The Nonfiction Writing Program

The Krause Series in Contemporary Nonfiction

The Krause Series in Contemporary Nonfiction is made possible by the generous support of the Kyle J. and Sharon Krause Family Foundation. Visiting writers regularly join the Nonfiction Writing Program for a week or a semester at a time. In addition to teaching workshops, seminars, and master classes, visiting writers give readings at various venues in downtown Iowa City. Readings are open to the public.

Kiese Laymon

Former Bedell Distinguished Visiting Professor and author of Heavy: An American Memoir
October 16th, 7:00 pm, Online (via ZOOM)

Moderated by NWP alum and UI Provost's Postgraduate Visiting Writer Darius Stewart.

This event is co-sponsored by the Creative Matters lecture series and the Carver College of Medicine. It is a part of the Art and the Pursuit of Social Justice series. The Creative Matters lecture series is sponsored by the UI Office of the Vice President for Research, in collaboration with the UI Arts Advancement Committee.

NWP Faculty Reading: Melissa Febos, Andre Perry, and Louisa Hall

Melissa Febos, author of Girlhood, reads with Andre Perry, author of Some of Us Are Very Hungry Now, and Louisa Hall, author of Trinity

October 23rd, 7:00 pm, Prairie Lights Books (ONLINE)

2020 Krause Essay Prize Winner Keum Suk Gendry-Kim

A ceremony celebrating the 2020 Krause Essay Prize Winner, Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, author of GRASS
October 29th, 7:00 pm, Online (via ZOOM)

Magda Montiel Davis

NWP alum and Author of Kissing Fidel: A Memoir of Cuban American Terrorism in the United States, winner of the Iowa Prize for Literary Nonfiction

November 6th, 7:00 pm, Prairie Lights Books (ONLINE)

Jeff Porter

NWP Professor Emeritus and Author of Planet Claire: Suite for Cello and Sad-Eyed Lovers

December 10th, 7:00 pm, Prairie Lights Books (ONLINE)

Felicia Rose Chavez

NWP alum and Author of The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop: How to Decolonize the Creative Classroom

February 12th, 6:00 - 7:30 pm, Prairie Lights Books (ONLINE)

To register: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_9yt6K9e4Q2KZuwCTaCS7Qw

In a book that’s part memoir and part teaching guide, Felicia Rose Chavez exposes the invisible politics of power and privilege that have silenced writers of color for far too long. An MFA graduate of the University of Iowa’s Nonfiction Writing Program, Chavez addresses the climate of the creative writing classroom and the need for pedagogical and philosophical transformations to create authentically inclusive communities. Publishers Weekly notes that “the mindfulness and generosity that guide her teaching principles will resonate with other scholars and students who have been working to diversify creative writing and English literature programs.” Chavez is an award-winning writer and teacher whose work has appeared in Kenyon Review, Black Warrior Review, and Brevity, among other publications. She is the co-editor of The BreakBeat Poets Volume 4: LatiNEXT and the founder of GirlSpeak, a feminist webzine for high school students. For more information about The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop, and to access a multi-genre compilation of contemporary writers of color and progressive online publishing platforms, please visit www.antiracistworkshop.com.

The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop - Felicia Rose Chavez

The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop: A panel discussion on creating more inclusive writing programs

CLAS Theme Year: Racial and Social Justice in the Arts

Feburary 18th, 3:30 pm (ONLINE)

Panelists: Felicia Rose Chavez, NWP alumna and author; Matthew Kelley, Provost Visiting Writer, Department of English and graduate of the UI Writers’ Workshop; Luis Muñoz, Professor and Director of the Spanish MFA Program in Creative Writing; and Deborah Elizabeth Whaley, Professor and CLAS Administrative Fellow, Office of the Dean. Moderator: Meenakshi Gigi Durham, Director, UI Nonfiction Writing Program.

Creative writing, like all artforms, involves deep personal engagement in both the process and the product. “Write what you know” is a cliché, and yet certain experiences, knowledges, perspectives and feelings have been marginalized, discounted, or outright excluded from writing programs. Writing course curricula neglect the impact of writers of color; writing classrooms have centered and celebrated works that haven’t addressed the realities, histories, or cultures of communities of color and other minoritized and marginalized peoples. On this panel, faculty members from the University of Iowa’s writing programs will engage in a discussion with Felicia Rose Chavez, the author of The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop. This new book is a call to create healthy, sustainable, and empowering classroom communities. It’s more urgent than ever that we consciously work against traditions of dominance in the classroom, but what specific actions can we take to achieve authentically inclusive communities? Together, we will address how to:

· Deconstruct our biases to achieve a cultural shift in perspective.

· Design a democratic teaching model to create safe spaces for creative concentration.

· Recruit, nourish, and fortify students of color to best empower them to exercise voice.

· Embolden our students to self-advocate as responsible citizens in a globalized community.

For more information about The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop, and to access a multi-genre compilation of contemporary writers of color and progressive online publishing platforms, please visit www.antiracistworkshop.com.