The Direction of Escape
In her long career, Ursula Le Guin conjured extraordinary worlds out of ordinary materials: oceans, shadows, pronouns, fear. This workshop in narrative fiction and non-fiction offers analysis of works by Le Guin, Octavia Butler, Louise Erdrich and others that render vivid story worlds into which readers may escape. Participants will receive daily writing assignments and feedback on written work. Throughout the week, we will contemplate our motivations and desires for creating and abiding in the worlds of our writing. The workshop takes as its inspiration Le Guin’s observation that “the direction of escape is toward freedom. So what is ‘escapism’ an accusation of?”
Beth Piatote is a writer of short fiction, personal essay, drama, and academic essay. She is the author of two books: a scholarly monograph, Domestic Subjects: Gender, Citizenship, and Law in Native American Literature, the forthcoming mixed-genre collection, The Beadworkers: Stories and, her work has appeared in numerous journals and collections. Her play, Antíkoni, premiered in 2018 at the University of California, Berkeley where she is an associate professor of Native American Studies. In addition to writing, Beth is devoted to indigenous language revitalization, focusing on Nez Perce. She is Nez Perce, enrolled with Colville Confederated Tribes.