Guided By Its Light – Nature Writing Workshops with Jim O’Donnell
Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it, and above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light. – Joseph Pulitzer
Writing has long been a means of exploring and understanding the natural world. Nature writing also provides an opportunity to personally reconnect with the natural world and build a sense of place for our larger community. This intensive weekend course looks at how the work of writing nature helps to re-establish a sense of place, recalibrates our internal compass to what is vital in life and raises awareness of both the human place in nature and the impact humans have on the natural world. This course involves numerous active writing and observing excercises. We will review the various forms of nature writing (essays, articles, poetry, journals), discuss critical thinking skills, ask how and why, reflect on our own experiences of nature and expand those reflections into coherent and well-formed essays, stories and poems using concrete details, point of view and creating vivid scenes. We want to move from being inarticulate about nature to a lyrical precision about the natural world.The workshop runs for two consecutive days and takes place outside. The workshop involves active hiking and exploration.
NEXT Nature Writing Workshops : May 2018. Taos, New Mexico, USA. Contact SOMOS for more information: 575.758.0081 or somos@somostaos.org