Tag Archives: AWP 2015

Cambridge Writers’ Workshop at AWP 2015 Recap!

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Our annual AWP reading this year was “Books and Bones at Boneshaker Books.”
Boneshaker Books, a small bookstore that hosted the CWW’s annual AWP reading.
The audience at the reading, awaiting to hear a selection of poetry and prose from our readers.
Anca Szilagyi, our first reader, shared a piece called “Cauliflower Tells You,” featured in Monkey Bicycle.
CWW Exec board member Jonah Kruvant read an excerpt from his new book, “The Last Book Ever Written.”
Micah Dean Hicks shared a flash fiction piece and a nonfiction piece during the reading.
CWW Intern Alex Carrigan read an Adam and Eve satire called “The First Debate.”
Michele Nereim read an excerpt of a larger piece.
Bianca Stone read a few poems from her book “Someone Else’s Wedding Vows.”
Jessica Piazza read poems from her collections “Interrobang” and “This is Not a Sky.”
Jess Burnquist shared a few poems, all with a thematic inspiration from maritime flags
Dena Rash Guzman reading from a manuscript titled “Joseph,” about a feminist’s complicated relationship with the status quo.
Leah Umansky, reading a poem from her collection, “Domestic Uncertainties.”
Sheila McMullin read “Bad Woman” excerpts from her poetry collection “daughterarriums”
Brenda Peynado, reading a piece entitled “Blue Baby,” featured in the Mid-American Review
Big thanks to all our readers at the event. Back row, left to right: Jonah Kruvant, Jessica Piazza, Micah Dean Hicks, Alex Carrigan, Leah Umansky, Michele Nereim. Front row, left to right: Dena Rash Guzman, Jess Burnquist, Sheila McMullin, and Brenda Peynado. Not pictured: Anca Szilagyi and Bianca Stone.

CWW Intern Alex Carrigan manning the booth at AWP 2015.

From April 9-11, the Cambridge Writers’ Workshop was present at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs 2015 conference in Minneapolis, MN. Our organization was there with multiple goals in mind, from promoting our CREDO anthology to presses at the event to advertising our summer retreats in Paris and Granada. Our group was fortunate enough to be upgraded from a table to a full booth, giving us more room to work with and allowing visitors to see more of our materials and programs. Visitors were able to take flyers, CWW buttons, and even contribute to our daily exquisite corpse poems.

CWW Exec Board member Jonah Kruvant sold his new book, “The Last Book Ever Written,” at our booth.

Our staff for the event included CWW intern Alex Carrigan, who helped set the booth up and ran around networking with various publishers and presses. Executive Board member Jonah Kruvant was also at our table on Friday and Saturday. At the table, Kruvant sold and signed his new book, The Last Book Ever Written, a dystopian satire just released from PanAm Books.

Dena Rash Guzman and Leah Umansky, friends of the CWW, also were also present at our table for selling and signing their works. Umansky sold her Mad Men inspired chapbook, Don Dreams and I Dream, along with her book Domestic Uncertainties. Guzman was there with her poetry collection called Life Cycle, and both authors promoted the CWW-sponsored reading on Saturday.

Leah Umansky and Dena Rash Guzman signed their works at our table on Friday.

Leah Umansky and Dena Rash Guzman signed their works at our table on Friday.

On Saturday, the CWW headed over to Boneshaker Books for our scheduled reading “Books and Bones at Boneshaker Books.” The event featured twelve readers. Along with Carrigan, Kruvant, Guzman, and Umansky, readers included Anca Szilagyi, Micah Dean Hicks, Michele Nereim, Bianca Stone, Jessica Piazza, Jess Burnquist, Sheila McMullin, and Brenda Peynado. The two hour reading featured a great mix of poetry, short fiction, and book excerpts.

We had a great time at AWP, and we can’t wait to see you next year at AWP 2016 in Los Angeles!

Cambridge Writers’ Workshop’s AWP 2015 Exquisite Corpse #3

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ExquisiteCorpseThe Cambridge Writers’ Workshop is busy at the Association of Writers’ and Writers Programs Conference in Minneapolis this week, but while we’re not promoting our upcoming retreats or our CREDO anthology, we’re encouraging visitors to contribute to our exquisite corpse poem. Every day, we’ll post a new poem to the website. You can read Thursday’s poem here and Friday’s poem here.

Saturday’s CWW AWP “Corps Exquis”

I am a man weighed down by burden
of the unphysical sort, buckets of oil spelunking
on their own minus the centrifuge of dystopian
orgasms.

The spine is linked with marshmallows
melted over the sweet potato pie of ravaded
America.

…swallowing dust, digging dirt,
her white dress soiled, soul tainted…

eyes like tangerines, a Parliament
between her teeth, “Kill me,” she
screams into the asphalt.

My eyes are dried into raisins.

Cambridge Writers’ Workshop’s AWP 2015 Exquisite Corpse #2

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exquisitecorpse031

The Cambridge Writers’ Workshop is busy at the Association of Writers’ and Writers Programs Conference in Minneapolis this week, but while we’re not promoting our upcoming retreats or our CREDO anthology, we’re encouraging visitors to contribute to our exquisite corpse poem. Every day, we’ll post a new poem to the website. You can read Thursday’s poem here.

Friday’s CWW AWP “Corps Exquis”

There are three ways to skin a cat, and
I don’t recommend the second.
Keep up with the first one, otherwise
it might get messy.
Do not touch the glimmering insides as they
pierce the skin like the bone of the teeth.
Teething and sheathing
with a man’s last breath.
A luscious, delicious, Flower Monkey dances
with a radiant sense of self.
The sense is challenged,
barred by fun house mirrors.
The third way involves
pliers.
Don’t doubt your horses.
Shatter it for the jar. The big one.
I am hungover.

Cambridge Writers’ Workshop’s AWP 2015 Exquisite Corpse #1

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An exquisite corpse drawing by Man Ray, Yves Tanguy, Joan Miro, and Max Morise

An exquisite corpse drawing by Man Ray, Yves Tanguy, Joan Miro, and Max Morise

The Cambridge Writers’ Workshop is busy at the Association of Writers’ and Writers Programs Conference in Minneapolis this week, but while we’re not promoting our upcoming retreats or our CREDO anthology, we’re encouraging visitors to contribute to our exquisite corpse poem. Every day, we’ll post a new poem to the website.

Thursday’s CWW AWP “Corps Exquis”

What I found conventional about unconventionality
was the rust-rimmed rebar bones
And the color the water turned in winter
When the leaves fell in and rotted: turquoise-grey
Like the magnet on the fridge,
the morning I got the news.
Winds, rain, crashing charge.
Arms Akimbo, she flies.