At Home in the World
What does “home” mean in this ever-changing world? Is it geographical or corporeal, ancestral or circumstantial? Through writing prompts, mind-mapping, and sensory experiences, we will compose literary atlases about the places that feel vital to our lives. We will also debate the ethical considerations inherent in this genre as we strive to portray our families and communities with dignity. Together, we will wander both the wilderness of memory and the bewilderment of the latest headlines. We’ll be excavators of our homes’ interiors. We’ll elevate the stories of our lives into art.
Stephanie Elizondo Griest is a globetrotting author from the Texas/Mexico borderlands. Her six award-winning books include the travel memoirs Art Above Everything; All the Agents and Saints; Mexican Enough; Around the Bloc: My Life in Moscow, Beijing, and Havana; and the best-selling guidebook 100 Places Every Woman Should Go. She has also written for the New York Times, Washington Post, VQR, Believer, and Oxford American. Distinctions include a Henry Luce Scholarship to China, a Margolis Award for Social Justice Reporting, a Hodder Fellowship at Princeton, and two Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism prizes. Currently the Professor of Creative Nonfiction at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, she has performed as both a Moth storyteller and as a literary ambassador for the U.S. State Department. Visit her website at www.StephanieElizondoGriest.com.