UNC Asheville's Great Smokies Writing Program Offers Spring Workshops

Local writers will have the opportunity to hone their skills with The Great Smokies Writing Program’s spring workshop series beginning February 1. A consortium of the Western North Carolina writers’ community and UNC Asheville, the program will offer six workshops in poetry and prose. Courses qualify for UNC Asheville credit hours in literature and language. Classes are open to all interested writers.

Tommy Hays, a novelist and the Great Smokies Writing Program director, will lead “Hanging in There: An Advanced Prose Workshop.” This three-credit-hour course will meet at the Asheville School from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on 10 consecutive Wednesdays beginning February 1. This course is for experienced prose writers who find themselves in need of structure, criticism and support.

Hays will also teach “Give up and Write: An Advanced Creative Prose Workshop.” This two-credit-hour course will meet at the Asheville School from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on 10 consecutive Tuesdays beginning February 14. This workshop is designed for advanced prose writers who want to start a new project in either fiction or memoir. Emphasis will be on reading and critiquing classmate’s work with instructor advising.

Hays’s advanced writing classes require his permission to enroll. To request permission, e-mail Hays at hays@main.nc.us.

Veteran journalist Neal Thompson will teach “Telling the Truth: A Creative Nonfiction and Freelance Writing Workshop.” This two-credit-hour course will meet at the Asheville Area Arts Council from 4 to 6:30 p.m. on 10 consecutive Wednesdays beginning February 15. This workshop will help students develop the skills to write book- or magazine-length nonfiction works and will include instruction on the business aspects of publishing one’s work.

Award-winning poet Cathy Smith Bowers will teach “Revision: A Poetry Writing Workshop.” This two-credit-hour course will meet at the Asheville School from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on 10 consecutive Wednesdays beginning February 15.  Students will focus on the revision process and engaging a universal audience. The class is open to experienced and beginning poets.

Dale Neal, a seasoned fiction writer and journalist, will lead “Writing to Grab the Reader: A Prose Workshop.” This two-credit-hour course will meet at the YMI Cultural Center from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on 10 consecutive Thursdays beginning February 16. Workshop participants will explore how writers have captivated their readers and will learn to write their own attention-grabbing stories.

Pat Riviere-Seel, North Carolina Poetry Society president and noted poet, will lead a workshop on “The Poet as Witness: A Poetry Workshop on the Craft of Political Poetry.” This two-credit-hour course will meet at the Asheville Arts Council from 4 to 6:30 p.m. on 10 consecutive Tuesdays beginning February 14. Students will explore strategies and techniques used to craft poems that engage social and political issues.

Cost is $20 for the visiting student application fee. Tuition and fees for the two-credit-hour courses are $138.04 and $207.06 for the three-credit-hour course for those who meet North Carolina residency requirements. Class size is limited; early registration is suggested.

For more information or to register, call UNC Asheville’s Extension and Distance Education Office at 828/232-5122 or e-mail fox@unca.edu.

 Media Contacts:

• Dr. Elaine Fox, UNC Asheville Extension and Distance Education Director, 828/232-5122
• Jill Yarnall, UNC Asheville Public Information Assistant Director, 828/251-6526