By Brianna Metsger ’19, Assistant Editor
David Wanczyk and Meghan Phillips, both published writers and literary magazine editors, will come to LVC this semester as visiting writers for the “Writing: A Life” Series.
“Writing: A Life” is LVC’s visiting writer series. A defining factor of this series is week-long stay by a Writer-In-Residence. During this week, the writer will perform a reading of their work and visit with specific classes to speak about their craft. Some creative writing students even have the ability to work one-on-one in workshop with the writer.
“Giving students, the campus and the community the opportunity to encounter and engage with the work of a wide variety of writers is the best part of ‘Writing: A Life,’” Dr. Holly M. Wendt, assistant professor of English and director of creative writing, said. “It’s important for artists to be exposed to multiple aesthetics and voices, to learn about different approaches to process and craft, in order to develop their own voice and process in a meaningful way.”
This semester’s Writer-In-Residence is David Wanczyk. He is an avid sports fan who has written in many forms including nonfiction, sports journalism, poetry and essays. Wanczyk is best known for his novel Beep: Inside the Unseen World of Baseball for the Blind, which was the first book ever written about “Beep Baseball.” He is also the editor of New Ohio Review literary magazine and a professor at Ohio University.
The second visiting writer of the semester is Meghan Phillips. She primarily writes fiction, microfiction, and poetry, some of which has appeared in The Best Small Fictions and Best Microfiction anthologies. She is also the editor in chief of Third Point Press and an associate editor for SmokeLong Quarterly, both literary magazines.
Though students in specific English and creative writing classes will experience class visits and one-on-one workshops, all are welcome to attend the readings by the writers.
“Readings are essentially back-stage passes to a writer’s work and process, and some of the
best writing advice I’ve encountered has come in these seemingly informal spaces,” Wendt said. “Actually hearing a writer’s work in their own voice is a very moving experience, and sometimes it can revolutionize the way we read their work.”
Wanczyk’s reading will take place on Sept. 25, and Phillips’ reading will take place on Nov. 19. Both events will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Bishop Library Atrium and are free and open to the public. There will also be a Q&A session after the readings for both writers.
Visit the links below for more information on the “Writing: A Life” series and sample publications of Wanczyk and Phillips.
David Wanczyk’s website
Interview with David Wanczyk & excerpt from Beep
Publications
Meghan Phillips’ website
Poem, “Yellowshirt Elegy”
Flash fiction, “Now That the Circus Has Shut Down, the Human Cannonball Looks for Work”
Flash fiction, “Abstinence Only”
Flash fiction, “Final Girl Slumber Party”
Publications