Winter Wheat

“The Cinematography of Sentences: Using Film to Inspire Fiction” with Matt Weinkam
Friday, Nov. 14, 4:30-5:45pm (Session B8)

Film influences fiction writers whether we want it to or not. Rather than resist this pull, why not put it to use? In this workshop we will look at the way individual shots in a film can be likened to individual sentences in a story or novel. What can writers learn from shot composition and framing? How do the length and movement of shots translate to the length and phrasing of paragraphs? What is the equivalent of an aerial shot in fiction and why might you want to use it? We will watch film clips to use as inspiration to experiment with sentence styles and syntaxes.

Presenter Matt Weinkam offers additional details below:

Who should attend?
Anyone who has seen a movie or written a sentence.

What can attendees expect from your workshop?
We’ll watch film clips and compare individual shots in movies to individual sentences in fiction and use those comparisons to create writing prompts for ourselves.

Name one fun fact or bit of trivia about this session:
There are 8,035 sentences in the novel No Country for Old Men and 1,372 shots in the film adaptation. Which means a picture may be worth a thousand words but a shot only is worth 5.8 sentences.

Quick! Summarize the benefits of this workshop in 10 words or fewer:
Gain new tools for analyzing film and crafting sentences.

Any last words?
Session Preview: Watch this opening shot from Boogie Nights directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and read this opening sentence from The Hundred Brothers by Donald Antrim. How do they introduce the style, mood, and major characters in similar ways? Now experiment with writing your own opening sentence using these examples as inspiration.

The countdown to Winter Wheat 2014 has officially begun! In these final weeks leading up to the event, we’re giving our presenters some space here on the blog to share additional details about their sessions, so be sure to check back for more previews. (Remember, this year’s Winter Wheat is bigger and better than ever — see this sessions list for proof.) For more information on the conference, which takes place Nov. 13-15 on the campus of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio, visit the Winter Wheat site.

“Where Books Begin: The Nuts and Bolts of Starting a Novel” with Anne Valente
Saturday, Nov. 15, 1:00-2:15pm (Session E8)

In this generative session, participants will learn the basics and practicalities of beginning a novel. Discussion will include determining the novel’s subject and how to take that first step in deciding, as well as beginnings that work, writing schedules, outlines and target lengths. Participants will engage in exercises designed to generate ideas, and each will produce the first sketch of a novel’s synopsis. Presenter and Winter Wheat keynote reader Anne Valente offers some additional details below:

Who should attend?
This session is for anyone who has wanted to start a novel but isn’t sure where to begin. Novels are daunting: they’re big, and they can seem impossible to a writer sitting down to that first blank page. This session will provide attendees with materials to approach those first pages.

What can attendees expect from your workshop?
Attendees can expect advice and tips but also hands-on, generative exercises to take with them as they begin their novels.

Name one fun fact or bit of trivia about this session:
Having just completed a novel, my advice will be practical and honest. All questions will be welcome!

Quick! Summarize the benefits of this workshop in 10 words or fewer:
This workshop demystifies the process of novel-writing (and beginnings).

Any last words?
I’m beyond excited for Winter Wheat. I promise, my enthusiasm to be in Bowling Green will be on full display in this session. Attendees will receive practical novel-writing advice with a heavy dose of joy!

The countdown to Winter Wheat 2014 has officially begun! In these final weeks leading up to the event, we’re giving our presenters some space here on the blog to share additional details about their sessions, so be sure to check back for more previews. (Remember, this year’s Winter Wheat is bigger and better than ever — see this sessions list for proof.) For more information on the conference, which takes place Nov. 13-15 on the campus of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio, visit the Winter Wheat site.

“Poetry and Nightmare” with Mary Robles
Friday, Nov. 14, 4:30-5:45pm (Session B6)

What scares you? What makes you cry? What makes you sick to your stomach? In poetry, these topics can often be fiery material for intense, raw, and psychologically complex writing. We will explore the bizarre and often disturbing realm of nightmare and reflect privately on our greatest fears and deepest anguishes. Examples of poems that embody the element of nightmare will show us how to harness this power in our writing. We will discuss such themes as death, violence, disease, and torture, then create the skeleton of a poem about what scares us.

Presenter Mary Robles shares some additional information about this dark and disturbing session below:

Who should attend?
Writers who are interested in fear, horror, and unanswerable darkness

What can attendees expect from your workshop?
Attendees can expect to spend an uncomfortable hour reflecting on the not-so-sunny side of poetry.

Name one fun fact or bit of trivia about this session:
Everyone who attends will eventually die.

Quick! Summarize the benefits of this workshop in 10 words or fewer:
Blood , Guts, Gore, Pain, Torture, Death, Crying, Dying, Writing, Fun!

Any last words?
Where is the Black Beast?

The countdown to Winter Wheat 2014 has officially begun! In these final weeks leading up to the event, we’re giving our presenters some space here on the blog to share additional details about their sessions, so be sure to check back for more previews. (Remember, this year’s Winter Wheat is bigger and better than ever — see this sessions list for proof.) For more information on the conference, which takes place Nov. 13-15 on the campus of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio, visit the Winter Wheat site.

“How to Make a Book: The Basics” with Suzanna Anderson
Saturday, Nov. 15, 10:30-11:45am (Session D1)

In this Winter Wheat session, presenter Suzanna Anderson will demonstrate basic bookbinding techniques and forms, including the X-Book, Snake Book, and a Basic Sewn Signature. The session will include a writing period to write in the books participants made. She shares some additional information about this session below:

Who should attend?
Anyone who is interested in bookbinding, art, or writing with unconventionally-sized paper.

What can attendees expect from this workshop?
Three books to make and take home as well as time to write.

Name one fun fact or bit of trivia about this session:
Most of the easy one-page zines use the X-book fold! Which can be done with a piece of computer paper and scissors.

Quick! Summarize the benefits of this workshop in 10 words or fewer:
Writers can approach writing from a new angle.

The countdown to Winter Wheat 2014 has officially begun! In these final weeks leading up to the event, we’re giving our presenters some space here on the blog to share additional details about their sessions, so be sure to check back for more previews. (Remember, this year’s Winter Wheat is bigger and better than ever — see this sessions list for proof.) For more information on the conference, which takes place Nov. 13-15 on the campus of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio, visit the Winter Wheat site.

5. Ready to register online? Put away your wallet. Good news — no fee is required when you register online for Winter Wheat workshops! We encourage attendees to register for sessions online ASAP to help us with some logistics and session planning, but there’s no need to dig out your credit card. We do have a suggested donation of $50, which can be paid either online or on-site at the conference — and truly, every last donated dollar makes a huge difference to Mid-American Review — but there’s also no pressure. Donations are incredibly appreciated (and help keep this conference running), but right now we hope you’ll register purely to plan and sign up for sessions.

4. Got ten bucks? Take 20 minutes of an editor’s time. This year, for the first time ever at Winter Wheat, Mid-American Review editors will offer private 20-minute manuscript consultations for a $10 donation. This $10 for 20 opportunity provides personal and specific feedback on manuscripts and allows time for questions. Consultations will be scheduled individually with each writer to suit the writers’ and editors’ festival schedules. Spaces are limited, so sign up soon! Manuscripts of up to 10 pages (any genre) should be submitted to mar@bgsu.edu. Put “Winter Wheat Manuscript Consultation” in the subject line.

3. We’re 8 sessions short of a Crayola 64-count box of crayons. That’s right — Winter Wheat is bigger and better than ever this year with a mind-boggling 56 workshop sessions held over two days. Head on over to the sessions listing page to start combing through all that literary goodness so you can plan your time at Winter Wheat. In the meantime, here’s just a taste of some of the workshops that will be offered:

Selfie Revolt: How Millennials Can Rewrite the Coming-of-Age Story
Websites for Writers: Launch Your Website in a Weekend
Bitches Be Crazy: Portraying Madness in the Short Story
Blurred Lines: What Hybrid Texts & New Media Can Teach Us About Genre
Poetry and Nightmare
We Regret To Inform You: Dealing with Literary Rejection
The Sentence: Acoustics, Syntax, and Style

2. Did someone say Anne Valente? Marcus Wicker? Allison Joseph? Sharona Muir? They’ll all be reading at Winter Wheat. (View the full schedule of keynote readings here.) And don’t forget to check the workshop sessions page for more literary luminaries — like Matt Bell — who will be in attendance and leading workshops.

1. Off-site after-party! We’re shaking things up this year and hosting our post-conference event off-site at Grumpy’s in downtown Bowling Green. From 5:30-9:00pm, join us for some food, an open mic, a cash bar, and more. Who knows…as the night goes on, we might even pull out karaoke machine. (Important: Please be sure to to register for the off-site event if you plan to come!) We hope you’ll join us Saturday night to kick back and raise a glass to a successful Winter Wheat.

Winter Wheat: The Mid-American Review Festival of Writing, will be held Nov. 13-15 on the campus of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. Find conference details here, view sessions here, and register here. Join the Winter Wheat Facebook event page here.

–Laura Maylene Walter, Fiction Editor

Photo: Malcolm Carlaw