Volume 9
An Online Literary Magazine
November 30, 2014

 

Editor's Note

Nick O’Connell

 


Nick O'Connell

 

T
he writing group is a staple of literary life. Whether you’re a dedicated MFA student, a poet trying to compose in prose, or a journalist trying to subvert the inverted pyramid, the writing group serves essential functions: getting your work read and critiqued, providing regular deadlines, and affording the chance to gossip and kibitz over books.

 

Writing groups are invaluable but I’ve been in enough to know that not everyone in the group is destined for fame and fortune. Some members plug away at the same old memoir, spy novel, or coming of age story for years, yet never end up finishing it. Others gradually refine their manuscript as I did with The Storms of Denali until it’s ready to go out the door. It’s the rare writer who flashes through like a comet before lighting up the sky. Garth Stein is such a writer.

 

When Garth joined our writing group, he already had published two novels, Raven Stole the Moon and How Evan Broke his Head. The group consisted of me, Scott Driscoll, who had published many short stories, and Jasen Emmons, author of the novel Cowboy Angst.

 

Garth brought a welcome jolt of energy to the group. He was working on a novel with a dog, Enzo, as the narrator. Most books narrated by a pet go nowhere but Garth created such an appealing canine that every chapter was a pleasure to read. Some of the minor characters needed work, but overall, the novel was on its way.

 

Some months after joining the group, Garth started pitching the novel to agents. Despite its appeal, he got rejected. Many agents couldn't imagine selling a book with a dog as the narrator. (Scott Driscoll's interview with him in this issue treats this dilemma in detail.) But Garth persisted and eventually found agent Jeff Kleinman, who loved the book, The Art of Racing in the Rain. He asked for some changes, which Garth made, and then sent the manuscript to editors. The editors loved it. The novel eventually sold for $1.2 million.

 

After the book tour to promote it, Garth began working on a new novel, A Sudden Light, just published by Simon & Schuster. We are privileged to include an excerpt in this, the ninth issue of The Writer's Workshop Review. In addition to the excerpt, we're delighted to publish “Phone Home,” Barbara Ridley’s touching, tragic-comic account of helping her aging parents learn to use a cordless phone; “À Table,” Meredith Escudier’s delectable story of acquiring a taste for goose gizzards; “Passionate Flesh, Yearning Soul,” Larry Eclipse’s hilarious story of a mathematician getting a make over; and “Espresso Driving,” my jittery, over-caffeinated account of traveling Italy’s Amalfi Coast by car.

 

I'd like to thank the following people for their help with this issue: all the writers who contributed; Managing Editor Kathleen Glassburn; Irene Wanner and Jane Alynn for careful reading and editing of manuscripts. We are looking for an additional reader, so if you’re interested, please let us know.

 

We hope you enjoy the ninth issue of The Writer's Workshop Review. Please let us know what you think, and if you have a story that might work for us, please send it. We read all year and welcome submissions at any time. We look forward to hearing from you!

 

 

All best,

Nicholas O’Connell

Publisher/ Editor

The Writer’s Workshop Review

nick@thewritersworkshop.net

 

 


Travel, Food and Wine Writing Class in Tuscany - May 17 - 23 in Montalcino, Italy- Travel writing, Food writing and Wine writing are some of the most appealing genres of nonfiction, calling on all of an author's skills-dramatic scenes, character sketches, concrete detail, point of view, scene by scene construction-to compose compelling, engaging travel narratives. This writing course will emphasize how to use dramatic outlines in both fictional and nonfictional travel stories. This six-day intensive travel writing class will introduce you to essential techniques of travel, food and wine writing and give you expert, insider advice about how to submit and publish finished travel stories. The course will feature the five best ways of opening a story. In addition to learning these skills, you'll dine at outstanding restaurants, visit some of the world's best wineries, and explore fascinating historic sights. You'll enjoy exclusive behind-the-scenes tours unavailable to the general public. Best of all, you'll receive up-to-date story ideas from local industry experts that you can turn into finished travel, food and wine stories by the end of the course and submit to newspapers and magazines for publication. The six-day travel writing class (May 17 - 23) will take place in Montalcino, Italy, one of the most appealing hilltowns in Tuscany, and a center of the region's cultural and epicurian life since ancient times. The cost will be $2,600, which includes accommodations and most meals. (Single supplement, $500 per person) Plane fare, transit to and from Montalcino and some meals extra (see itinerary via link below). To enroll, please send me a non-refundable deposit of $800 to 201 Newell St., Seattle, WA 98109. Enrollment is limited to 10.

 

For more information, contact me at nick@thewritersworkshop.net, 206-284-7121, or take a look at my website: http://www.thewritersworkshop.net/travel.htm.

 

Nicholas O’Connell, M.F.A, Ph.D., is the author of The Storms of Denali (University of Alaska Press, 2012), On Sacred Ground: The Spirit of Place in Pacific Northwest Literature (U.W. Press, 2003), At the Field’s End: Interviews with 22 Pacific Northwest Writers (U.W. Press, 1998), Contemporary Ecofiction (Charles Scribner’s, 1996) and Beyond Risk: Conversations with Climbers (Mountaineers, 1993). He contributes to Newsweek, Gourmet, Saveur, Outside, GO, National Geographic Adventure, Condé Nast Traveler, Food & Wine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Sierra, The Wine Spectator, Commonweal, Image, Rock + Ice and many other places. He is the publisher/editor of The Writer’s Workshop Review and the founder of the online and Seattle-based writing program,( http://www.thewritersworkshop.net)

 

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