Additional Programs

The Center for Northern Studies
Mountain Cultures Semester
Summer Farm Semester
Wildbranch Writing Workshop
      - Faculty
      - About Wildbranch
      - Tuition & Fees
      - Information for Applicants
      - How to Apply
      - Workshop Schedule
      - Course Descriptions
      - Lectures, Readings, Discussions
      - Outside Activities
      - Getting Here
      - Correspondence
      - Testimonials
      - Former Faculty

Global Field Studies
Folk Art Workshop Series
Register for a Course

Announcing the Twenty-first Annual

Wildbranch Writing Workshop

Nature Writing and Beyond
June 1-7, 2008
Co-sponsored by Sterling College and Orion magazine

THIS YEAR’S WORKSHOP FACULTY:

David Abram	Janisse Ray	Scott Russell Sanders
Sandra Steingraber	H. Emerson Blake - Orion editor-in-residence	Jennifer Sahn - Orion editor-in-residence

back to top

ABOUT WILDBRANCH:

Offered at a college committed to natural resources education, Wildbranch is a week-long workshop of classes, lectures, readings, and discussions on the craft and techniques of fine writing about the natural world. The Wildbranch Workshop is for writers who want to improve and market their outdoor, natural history, and environmental writing, as well as environmental educators and activists who want to bring better writing skills to bear on their work.

The morning workshop and optional afternoon and evening sessions can benefit both professional writers as well as those with a personal interest in producing essays, journalism, or fiction that relates to the themes of nature and environment. Participants will select one of the faculty members with whom they will work each morning on writing, reading, and shared critiques. Class size is limited to ten. The rest of the day offers a range of readings and discussions, with ample time to write and socialize. The teaching faculty is composed of professional writers and editors distinguished in their fields, noted for their teaching abilities, and dedicated to helping participants improve their skills.

Two editors-in-residence from Orion magazine offer participants the option of a one-on-one critique of a piece of their writing. Those wishing to take advantage of this opportunity are asked to submit their work by May 1, and a 6,000-word limit applies.

back to top

2008 FEES:

back to top

INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS:

Enrollment in the workshop is limited to 32. Applications must arrive at Sterling College by March 14, 2008. Applicants will be notified by April 11, 2008. A nonrefundable deposit of $50 is expected within two weeks of acceptance. Full payment must be made by June 1.

Applicants must indicate their first, second, and third faculty choices when submitting their application materials. A good-faith effort is made to match participants with either their first or second choice. Assignments will be made upon acceptance.

Participants may stay in Sterling College dormitories (which, like most dormitories, are shy on amenities) or make arrangements for other accommodations in the area. A limited number of $200 scholarships are available to help defray tuition expenses. Those interested in a scholarship should include a letter of need when submitting an application.

back to top

HOW TO APPLY:

Download the 2008 Wildbranch Writing Workshop application, fill it out, and return it to Sterling College by March 14, 2008. Selected applicants will be notified by April 11, 2008.

back to top

2008 WORKSHOP SCHEDULE (Tentative):

back to top

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS:

BETWEEN THE BODY AND THE BREATHING EARTH
David Abram
The way we wield our words profoundly influences our perception of the world around us. Many contemporary ways of speaking, laden with abstractions, inadvertently stifle the spontaneous rapport between our sensing bodies and the sensuous terrain. Are there not other, wilder ways of communicating that might encourage, and deepen, the reciprocity between our animal senses and the animate earth? In this class we'll explore the use of language--both written and oral--as a means to alter our human experience of the more-than-human natural world. We'll ponder the tremendous power accorded to the spoken word in various indigenous, land-based cultures, and the forgotten intimacy between story and place. And we'll experiment with the ways in which writing might be used to rekindle a sense of the earth's elemental magic--a felt sense of the land as a community of powers in which we participate, and as a living field of intelligence in which our own sentience is entwined.

TRUTH, RECONCILIATION, AND A PASSION FOR WILDNESS
Janisse Ray
Art is powerful. Put together well, words are muscles, with the strength to change the world. Without Douglas’s River of Grass, we would not have the Everglades; without Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma, we’d be less healthy. Only by telling visionary stories, as artfully as possible, will we create a world that is sustainable and lives that are meaningful. If you want to write to change the world and be successful at it, this class is for you. We will explore our relationships to place, to ourselves, to our country, and to others. We will focus on two things: habit, or the practice of writing, and technique, escaping the curse of narrative (how to write in scenes, how to show not tell, how to use literary devices). We’ll also work to fortify the twin underpinnings of courage and creativity.

PERSONAL STORIES AND GREAT REALITIES
Scott Russell Sanders
Rachel Carson wrote, “If we have ever regarded our interest in natural history as an escape from the realities of our modern world, let us now reverse this attitude. For the mysteries of living things, and the birth and death of continents and seas, are among the great realities.” In this course we will explore ways of writing about personal experience within the context of those great realities—seasons, tides, landscapes, other species, migration, global climate, evolution, geological and cosmic history, and the like. You will be invited to write a series of exercises designed to explore these connections, and in class we will discuss the work you produce, along with some brief examples of published work. Our emphasis will not be on critiquing manuscripts but on understanding the ethical, conceptual, and aesthetic issues involved in telling personal stories within the embrace of the great realities.

ENVIRONMENTAL WRITING FOR SOCIAL CHANGE
Sandra Steingraber
Writing about threats to the environment in ways that keep readers turning the pages and not turning their heads away in despair is a high-wire act. Contaminated breast milk. Pesticide poisonings of frogs and drinking water. Disease outbreaks triggered by climate change. These are all compelling problems about which the public is woefully underinformed. Indeed, they are among the major human rights problems of our time. And yet, our attempts as environmental writers to ring the alarm bell and bring much needed attention to these kinds of topics are often met with accusations of gloom-and-doom extremism. On the other hand, the fifty-simple-things-you-can-do-to-save-the-planet approach does not adequately address the magnitude of the problem nor its root causes. In this class, we will explore writing strategies other than ringing alarm bells and exhorting individual readers to make small changes in their shopping habits. Using the writings of Rachel Carson as our guide, we will look at tone, voice, narrative structure, metaphor, and the use of scientific evidence in the creation of prose that inspires and illuminates, rather than overwhelms and paralyzes, our dear readers.

back to top

LECTURES, READINGS, AND DISCUSSIONS:

A MAGAZINE EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE
- Jennifer Sahn
What do magazine editors want? How do they make selections for their respective publications? What do they expect from writers? What can the writer do to increase the chances of being published? From initial contact to final changes to an article, this lecture will address how writers and editors work together, the different responsibilities they face, and the ways in which the most fruitful relationship between them can be developed. Topics will also include the many different kinds of writing that are needed to describe our relationship with nature--literary, scientific, journalistic, educational, experiential, descriptive--and how writers can learn to match their style and interests with appropriate publications.

A BOOK EDITOR’S PERSPECTIVE
- H. Emerson Blake
This lecture will explore the mechanics, etiquette, and protocols of submitting a manuscript to a publisher as well as the publishing process from acquisition to bound book. Once a writer completes a draft of a manuscript, the writing process may become less solitary and more collaborative, as an editor begins to comment on the work and query the author about possible revisions. The lecture will give participants a behind-the-curtain glimpse of the editorial process, including discussion of the various ways different writers approach the task of reworking their initial drafts. We will consider how an editor raises questions about topic, theme, structure, narrative development, chapter organization, and style.

INTERNET PUBLISHING ROUNDTABLE
- Facilitated by H. Emerson Blake
This roundtable session will explore the vast terrain of online publishing. Workshop participants and faculty are welcome to join in a discussion of various online media outlets, who publishes what, and how to begin writing for the Internet—whether it be a blog, assignment, or writing for an online magazine on spec.

WHY WE WRITE PANEL DISCUSSION
- David Abram, Janisse Ray, Scott Russell Sanders, and Sandra Steingraber
Writers find inspiration in surprising and not-so-surprising places. And when it comes to environmental issues, inspiration might not even be the primary factor compelling us to write. What are the images, issues, ideas, and experiences that motivate us? How do the challenges of writing overlap with the challenges of protecting the environment? Where do we find room for wonder and for hope? In this panel, our workshop faculty will talk openly about their practice and their passions.

WRITING AS A BUSINESS PANEL DISCUSSION
- David Abram, Janisse Ray, Scott Russell Sanders, and Sandra Steingraber
How does one earn a living as a writer? In this panel discussion, our workshop faculty will try to answer that question. Topics covered may include generating ideas, query letters, contracts, fees, manuscript preparation, revisions, time management, record keeping, taxes, health insurance, pensions, travel, home offices, agents, working with editors and publishers, and the differences among book, magazine, and newspaper publishing.

AN EVENING OF READINGS
Each of the four workshop faculty will read from their work at this event, which will be open to the public.

back to top

OUTSIDE ACTIVITIES:

There is fine fishing on nearby lakes and streams, including the Wild Branch, from which the workshop derives its name. Canoeing, hiking, bicycling, birding, and swimming in the beautiful Vermont countryside are other popular activities. Each morning, an informal bird walk is organized for Wildbranch participants.

back to top

GETTING HERE:

By car it is a 1.5 hour drive from Burlington, 3 hours from Montreal, and 4.5 hours from Boston. North-South interstate highways I-89 and I-91 both lie within 50 miles of campus. Commercial airline service is available to Burlington (VT), Manchester (NH), and Montreal. Pick-up service from the Burlington airport will be available for a modest fee.

back to top

CORRESPONDENCE:

For answers to questions about fees, travel, admissions, or curriculum, contact David Brown, Director, Wildbranch Writing Workshop, Sterling College, Craftsbury Common, VT 05827, 800-648-3591, extension 102.

back to top