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Thursday, May 22, 2014

Channel Shane McCrae

If you are a fan of Shane McCrae (as I am, see here and here), you may have wished you could channel him, or his sensibilities, while writing your own work. Now you can. Black Lawrence Press, publisher of McCrae's latest book Non-fiction (don't be fooled--it's poetry), is offering a consultation with McCrae over five of your own poems if you purchase a bundle of Black Lawrence titles, including Non-fiction. The bundle total is $10 off the price of the books purchased separately, and includes the online consultation. Sign up by May 31 to receive a written critique from McCrae on your poems. I've already signed up!

In the past, I've used the personalized creative writing sessions of Black Lawrence Press's parent company, Dzanc Books, currently called Creative Writing Mentorships, in which a writer selects a mentor from an impressive list, currently including Molly Gaudry and Alissa Nutting. The writer then purchases time with her mentor, at $20 for one hour, $30 for two hours, or $50 for 4 hours. My experience with poet Michele Battiste significantly strengthened the manuscript I had been writing at the time--it soon found a publisher. And I'm happy to hear Battiste has a new book just out with Black Lawrence now, titled Uprising.

These are economical ways to get some one-on-one help with your poems. Plus the writers all volunteer their time so that proceeds can go to the Writer-in-Residence programs that Dzanc offers free to students in elementary and secondary schools across the country.

And I just discovered that Dzanc now has Online Writing Workshops. I don't have first-hand experience, but will likely try one in the future, given my good experiences with other Dzanc programs. Would love to hear from anyone who has had experiences with Dzanc programs. Thanks.


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