed young adult novels, including the paranormal thriller
Trance, a Junior Library Guild selection, and the mysteries
Death by Denim,
Death by Latte, and
Death by Bikini, as well as two other young adult novels. She has published stories in several anthologies. Linda is also very active in blogging and in presenting at workshops and conferences.
www.lindagerber.comAfternoon Fiction Seminar—Carrie Bebris
Award-winning author Carrie (
www.carriebebris.com)is best known for her Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery series, most recently
The Deception at Lyme. Set in Regency England, the novels entangle some of Jane Austen's most beloved characters in intrigue. The series debuted in 2004 with
Pride and Prescience which made the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association bestseller list and was named one of the five best mysteries of the year by Library Journal. Successive Mr. & Mrs. Darcy mysteries have earned starred reviews from
Publisher's Weekly,
Library Journal, and other publications.
North by Northanger won the Daphne du Maurier Award, which honors excellence in romantic suspense, and a Reviewers Choice Award from
RT Book Reviews magazine for Best Historical Mystery of 2006.
Afternoon Poetry Seminar Instructor—Jim Daniels
Jim has taught creative writing at Carnegie Mellon University since 1981. Recent books include
Having a Little Talk with Capital P PoetryTrigger Man. In 2007, he was awarded the Blue Lynx Poetry Prize for his collection,
Revolt of the Crash-Test Dummies. His poems have been featured on Garrison Keillor's "Writer's Almanac," in Billy Collins' Poetry 180 anthologies, and Ted Kooser's "American Life in Poetry" series. He has received the Brittingham Prize for Poetry, two fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, and two from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. His poems have appeared in the Pushcart Prize and Best American Poetry anthologies.
www.jimdaniels.wordpress.comAfternoon Creative Nonfiction/Memoir Seminar Instructor—Sandi Wisenberg
Sandi is the author of two collections,
The Sweetheart Is In, and
Holocaust Girls: History, Memory, & Other Obsessions, and
The Adventures of Cancer Bitch,
based on her blog, cancerbitch.blogspot.com. She was a feature writer for the
Miami Herald and has published prose and poetry in
The New Yorker,
Ploughshares,
Tikkun,
New England Review,
Michigan Quarterly Review and many other places. She is one of two co-directors of Northwestern's M.A./M.F.A. in Creative Writing program and has received a Pushcart Prize and fellowships from the Illinois Arts Council, Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
www.slwisenberg.blogspot.comAfternoon Focus on Form Seminar Instructor—Chet Kelly Robinson
Chet writes as C. Kelly Robinson and is the author of five novels including the #1 Essence best-selling and Main Selection of the Black Expressions Book Club
No More Mr. Nice Guyand the critically acclaimed
Between Brothers, as well as
The Deadbeat Divas,
The Strong Silent Type, and
The Perfect Blend. As Xavier Knight, he published the Christian novels
The Things We Do For Love and
God Only Knows.
www.CKellyRobinson.comAfternoon Young Writers Instructor Seminar—Trudy Krisher
Trudy is the award winning author of several books for young adult readers, including Spite Fences, Uncommon Faith and Fallout. Her first book, the children's story Kathy's Hats: A Story of Hope, portrays the courage of a child battling cancer. Spite Fences earned Trudy the Cuffie Award from Publishers Weekly for 1994's most promising new author. She is also an assistant professor at Sinclair Community College.
Saturday Seminar Instructors—To Be Announced
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