Remington Roundup for #Readers & #Writers

1960's photo of woman at Remington typewriter

It’s been a while since the last Remington Roundup, but that doesn’t mean there’s been little to share. Here are links gathered over the last few months for readers and writers.


Roundup For #Readers

Fiction in Solstice Magazine: Middle-Aged Woman Rethinks Her Sexual Orientation While Breakfasting at a Cafe by Mia Caruso

You don’t have a sexual orientation, you realize. You were just swept along, without ever having a chance to know. Awkward is your sexual orientation.

Nonfiction in Carbon Culture: Unanswered Questions by Julia Poole

Roundup pic of old window with barsTime was limited. People like Ralph, the men, and women who had lived during WWII, would soon be gone. I didn’t want their stories to die with them. Sites of remembrance, including concentration camps, are part of their stories, part of history not to be ignored or forgotten. Such places act as persuasive and effective teachers. Are people still willing to learn?

Must-Read Books by Indigenous Authors (post by Kaitlin Curtice)

Roundup pic of young girl reading with light coming out from the pages of the bookI’m constantly asked for resources on how people can move forward learning about Indigenous culture, and I’m often repeating the same thing: read books. . . . Indigenous peoples cannot do the work for you. You must dig in and learn yourself, and the best way to do that is lean into our cultures. Learn about us. Do your research, and then we can have a conversation that isn’t a one-sided history or cultural lesson.


Roundup For #Writers

On Publisher’s Weekly, Writing Tips from Barbara Kingsolver

Roundup pic of typewriter surrounded by cup of coffee, open book with blank pages, and penWriters work successfully in so many different ways, I never assume that what works for me is best for someone else. But if a common denominator exists among us, it might be attitude: the enterprise of writing a book has to feel like walking into a cathedral. It demands humility. The body of all written words already in print is vaulted and vast. You think you have something new to add to that? If so, it can only come from a position of respect: for the form, the process, and eventually for a reader’s valuable attention.

An In-Person Workshop: Diving Into the Details

Roundup pic of statue of swimmer about to dive with sky and puffy clouds in backgroundDetails play a significant role in our writing, whether we write poems, essays or novels. Details build story, deepen story, and provide more ways for readers to connect with story.

Meets Saturday, November 10th, 9:30am-noon. Come read examples of authors who master details and practice technique with several writing prompts. Register through Red Oak Writing.

Or an Online Meet-Up at Study Hall: #AmWriting

drawing of paper and pencil surrounded by symbols of three people and the internet symbol…with space, an invitation, and a gentle push from another writer facing similar challenges, we are more likely to show up at the table and set pen to paper. We are more likely to encourage the writer across from us and–together–create more art.

Our next Study Hall meets Sunday, November 11th, 3:30-5pm CST. Register by Friday, November 9th!

An Updated List for Flash Nonfiction Submissions curated by Erika Dreifus

…a guide to journals and magazines that publish flash nonfiction/micro-essays.

Because after all that writing you’re doing, you’ll be ready to submit!

 

Back to School: Opportunities for #Writing & #Community

It’s my favorite time of year, when every store–drug store, grocery store, and (cue the angels singing) the office supply store–is stocked with back to school supplies. I go in with the long list of necessities sent out from the district, I complain about the 72 sharpened pencils and 36 pens (though I buy them, to be sure), but let’s be honest: I go in with a list of my own.

I can’t help it. There’s nothing like a feel of a crisp new spiral notebook and the draw of good pencil. Even when my kids are through their high school years, I will quietly slip away into the seasonal aisle of Walgreens and run my hand along the row of Mead and PaperMate and Pentel.

I know I’m not alone. Something about the school season fires up a writer. And why not? We’ve just spent the last three months soaking up sunshine on family vacations and quiet bike rides alone and gathering story.

So let’s take advantage of that energy. Use it to get back to the page, to fine-tune a collection of stories or to craft a whole new essay. There are plenty of opportunities, online and in person, to put pen to paper and find a community of writing souls who will carry you through the winter months.


#Writing in Study Hall

Once a month, I lead Study Hall: #AmWriting, where a few of us come together and talk craft, read samples of great works, and write write write.

drawing of person pumping out page after page of writingSunday Study Hall exceeded my expectations. Christi facilitates and provides the structure. The visual and audio elements enhance the experience. Readings, prompts, and the company of kindred spirits spiral out across time zones. I always leave the session enriched by the conversation. ~ Kathy Collins

We spend a lot of time with writing prompts, which push writers in new and unexpected ways. And sometimes the conversations alone are enough to inspire a new structure in a piece that’s had you stumped for a while.

Try one session. All you need is a laptop, high-speed internet, and a desire to hang out with a bunch of other writers. Our next meet-up is Sunday, September 9th, 3:30-5pm (CST). REGISTER HERE or contact me with questions.


#Learning in the Classroom

If you’re partial to face-to-face interactions and are local to the Milwaukee area, Red Oak Writing offers several Saturday morning craft workshops this fall for writers.

  • group of writers around a table talking craft(Extra)Ordinary Content on October 20th with Patricia Ann McNair. “For writers of all genres, this workshop will guide participants to identify and use their most compelling material to create new work and reinvigorate ongoing projects. Drawing from memory, imagination, and observation, writers will discover their own extraordinary content.”
  • Diving into the Details on November 10th with me. “Details play a significant role in our writing, whether we write poems, essays or novels. Details build storydeepen story, and provide more ways for readers to connect with story. In this workshop, we will look at all three functions of details as they apply to setting, place, and person….”
  • Story, Truth, and Beauty, Baby! on December 8th with Barry Wightman. “Ready to take your writing to the next level? Looking for ways to amp up your prose, streamline it, make it jump from the page? Like great music, great fiction is built from magic moments that produce shivers—riffs, choruses and solos that enchant the reader.”
*Photo above from Red Oak Writing’s website

Building #Community

If you’re new to writing or have been on hiatus for a while, Principles & Prompts is an online course that offers community and a fun, low-stakes space for exploring creativity, story structure, and writing prompts.

“Christi Craig’s on-line class, Principles & Prompts, is an ideal environment to open your mind up to not only learn, but also do and the six-week course provides a perfect escape during an otherwise busy time of year. Christi has the uncanny ability of incorporating works, both written and film, that nudge the muse to tackle the writing prompt that follows.  Although there is no pressure for perfection or finished pages, I have to say, the synergy of the group compelled me to do more than slap my thoughts together.” ~ Elin Stebbins Waldal

Principles & Prompts opens for registration in September. I love teaching this course and witnessing the stories that evolve from letting go and diving into the work.

Whichever way you lean–Pentel or PaperMate, online or in person, grab your pencil. Stake claim on your notebook. Find your tribe and put your stories to paper. Your voice matters, and your muse is calling.

Designs for the New Year: Writing Opportunities in 2017

“The writing career is not a romantic one. The writer’s life may be colorful, but his work itself is rather drab.” ~ Mary Roberts Rinehart

img_0012Hey now, come on, Mary. Writing may not be romantic (though when I type with fingerless gloves I feel very “Jane Austen”), but drab is a little strong. Let’s say painful, gut-wrenching, #ThisPenHatesMe, sure. “Woman found sobbing over red ink and word counts,” yes. But drab? Nope.

If you find yourself in the bla-bla-bla’s of a blank page, you may be in need of a boost in morale, a prompt for inspiration, a bit of camaraderie–a workshop, a course, or an official writers’ huddle.


The Workshop
Join me face-to-face for FLASH MEMOIR.

pexels-photo-204511Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017, 9:30am-noon at the Red Oak Writing tables (11709 W. Cleveland Ave., West Allis, WI). We will define the purpose of memoir and the memoir essay (there is a difference!), look at traditional and nontraditional forms, and talk about strategies for turning a personal experience or story into flash (1,000 words or fewer). We’ll also put pen to paper–because we learn best when we engage with the page! $50. REGISTER via Red Oak HERE.


The Course
Join me ONLINE for in-depth learning on FLASH NONFICTION.

Drawing of online connectionThis 4-week course runs from February 5-March 4, 2017. We will tap into books, videos, podcasts, and samples of great flash nonfiction. We’ll learn about techniques that make this powerful genre work, then put these techniques into practice through writing exercises and peer critique. At the end of the course, you’ll leave with a better understanding of flash nonfiction as a whole, a list of resources for further study and submission ideas, and several new pieces of work under your belt. $90. Information on discounted fees & registration HERE.


The Huddle
Strength in Numbers with THE WRITERS’ COLLECTIVE.

Another great in-person workshop at Red Oak, taught Kim Suhr on Saturday, February 25, 2017, 9:30am-noon. Here’s the description from the website:

Red Oak Writing logoWould you like to increase readership of your book, website or blog? Are you better at singing others’ praises than your own? Are you willing to spread the word about other writers’ work in exchange for expanded exposure?

Spend the morning building a collaborative publicity plan with others who are committed to helping your audience grow. Participants must be willing to promote each other throughout a six-month period. Those who make one “touch” for every member of the group will appear on a “Featured Writers” page at our website with links to their blog, Amazon page, etc. Group limit strictly held at 12 members.

$50. Register for the Writers’ Collective via Red Oak HERE.


And with that, folks, we’re barely into March. Drab is so 2016.
Sign up and get writing in 2017!