ONLINE & IN-PERSON CLASSES Fall 2021 writing & reading classes oo TABLE OF CONTENTS COVID-19: Select fall classes will take place in person. About Our Classes ... 2 All in-person classes are listed in a separate area of the catalog: “In-Person Classes,” on pages 30 and 31. All other sections of this Highlights ... 3 catalog will take place on Zoom or via Wet Ink, our asynchronous learning platform. Fiction ... 4 Nonfiction ... 8 Poetry ... 12 Mixed Genre ... 16 Writing for Performance ... 23 Reading ... 24 The Writing Life ... 52 Yearlong Courses ... 27 In-Person Classes ... 30 Free Resources ... 32 About Our Teachers ... 36 iiii From Our Education Director REGISTRATION Register by phone at 206.322.7030 All throughout this long, dark year, I kept coming back to Ross Gay. First, I or online at hugohouse.org. reread Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude. Then I picked my way, slowly and deli- ciously, through The Book of Delights. While work and homeschooling droned All registration opens at 10:30 am on, and fear and grief tried to calcify my anxious exhaustion, I couldn’t finish a Scholarship Donation Day: August 9 novel, a memoir, even a short story. I read only poems and Gay’s 365 vignettes Member registration: August 10 of joy. And I don’t think I’m overstating it to say that I think it saved me. General registration: August 17 This fall, Hugo House will reopen its doors for classes for the first time in over Register early to save with early bird eighteen months. I keep thinking of the opening poem from Catalog—“To the pricing, in effect August 9–23. Fig Tree on 9th and Christian”—in which the figs on Gay’s community garden tree have come ripe and people are gathering, “gleefully eating out of each other’s hands … strangers maybe / never again.” SCHOLARSHIPS So maybe it’s no surprise that instructor Anna Vodicka will be teaching Writing Need-based scholarships are available Delight: Reading & Writing from Ross Gay’s The Book of Delights. The timing every quarter. Applications are due couldn’t be more perfect. What’s more, Gay himself will be teaching a class— August 16, and scholarship applicants Lyric Archiving—in November and joining us for a Word Works lecture that will be notified August 23. same evening. Visit bit.ly/HHscholarship for more No matter which class or classes you choose this quarter—whether in-person information and to apply. (see pages 30–31) or on Zoom (all other sections) or on your own time with an asynchronous class—may we all be full of gratitude for this place where we can create community and create in community. MEMBERSHIP A few words about logistics: for our in-person classes, there will be no more As a member, you’ll help us provide than two classes in the building at a time, and classes will only be held in our thought-provoking classes and events two largest classrooms, at either end of the corridor. Our classes on Zoom that connect writers and readers to the will operate as usual, and we’ll continue to offer them for as long as there is craft of writing. You’ll also receive great demand. More information about our reopening plans will be posted on our benefits, including early registration website and sent to all registered students as the quarter draws near. For up-to- and discounts on classes and events. the-minute info and updates, subscribe to our eNews. Learn more at hugohouse.org/become-member/ See you in the classroom, QUESTIONS? If you want to know more about a class or Hugo House policies, email us at Margot Kahn Case [email protected] or call 206.322.7030. We are here to help! hugohouse.org 206.322.7030 [email protected] 1 ABOUT OUR CLASSES STUDENT GUIDELINES CLASS LEVELS Our Student Guidelines are intended to help you and your fellow TIERED | These courses are designed students engage in our literary community with compassion, curiosity, to equip you with tools, skills, and an and consideration. If you experience or witness any harassment or understanding of the diverse voices at discrimination in a Hugo House class, please alert the registrar: work in each genre. You may self-select [email protected] or 206.322.7030. into classes based on where you feel comfortable. Take these classes as Hugo House does not tolerate racist, sexist, homophobic, ableist, many times as you like. transphobic, or any other oppressive behaviors. Please alert Margot Kahn Case, education director, if you experience or witness any harassment or ALL LEVELS | Many classes at Hugo discrimination. At all times, please: House are intended for writers at any level, regardless of prior writing class • Remain respectful of all writers (and their work) in the classroom. experience. • If you come into the classroom with a background of privilege, be aware of that position and the ways in which it can potentially affect INTRODUCTORY | Writers with other students. limited experience in a writing class or • Be intentional in working against traditional power dynamics, which workshop setting who want to expand can alienate and silence voices that have been historically marginalized. their knowledge should consider introductory classes. These classes are • Be aware that your fellow students have an equal right to the class also designed for writers who want to space and time. explore a new genre. • Put aside personal technology, if not being used for the purpose of the class. INTERMEDIATE | Writers with some experience in genre-specific instruction For the full version, please visit: hugohouse.org/classes/student-guidelines/ looking to deepen their understanding should consider intermediate classes. ACCESS NEEDS These classes often feature a workshop component in which student work is For students with access needs, Hugo House is ready to help. Teachers shared and critiqued. should reach out about access needs, but please also feel free to notify the registrar of your individual needs before your class begins. ADVANCED | Writers with significant experience in a writing class or CATALOG KEY workshop setting who seek assistance ABOUT OUR CLASSES and feedback with revision should This denotes an asynchronous class. These classes can be done consider advanced classes. at your own pace throughout the week. REFUNDS CANCELLATIONS & TRANSFERS Hugo House cannot provide refunds, If you need to cancel your registration for a class, the following refund transfers, or makeup sessions for classes schedule applies: a student might miss. If Hugo House has to cancel a class, you will receive a • 3 days or more before a class, a class credit or transfer will be issued full refund. less a $15 fee. Refunds will be issued less a $35 fee. • Less than 3 business days before a class starts, no refund, credits, or transfers are available. • No refunds, credits, or transfers are available after classes begin. 2 HIGHLIGHTS POETRY DORIANNE LAUX MAKING A POEM MEMORABLE All Levels | What makes a poem memorable? Dave Smith says it’s “…a confident use of language which releases feeling and keeps releasing it with repeated readings.” Naomi Shihab Nye says for her it is, “Love and care for elemental details … and a way of ending that leaves a new resonance or a lit spark in the reader or listener’s mind.” We will take a close look at a variety of dazzling poems written by contemporary poets and seek to understand what makes them memorable. Then, we will practice imitation as a striving toward writing our own unforgettable poems. One session | Saturday, Sep. 11 | 10 am–1 pm PT General: $150 | Member: $135 HIGHLIGHTS FICTION TIPHANIE YANIQUE FICTION FORMS All Levels | Fiction writers have not made as much intentional use of form—or we don’t know we’re doing it, don’t want other people to know we are doing it, or think that being in conversation with others might be reductive rather than productive. So what are the fiction forms? And what are fictional elements in the world that might be called upon as references for new written fictional forms? What new fiction forms does our culture need now? In this class, we will address these questions and find ways to answer them in our work. One session | Sunday, Nov. 7 | 1:10–4:10 pm PT General: $150 | Member: $135 POETRY ROSS GAY LYRIC ARCHIVING All Levels | Learn about lyric archiving! This generative class will feature a series of writing experiments, including mapping, dreamwork, drawing, and collage work. Writers from all genres are encouraged to attend. One session | Friday, Nov. 12 | 10 am–1 pm PT General: $150 | Member: $135 3 FICTION tiereD CLASSES FICTION I SUSAN MEYERS Whether you’re looking to write stories or a novel, this course will introduce three Six sessions key elements of fiction: description, conflict, and character. Alongside published Tuesdays, Sep. 28–Nov. 2 examples and writing prompts, you will write a short story and learn the basics of 5–7 pm PT the workshop model. General: $305 | Member: $275 FICTION II ALMA GARCÍA This class will build upon craft learned in Fiction I. We’ll briefly review the basics Eight sessions of character, conflict, and plot, then focus on craft elements including point of Thursdays, Sept. 30–Nov. 18 view, setting, scene, pacing, and dialogue. Students will read published stories 7:10–9:10 pm PT weekly, do weekly in-class and take-home writing exercises, lead discussions, and General: $395 | Member: $355 workshop their own drafts (including a full story or story/novel excerpt) in a supportive environment with their teacher and peers. FICTION I (ASYNCHRONOUS) PETER MOUNTFORD Whether you’re looking to write stories or a novel, this course will Six sessions introduce key elements of fiction: character, plot, voice, setting, and Nov.