Back in Action

My trip back from Asheville was as hellish as my trip to: A major flight delay, rude gate agents, bad food, airport “routine” checks, and an overnight stay in an airport hotel. But not even that dreadful flight experience could take away from what was a very invigorating and thought-provoking residency at Warren Wilson. I co-taught three workshops: one with Stacey D’Erasmo, one with Charlie Baxter, and one with Mac McIlvoy. I gave a reading from my new book (this was only the second time that I read material from this new novel, so it was very helpful for me to hear it out loud.) And I gave a craft class, focusing on language use in situations where there are discrepancies between the language of the characters and the language of the text. I enjoyed the lectures given by the other instructors and learned a lot from them. And the students were a joy–talented, hard-working, motivated. So it was a great experience, though I’m happy to be back.