Homecoming 2023 offers an abundance of opportunities, both in-person and virtual, for alums of the Spalding MFA, MAW, and grad certificate programs. Register here, and check out the schedules below!
Register for Homecoming in Louisville. Registration is free!
Register for Virtual Homecoming. Registration is free!
HOMECOMING IN LOUISVILLE
WEDNESDAY, MAY 31: Pre-events
1:30 – 2:30 p.m. Lynnell Edwards, faculty. “Book Reviewing.” Interested in reviewing books for Good River Review? Learn about opportunities and get a free book!
5:30 p.m. Alumni dutch-treat dinner.
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. Watch Party: Virtual Alumni Celebration and hangout.
8:00 – 11:00 p.m. Kentucky Shakespeare in Central Park. Free performance: A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
THURSDAY, JUNE 1
10:30 – 11:15 a.m. Homecoming welcome session.
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Distinguished Alumni Lecturer: Brian Hampton (PW ’06). “As If!”: Writing About—and for—Teenagers.”
12:30 – 2:00 p.m. Dine on your own or join our dutch-treat group lunch.
2:00 – 2:40 p.m.: Terry Price (F ’06), “Labyrinths: An Introduction.”
2:45 – 3:45 p.m.:
- Terry Price (F ’06), Guided labyrinth walk in Spalding’s Contemplative Garden
- Jill Cox-Cordova (F ’17), “Pitch, Land, and Prepare for Interviews with Media Outlets.”
4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
- Literary chat, hosted by Nancy Chen Long (P ’13). Read and chat about the Japanese hybrid form zuihitsu, which shares characteristics of the prose poem or essay.
- Lia Eastep (CNF ’08), “Got Integrity? How to Write for Corporations and Not Sell Your Soul.”
5:15 - 6:30 p.m. Alumni Celebration of New Works. Hosted by Michele Zakis (W4C ’18). Suzanne Craig Robertson (F/CNF ’22), Patricia Hudson (F/CNF ’19), Andrew Najberg (P ’10), Marilyn Moss Rockefeller (CNF ’09) read from their new books.
6:30 – 7:15 p.m. Celebration book sales and signing. Complimentary wine and snacks.
7:30 – 9:00 p.m. Thursday Night Mixer at Noble Funk Brewing. First round of apps is on the MFA Alumni Association!
FRIDAY, JUNE 2
9:00 – 10:00 a.m. Bruce Marshall Romans, screenwriting faculty. “Golden Age of American Cinema: Film in the 1970s”
10:00 – 11:15 a.m. Terry Price (F ’06), “Write with Me” community writing session.
10:15 – 11:15
- Teaching. Marjetta Geerling (W4CYA ’11), “Specifications Grading: Reclaim Your Work-Life Balance”
- Creative Nonfiction. Elaine Neil Orr, “Embracing the Long Sentence.”
- Writing for Children & YA. Guest Brittany J. Thurman. “The First Book: Expectation, Reality, & Whoa!” Introduction by Susan Campbell Bartoletti.
- Screenwriting. Guest Jeremy Gold. “A Conversation with the Producer of Sharp Objects, The Thing about Pam, Hell on Wheels, and More.” With Bruce Marshall Romans.
11:30 – 12:30 Faculty Lectures:
- Fiction. Nancy McCabe, “The Power of Point of View in Fiction.”
- Playwriting. Larry Brenner, “How to Do More with Less: Crafting Absent Characters.”
- Poetry. Lynnell Edwards, “The Pastoral Tradition in Poetry.”
12:30 – 1:45 p.m. Lunch break.
1:45 – 3:00
- Janelle Fila (W4CYA ’17), “Creating Realistic Magical Systems in Your Fantasy World.” A generative session.
- Julia Watts (F ’05), “Tell, Don’t Show: How to Write an Effective Query and Synopsis.” (Julia will present remotely and can take audience questions.)
3:15 – 4:30 p.m. Homecoming farewell gathering.
6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Graduation. (Brown Hotel)
After-graduation reception, cash bar, and hors d’oeuvres for those who reserved a ticket.
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. Alumni After-Party Literary Reading. Hosted by Teneice Durrant (P ’06).
Register now for Homecoming in Louisville. Registration is free—and you can join Virtual Homecoming sessions as well!
Virtual Homecoming: First Look
Sign up by May 29 to contribute to the Community Story or Community Poem!
WEDNESDAY, MAY 31
4:00 – 4:30 p.m. Eastern / 1 - 1:30 Pacific. Welcome Session. Alumni Association leaders Marjetta Geerling (W4CYA ’11) and Terry Price (F ’06), with Katy Yocom (F ’03).
4:45 – 5:45 p.m. Eastern / 1:45 - 2:45 Pacific. Katrina Kittle (F ’08), “Woo Your Muse.”
6:00 – 7:15 p.m. Eastern / 3 - 4:15 Pacific. “Write Away: A generative workshop.” Chella Courington (F ’14).
7:30 – 8:30 p.m. Eastern / 4:30 - 5:30 Pacific. Virtual Alumni Celebration of New Works. Michele Zakis (W4CYA ’18) hosts. Celebrating new works by Tiffany Golden (W4CYA ’20), Rosanna Staffa (F ’13), Chella Courington (F ’14), Julia Rosenblatt (PW ’18). Katerina Stoykova (P ’09) presents a posthumous collection of poems by Mark Brown (P ’05).
8:30 – 9:30 p.m. Eastern. Post-Celebration hangout. Relax and catch up with other alums.
THURSDAY, JUNE 1
4:00 – 5:00 p.m. Eastern/ 1 - 2 p.m. Pacific. Julie Stewart (F ’10), “Online Workshops for Spalding Alums.” Learn what they are and how to join, and have some writerly fun along the way.
5:15 – 6:30 p.m. Eastern / 2:15 – 3:30 p.m. Pacific. Alumni Hangout. Relax and catch up with other alums.
7:00 – 8:00 p.m. Eastern / 4 – 5 p.m. Pacific. Submit Your Work, with Noelle Sciulli (F ’20). Check in with the group, then spend an hour submitting your work. This session is based on a monthly meet-up.
8:30 – 9:30 p.m. Eastern / 5:30 – 6:30 Pacific. Café MFA Alumni open-mic reading. Bring your words.
FRIDAY, JUNE 2
10:00 – 11:15 a.m. Eastern / 7 – 8:15 a.m. Pacific. Write with Me: a community writing session with Terry Price (F ’06). This session is based on a weekly meet-up.
1:45 – 3:00 p.m. Eastern / 10:45 – noon Pacific. “Seeing Diane Arbus.” Short film screening and talk by writer/director Lindsay Zibach (F ’16).
NEW TIME. 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Eastern / 3:00 – 4 p.m. Pacific. Spalding Water Cooler, an alumni hangout hosted by Mervyn Seivwright (P ’19) and Cristina Trapani-Scott (P ’09).
7:15 – 7:45 p.m. Eastern / 4:15 – 4:45 p.m. Pacific. Community Story and Community Poem Reading. Listen to the story and poem we created together! Hosted by Kimm Stammen (F ’19) and Cristina Trapani-Scott (P ’09).
8:00 – 9:15 p.m. Eastern / 5 – 6:15 p.m. Pacific. Homecoming farewell. Gather to say farewell until the next online meet-up!
Register now for Virtual Homecoming. Registration is free!
Homecoming is brought to you by the MFA Alumni Association Steering Committee:
Jerriod Avant (P ’13) Jill Cox-Cordova (F ’17) Jeffrey Fischer-Smith (PW ’17) Marjetta Geerling (W4CYA ’11) Lauren Harr (F ’16) Patricia Hudson (CNF, F ’19) Andrea Kilpatrick (W4CYA ’18) Nancy Chen Long (P ’13) Clint Martin (CNF ’20) | Amina McIntyre (PW ’09) Julie Nichols (SW ’15) Terry Price (F ’06) Andie Redwine-Becker (SW ’20) Cappy Rush (PW ’12) Sharon Sigler (F ’17) Betty Jean Wolfe (CNF ’13) Katy Yocom (F ’03) Michele Zakis (W4CYA ’18) |
With thanks to the generous donors who support the MFA Alumni Association Fund and to the directors and staff of the Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing.