Creative Writing Festival
Creative Writing Festival
On Wednesday, November 7, 2007, the University of Wisconsin- Whitewater will host the Creative Writing Festival.
We are happy to announce the High School Creative Writing Festival for the year 2007 and to invite you and your writing students to attend and participate in this twenty-year tradition at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Each year approximately 700 students and teachers participate in the Festival. We are pleased to be able to offer you and your students this day of stimulating exposure to the writing of their peers and the chance to hear their work discussed and evaluated by professional writers in a college setting.
Benefits
- Explore alternative creative strategies
- Learn about other styles of writing
- Get acquainted with college-level methods and expectations
- Get suggestions for types of work students might like to try for themselves
About the Program
- After check-in, the day begins with an introductory convocation
- Simultaneous 50-minute workshops, staffed and led by members of the UW-Whitewater faculty and writers from around the state, will be held throughout the day
- We will break at noon for lunch (students will be on their own)
- The day will close with the announcement of awards
Festival Schedule
Convocation Speaker: DAVE CONNOLLY
Dave Connolly served as an infantryman in Vietnam assigned to the US Army's 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment from 1968 to 1969. After returning home due to wounds received in action, he became a member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War. Dave still lives in South Boston, the town of his birth, with his wife, Lisa, and his son, Jake. He holds a BA in English from UMass/Boston. Dave is the author of the prose and poetry collection," Lost In America", the managing editor of the South Boston Literary Gazette and the Slam Master of the monthly Southie Poetry Slam.
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 8:00 - 9:00 am | Check-In at Irvin L. Young Auditorium |
| 9:00 - 9:50 am | Convocation at Irvin L. Young Auditorium |
| 10:00 - 10:50 am | Workshops |
| 11:00 - 11:50 am | Workshops |
| 12:00 - 12:50 pm | Lunch |
| 1:00 - 1:50 pm | Workshops |
| 2:00 - 2:50 pm | Workshops |
| 3:00 - 3:50 pm | Workshops |
| 4:00 - 4:50 pm | Workshops |
| 4:55 - 5:45 pm | Awards Ceremony at Irvin L. Young Auditorium |
For the Students
- Workshops are designed for students in grades 9-12
- Students' work will be discussed in the sessions
- Workshops are limited and student writers will be assigned in advance to the workshop in which their work is critiqued
- Non-submitting participants may attend any session of their choice
- Every submission will be carefully read and considered
- A faculty member will make written comments on the original manuscript
- Because of the great number of entries in some categories such as poetry, our faculty cannot always discuss every work submitted
- At check-in, participants will receive a copy of the schedule designating workshop assigned and location
For the Teachers
UW-Whitewater staff members will coordinate special teachers' writing workshops to be held concurrently with the students' workshops. A session on the teaching of creative writing will be conducted and a workshop for teachers will be offered if there is sufficient interest. Teachers who want to submit their own work for consideration in a Teachers' Writing Workshop should submit their work by October 12, 2007.
General Information
Prizes
Approximately $700 in prize money was awarded at the 2006 Festival. It is anticipated that this year's Festival will award a comparable amount. Awarding of prizes will depend on the number and quality of submissions per genre.
Fees
$20.00 Submission and attendance fee
$15.00 Attendance fee (students not submitting a manuscript)
$25.00 Teacher Fee
Students who do not wish to submit a manuscript for evaluation in a workshop are still welcome to attend the Festival. These students are encouraged to participate in discussions of the work being considered in the various workshops. Students may not submit a manuscript for evaluation if they do not attend the Festival. Please submit one check from the school or adviser to cover all students attending. A catered luncheon is included in the teacher's fee. Students will be "on their own" for lunch. Student luncheon options, both on and off campus, will be included in the packet received at check-in.
Refunds
We regret that it will not be possible to give refunds to those students who are unable to attend. Teachers may receive refunds, less a $5 handling fee, if notification is received before October 26, 2007.
Parking
A one-day parking permit will be included with the school's confirmation letter as well as a map showing the location of Whitewater and the University campus. Additional one-day parking permits may be obtained at the Festival at a cost of $1 each. Your permit entitles you to park in designated campus lots. Do not park in reserved or handicapped stalls. You must pay if you park in a metered stall.
Entry Categories & Regulations
- A participant may submit in only one (1) category.
Category limitations are as follows:- Children's Literature - Maximum: 10 pages
- Drama or Screenplay - Maximum: 15 pages
- Essay - Maximum: 5 pages
- Multi-Media - Nolimitations
- Poetry - Maximum: 3 poems (3 poems equal one entry)
- Science Fiction/Fantasy - Maximum: 10 pages
- Short Fiction - Maximum: 10 pages
- Song Lyrics - Send taped music or CD and hard copy of lyrics
- Tales of Terror and Mystery - Maximum: 10 pages
- Participants must mail in two copies of the Identification & Proof of Originality cover sheet (completed and signed), the submission cover page, and the submission (manuscript, music, or multimedia).
- All manuscripts must be typed, double spaced, stapled together, and mailed before the deadline.
- All manuscripts must have a typed cover page bearing the author's typed name, title of the work (poetry may have up to three titles), and name of the school.
- Multimedia entries must send a description if the submission is not suitable for mailing.
- Submissions must be postmarked by October 13, 2006.
- Each school is limited to twenty-five (25) submissions. There is no limit to the number of students you may bring.
- Participants should bring at least twenty (20) copies of their manuscripts to be taken to the session at which their work will be evaluated.
- To ensure the continued quality of the Festival experience, we may have to limit the number of participants.
- We regret that late or carry-in submissions cannot be considered, except in the genre of multimedia. Multimedia descriptions must be sent in advance.
- Students should pick up their annotated manuscripts at the end of the workshop session time they were assigned to.
Identification & Proof of Originality
Each applicant submitting work must have the Identification & Proof of Originality Form attached, and completely filled in, as a cover sheet to each copy of their work.
This sheet identifies the student, the school, the title and category of the entry. Each student must fill in the blanks and sign the Statement of Responsibility for each entry to be official. (Please make additional copies as needed.)
Special Notice
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is committed to equal opportunity in its educational programs, activities and employment policies, for all persons regardless of race, color, gender, creed, religion, age, ancestry, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, political affiliation, marital status, Vietnam-era veteran status, parental status and pregnancy.
If you have any disabling condition that requires special accommodations or attention, please advise us well in advance. We will make every effort to accommodate your special needs.
Application
You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this form. Please click on the icon to download Adobe Acrobat Reader for free.
Contact Information
Dale Ritterbusch, Director
University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
409 Heide Hall
Whitewater, WI 53190
Phone: (262) 472-5055
pritterbusch@wi.rr.com
OR
Office of Continuing Education Services
2005 Roseman, UW-Whitewater
Whitewater, Wisconsin
(262) 472-3165
Email: cesevents@uww.edu
