Writing Animal Stories
How do we interact with the other 99% of living things on Earth? Eye contact with a praying mantis, coming upon a mountain lion flicking its tail; what can these encounters convey? From coyote stories to humming birds and bears, we will look at our own experiences, practice ways of seeing and remembering, and turn our instances into words. While this is primarily a non-fiction workshop, it is open to anyone with animals in their writing. Come prepared with a couple stories of your own, a moment with a narwal, snake, or any creature with eyes. The stories don’t have to be life-threatening or redemptive, just notable to you. Don’t write them beforehand. Bring your memories and blank paper and we’ll take it from there.
Explorer and story-teller Craig Childs has published more than a dozen critically acclaimed books, including his most recent, Virga & Bone. His work has appeared in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Men’s Journal, and The Sun, and he is a contributing editor for Adventure Journal Quarterly. Childs lives in Western Colorado and teaches writing for both University of Alaska in Anchorage and Southern New Hampshire University.