Writing On The River

A Joint Adventure with Fishtrap and Winding Waters River Expeditions

To a lover of both words and whitewater, what could be better than to combine the two? Now you can do just that, by joining author and film producer Annick Smith on a Fishtrap-sponsored rafting and writing adventure in Hells Canyon on the Snake River.

This five day, fully catered adventure will run the Snake River from August 26-31, 2010. You will travel safely through calm water and white water (none more difficult than Class 4) under the skilled guidance of our friends at Winding Waters River Expeditions. Ride as a passenger in a raft, or paddle an inflatable kayak on the gentler stretches.

Before and after each day’s excitement on the river, you’ll enjoy great food, the camaraderie of kindred spirits, spectacular scenery, and ample opportunity to reflect and write.

Cost is $1295 for adults, $1170 for children. A portion of the cost ($150) is a tax-deductible contribution to Fishtrap. To register, contact Fishtrap, or go to the Winding Waters web page at www.windingwatersrafting.com.

About Annick Smith

Annick Smith is the author of the memoir Homestead, a collection of essays, In This We Are Native, and a history of the tallgrass prairies, Big Bluestem. She was co-editor with William Kittredge of the Montana anthology, The Last Best Place. Her work has appeared in Story, Outside, Orion, Audubon, Travel & Leisure, and the NY Times Traveler. Smith was executive producer of the film feature, Heartland, and co-producer of A River Runs Through It. Her documentary credits include a public TV series about seven tribes in the Inland Northwest, The Real People, as well as a portrait of poet Richard Hugo, Kicking the Loose Gravel Home.

Smith has taught creative writing at the University of Montana as well as numerous writing workshops and conferences. She is currently completing a dog/memoir/travel book entitled Crossing the Plains with Bruno. She has photo credit Raymond Meeks lived in Montana’s Blackfoot Valley for many years.

Memory, Place, and Story

A Writing Workshop on the River with Annick Smith

Stealing from poet Richard Hugo's theory of “The Triggering Town,” we will explore how place incites memory, and how the combination of memory and place can lead a writer to discover the stories they are compelled to tell – be it in essays, fiction, or poetry.

Triggering places may include objects such as a beached canoe, a beaver dam, an abandoned cabin. Or the trigger could be the taste of peanut butter, the smell of cottonwoods, the song of a canyon wren. A student might be struck by a shared joke, or using the potty, or shooting stars.

If the trigger is the Snake Canyon itself, a student may focus on layers of geologic time. Or she may be struck by a bend in the river where the Nez Perce camped. Or he might spot deer, birds, otter, or bears – animals that connect him to his past. Some rafters might note the joy of going over rapids. In others, the experience will trigger memories of fear or death.

Students will be asked to keep a river journal noting the particular places or experiences that excited and incited their imaginations each day. And each day, after making camp, students will be asked to write a paragraph or two describing the single place or experience that evoked their most powerful responses. Their homework will be to free associate from that beginning, attempting to discover a hidden memory that may turn their anecdote of place toward becoming a significant story.

During our voyage, the group will attempt to connect one day’s stories to the next, forming narrative skeletons that they can develop later, at home, in their own good time. We will discuss each other’s paragraphs, offering insights and suggestions, and also discuss techniques learned from selected readings of contemporary writers such as Patricial Hampl, Gretel Ehrlich, Richard Nelson, Mary Oliver, Annie Dillard, and Rick Bass, as well as old masters such as Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman.

[Here's a link to this page in printable .pdf file]

[Here's a link to a printable color flier - .pdf file]

[Here's a look at Writing On The River 2009]