Wintry Spring 2023 Announcements
~ From My Writerly World ~
~ unfurling fern frond in Hawaiʻi, a symbol of rebirth & new beginnings ~
After moving from the family farm where we lived together for nearly 15 years, Kristen and I spent the month of December traveling around the Big Island of Hawaiʻi. We witnessed the pre-dawn eruption of Mauna Loa, the world’s largest active volcano; paddled a double hull canoe at sunset for an eco-friendly manta ray snorkel; hiked throughout Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, just days after the Kīlauea eruption; snorkeled in marine sanctuaries like Honaunau Bay; visited historical parks to learn more about Hawaiʻian culture; and spotted endangered native birds in the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge with a naturalist. All this following a few days of lazing around while we fully recovered from contracting pre-Thanksgiving COVID. I’m still springing into a new year, now writing from a rental home with rainbow steps in rainy Petaluma, California.
longreads reading lists
Today marks three years since the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a global pandemic. To commemorate the occasion I curated what Longreads editor Cheri Lucas Rowlands called “a diverse, unexpected mix” in “Stories of Quarantine and Upheaval: A Reading List on the Power of Personal Narrative.” An essay-style introduction is followed by commentary on six excerpts I selected from literary magazines that produced special issues or sections in response to the “novel” coronavirus:
“[S]ome recount other types of sanctioned quarantines with similar themes of separation. Drawing on lived experience as well as historical research and firsthand observation, these authors tackle social issues from structural racism and the stigma of disability to repressive political regimes. Each one chronicles the heartache of disconnection and demonstrates the importance of collective remembrance.”
Illustration by CLR. Stock art by Malte Mueller and Автор via Getty Images.
Over a year ago I suggested a list of pandemic-themed personal essays (some of which I included above in sidebars or as Further Reading) to Neon Books for their blog’s Literary Lists. They declined with an invitation to submit more ideas in the future: “Your pitch was great even if we didn't quite see the content as a match with our readership.”
In mid-January I pitched a new version to Longreads, an esteemed publication “dedicated to helping people find and share the best longform nonfiction storytelling on the web.” While perusing the site to ensure my topic wasn’t already covered, I was delighted to discover my essay “Autumn Inferno” featured in the editor’s 2021 reading list on Loss, Love, and Living with Fire in California, in which she commented:
“Beyond her encounters with fire, there’s also a deeper personal layer, revealing a longtime estrangement from her mother, which makes the piece all the more poignant.”
Since she was familiar with my writing, I had a foot in the door. Cheri, who proved to be an excellent editor, got back to me the next day. “I'll pass on this idea as is,” she replied. “Many readers, unfortunately, are tired of pandemic-themed stories… But is there a more specific or unusual angle here?” I followed her suggestion to refocus. Two weeks later, after more research and tinkering, my revised pitch along with a new list of examples was accepted. On this third anniversary let us remember, as the subtitle states: “During times of isolation and dramatic change, our stories from around the world are an essential global historical record.”
writing workshops
I just completed my 21st series of writing workshops: From Memory or Imagination. Words like positivity, support, heart, presence, and contemplative were used to describe the sessions during our closing circle. My next Thursday series has filled, but I have a few spaces open on Wednesdays, starting March 22, from 10am–12 noon PT. Self-identified women and non-binary writers with any level of experience are welcome. https://www.nicolerzimmerman.com/workshops/
“Not only are the prompts great, but Nicole does an amazing job maneuvering the complexities of people's feedback, which is no small feat,” a three-time participant wrote afterwards.
In addition, my “gentle guidance” was noted several times — a reminder that the the philosophy and practices behind Amherst Writers & Artists (AWA) method of nonhierarchical leadership appeals not only to my own sensibility but serves to level the playing field where writers can simply show up and create in a non-competitive atmosphere.
(Here we are goofing around with a Brady Bunch–style group photo.)
When I first learned about community-based writing workshops at an AWP conference in 2012, it sparked something. Seven years later I finally took AWA’s leadership certification training then started my own workshops eight months after, with a “pandemic pivot” midway when we switched from in-person at The Sitting Room to Zoom. As I wrote during a workshop a year later:
“I have my groups to thank for keeping me afloat. After losing my work I would have drifted, not knowing what direction to turn next. Facilitating writing groups gives me a deeper sense of purpose. I love nurturing and supporting other writers while lessening the pressures of being a writer: we are all writers simply because we write.”
I feel tremendous gratitude for the nearly 60 writers who have attended my workshops, many of them multiple times (including one who just registered for her 12th consecutive series). Thank you!
things in the wings
If you’re local to Sonoma, Mendocino, and Lake counties, look for my profile of The Literacyworks Center in The Press Democrat, appearing online next week and in a 56-page Sonoma Gives.
I will facilitate an LGBTQ+ affinity group workshop for Amherst Writers & Artists’ series of Monthly Write Affinity Groups on Saturday, May 6, 10am–12pm PT. (There’s also a BIPOC affinity group workshop scheduled for April.) AWA will soon launch a new membership for writers, allowing anyone to participate in monthly online writing sessions led by different AWA facilitators. Eight sessions per year are included for just $5/month or $50/year.print section of the paper on Sunday, March 19.
Lit Mag News plans to post a piece that I repurposed from my old blog Paper-Pencil-Pen: Musings on the Writing Life, which Becky Tuch (formerly of The Review Review) once linked to back in 2012. Her Substack and site includes Submissions Advice, a weekly column offering perspectives on lit mag publishing. I first submitted the missive to the newly created Chill Subs; although it was declined on the basis of recently receiving similar subject matter, the editor said “it does an excellent job of laying out the path a submission might take before getting published.”
‘22 hurrays + ‘23 hopefuls
In January I completed a yearlong Nonfiction Bootcamp with More To The Story, concluding with a 30-Day Challenge to acknowledge past accomplishments and set new goals. In 2022 I compiled nearly 300 pages of my memoir-in-essays, Just Some Things We Can’t Talk About, including 11 brand new essays. I also published five freelance articles and 25 copywriting assignments; attended a Cal-Poets training and VCFA Postgraduate Writers’ Conference; participated in three live readings and one on Zoom; facilitated three workshop series and an ongoing publication-focused group; and applied to (and was declined for) three writing grants and fellowships.
My writing goals for 2023 are too numerous to list, but book completion and submission is number one. My dear friend Margot, who island-hopped to us from Oahu, read the entire draft of my manuscript, which I had printed and spiral bound. “Raw, empowering, relatable,” she called it. Recently I submitted a newly revised first chapter — along with my author bio, book description, and comparative titles — to Barrelhouse Books, in response to acquisitions editor Lilly Dancyger’s submission call for nonfiction manuscripts. Here’s a tidbit:
“In addition to essays with fragmented or braided structures, some of the 26 chapters experiment with form. Notably, the hermit crab essay “Reading Comprehension” adopts the test form to — as Lilly Dancyger states — 'deepen and complicate a personal story.' Likewise, 'Recovery as Annotated Bibliography,' written in that style, cites pop psych texts like The Language of Letting Go to illuminate the grief of estrangement and map the complex retrieval of a subsumed self. The book’s themes and unconventional format will appeal to readers of Melissa Febos’s Girlhood; Daniella Mestyanek Young’s Uncultured: A Memoir; Maggie O'Farrell’s I Am, I Am, I Am; Amy Long’s Codependence; and Gina Frangello’s Blow Your House Down: A Story of Family, Feminism, and Treason.”
I also recently applied for the following funding opportunities for writers:
Money for Women/Barbara Deming Memorial Fund to feminist women in the arts
The de Groot Foundation COURAGE to WRITE grant to 10 writers writing in any genre
National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Creative Writing Fellowship grants in prose
Lori White Non-Fiction Fellowship at Porches Retreat Center for a 10-night residency
The NEA states: “Competition for fellowships is extremely rigorous. We typically receive more than 1,600 applications each year in this category and award fellowships to fewer than 3% of applicants.” Nonetheless, each application pushes me to further articulate (and revise) my work. In the event that I win a monetary award to support the typically unfunded work of creative writing, the recognition can also elevate my author platform — useful to any indie or university presses that may consider publishing my book. For now, back to the keyboard I go. Thanks for reading!
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