May 13, 2013

 

Contacts:

Becca Tillotson, MSUB Extended Campus, 896-5890
Aaron Clingingsmith, University Relations, 657-2243

 

Courses commence May 22 and May 28, respectively.

 

MSU BILLINGS NEWS SERVICES — Two writing classes will be offered this spring: Memory as a Source of Inspiration for Poetry and Lyric Essays with poet Tami Haalandand The Craft of Writing with novelist Russell Rowland.

 

Memory is a rich resource for any writer, and there are many ways of working with memory to craft poetry or prose. Some people believe that all poetry and many essays must be highly personal and difficult to revise, but like all art forms, they depend on craft, skill and a determination to do what is best for the written piece rather than what is best for the writer.

 

In Memory as a Source of Inspiration for Poetry and Lyric Essays, students will learn how to use memory as a resource for discovery, how to move beyond the limitations of chronology and personal narrative to explore point of view, and how to create lively and imaginative poems and lyric essays which rely on memory for inspiration. It will meet Wednesday evenings from May 22-July 10 from 7:00 to 8:30.  The cost is $129 and OPI credit is available.

 

Tami Haaland is the author of two books of poetry: When We Wake in the Night and Breath in Every Room. A professor of English at Montana State University Billings, her work has appeared in a dozen anthologies as well as online collections.

The Craft of Writing will explore how it is that we can tell our stories in a way that most effectively makes an emotional connection with the people who read it. Students will explore how to incorporate description, character development, plot, and themes to enhance storytelling. The course will also discuss the business end of writing...submitting, looking for an agent, and preparing a manuscript to make it most effectively marketable.  

 

The main focus of this class will be on writing stories. Students will do in-class writing exercises that will help strengthen certain areas of their writing, and each student will also have the opportunity to submit several pieces of their own work for feedback from their classmates and from the instructor.

 

The Craft of Writing will meet Tuesdays, May 28 – July 30 (10 weeks) at 7:00- 8:30  P.M. The cost is $245 and OPI continuing education credits are available.

 

Russell Rowland, author of In Open Spaces and The Watershed Years and editor of West of 98: Living and Writing in the New American West.  His third novel, High and Inside, will be released in the summer of 2013.

 

To register call 406-896-5890.