Class Description
This class is full.
James Balwin’s The Fire Next Time comes to us in the form of a letter. Rainer María Rilke’s correspondence with a young poet was published after his death and is still widely read today. An entire movie was constructed on the basis of Emily Dickinson’s letters to her sister-in-law (and lover?). The open letter enjoyed a heyday in 2020, as people left their jobs in record numbers. Letters can carry amazing literary weight. Though it can seem like the art of them is a lost one, people do of course still write them, and they can deliver a serious literary punch—the fact that they are addressed giving them a unique intimacy. In this drop-in conversation and generator, we’ll read some famous letters and construct our own under their influence. This is part two of a multi-week class that was offered in the spring, but you don't need to have been present in that one to take this class and writers of all levels of experience are welcome!
Who Should Register?
Write Down the Street has a special focus on making the creative writing workshop more accessible to those who face challenges due to cost, language skills, lack of access to transportation, and other barriers. We believe that all voices must be spotlighted with the range and fullness they deserve.
These programs are offered tuition-free thanks to the support of generous donors who are committed to our mission of ensuring all voices are heard.
About GrubStreet Remote Classes
GrubStreet will be hosting all of our classes remotely from now through the end of the summer. We’ve decided as a staff that the best thing we can do for our community is to follow the advice of public health experts, and participate in the social distancing that’s recommended to help slow the spread of disease. You will be able to participate in class via Zoom videoconference from wherever you’re most comfortable. All you’ll need is a laptop or a phone! You’ll receive an email from your instructor on the day your class is scheduled with a link to join the class meeting via Zoom–no need to download anything or sign up for Zoom in advance! If you have questions about remote learning, please feel free to reach out to [email protected] for more information.
For a glimpse at how remote learning works, look no further than the deep Zoom discussion of writing and literature below:
Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.
For more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. After registering, a yellow Resources tab will appear in this section containing a link to join class. Please note that you will need to be logged into view the Resources tab.
Zoom Participation:
In our experience, the intimate nature of a writing workshop benefits from on-camera participation. Students are of course welcome to turn their camera off whenever they need to, but it is a community norm for cameras to be on most of the time. You can learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
You can enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting by clicking the CC button at the bottom of the screen. If you'd like to access the transcript after class, please make sure to let your instructor ahead of time that you'd like a copy.