By Katelyn S. Irons
The English Department's fourth Making Literature Conference began yesterday with the annual Parnassus release party and will host events on campus through Saturday. The conference is intended to encourage scholarly and creative writing by bringing together published writers, students from other universities and professors, according to Aaron Housholder professor of the Taylor English department.
"The Making Literature Conference is dedicated to the memory of Dr. William A. Fry, who served as English department chair at Taylor University for twenty years," said Daniel Bowman, professor in the English Department. "(He) was a popular and engaging professor, visibly delighted with the subjects he taught, particularly Shakespeare and poetry."
Speakers at this year's conference include Bret Lott, author of several fiction and nonfiction books, Harold Bush, President of the Conference on Christianity and Literature and Susanna Childress, author and recipient of the Brittingham Prize in Poetry. The conference is also hosting an editorial panel consisting of Brad Fruhauff, Marci Whiteman Johnson and Beth Bevis, all editors of literary magazines.
"We hope (the) sharing of work will forge connections between people as they exchange ideas and perspectives," Housholder said. "Our keynote speaker and our editorial panelists have a wealth of knowledge and experience to share in matters of art, scholarship, and faith."
In addition to these renowned speakers, there will be 14 Taylor student panels which consist of three or four presentations, plus a question and answer session. These students were chosen for the quality of their critical works and creative writings.
"Since our conference does not use themes, we welcomed critical work on any periods, authors or movements using any critical approach and framework," Bowman said. "We wanted to see poems, stories and essays that engage the timeless questions about what it means to be human, and that demonstrate a deep sense of craft."
Jeremy Paul, a junior professional writing major, is one of the student panelists chosen to present. He is excited to present his fictional story, "Love you. Love you, too" at the conference today at 11 a.m.
"It'll be great to listen and learn from other writers, and it's an honor to be chosen," he said. "Humbling, too. My story is near and dear to my heart. . . . I'm thrilled to have the chance to share it with others."
"The conference is structured on a model common to literary and creative writing conferences, but Making Literature is open to students of all majors," Housholder said. He said he expects close to a hundred students, from Taylor and nine other colleges, to attend.
All Taylor students, professors or faculty may attend the conference this weekend without registering. Registration for off-campus visitors will be open through Saturday. To read a full schedule of the conference or to register, visit english.taylor.edu.
