Clockhouse Review Re-Launch!

Greetings, fellow Clockhousers-

We would like to extend to you an invitation to take part in the relaunch of The Clockhouse Review.

For those unfamiliar with CR, it was a literary journal established almost a decade ago that exclusively featured work by alumni of Goddard College's MFA program in creative writing. Unfortunately, in its first incarnation, CR didn't have a very long run because life got in the way for the editors.

But now CR is making its comeback.

Thanks to the generous support of the Clockhouse Writers Conference and some good words from the ever-faithful Paul Selig, we're assembling a new volume that will serve as the first in a new annual series.

We have a ton of logistics to work out for CR, but we agree that the most important thing is to get the publication up and running. To that end, for this first edition, we are soliciting submissions from folks who've attended CWC during the past few years-and our general rule is this: If you attended, and we're inviting you to submit, then we're pretty much going to include what you send us.

As you're making your choice about what to send, though, please keep in mind that this first issue is intended to be a showcase. Not only will it set the bar for future issues, the college will use it for recruitment purposes for prospective students. As a result, this first issue of CR needs to shine. (Yes, of course ALL issues will need to shine, but as the old cliché goes, we only get one chance to make a first impression.) For that reason, we do reserve the right to ask you to submit something different should we deem it necessary.

In the future, we'll have a more formal process in place to judge submissions blindly. We'll include an outline of that process, along with deadlines, in the first issue. You get a free pass for this first issue, though, as a way to reward you for your past loyalty to and participation in CWC.

Submission Guidelines:

All submissions should be original. No previously published work will be accepted.

Simultaneous submissions are not acceptable (because, as we explained, if you send it, the chances are pretty high that we're going to publish it).

Prose writers may submit contributions up to 4,000 words long. Novel excerpts are acceptable so long as they are self-contained. Memoirs, essays, and other works of creative nonfiction are also acceptable. Book reviews and works of literary criticism are not. At this time, we are not able to accept translations, either.

Poets may submit up to three poems.

Short one-act plays or self-contained scenes from a longer play are acceptable.

For graphic narratives, you may submit up to ten pages of artwork so long as the story is self-contained. Graphic art should be submitted as a high-resolution PDF.

Submissions should be sent electronically as Microsoft Word documents.

Submissions should be accompanied by a brief biography.

E-mail submissions to:

Chris Mackowski
Clockhouse Review
cmackows@sbu.edu

Please label the subject line of the e-mail "Clockhouse submission."

Submission deadline in December 15.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact either of us. In the meantime, we look forward to hearing from you and promoting your work.

Sincerely,

Tim Kenyon, MFA '99
Chris Mackowski, MFA '01

November Station of the Word

Choose one of your favorite charities and write a persuasive piece to persuade others to support your charity.
Limit yourself to no more than 250 words and then send your piece to me (moserbill37@gmail.com) to post here.
You may wish to support Goddard, the Red Cross, a church, the Humane Society, a political party, your local school, the American Cancer Society, or Your Favorite Charity.
Have fun, and please remember to send me the piece to post here!

October Stations of the Word

Let's work on Flash Writing this month.  When you have finished please post your work under comments below.


The Rubric:
Have a beginning, a middle, and an end.
Set at timer for 10 minutes and then quit.
Write no more than 100 words.
Don't use any form of the verb to be.
No rants, please.


Write a piece of Flash Fiction, a Flash Poem, or a Flash Essay.


N.B.:  Having only 10 minutes, anything you write is going to be rough.  That's GOOD!  It gives you something to polish.


Have fun, and good luck.


Oh, the prize.  You will receive satisfaction at having completed a task.

Station of the Word for September

There are times in all of our lives that we wish we had a super power.  Here's your chance:

Decide on an offbeat super-power (flying is a pretty common power and you are far more creative than that).

Set your timer for TEN minutes.

Write a prose or verse piece that utilizes the superpower you have chosen.

This might be an essay about what you would do, a piece of fiction in which a character has the power, or a poem about the power.

When you are finished, post your piece in comments below or send it to me (bill@billmoser.net) and I'll post it here.

By the way, I create these writing exercises every month and I never see any response.  Please post them so I know I'm not wasting my time.

Station of the Word for August

This is supposedly vacation month, but people seem to be really busy finishing up odds and ends at work so they can leave, packing for a vacation, getting ready for school to start - or leave for school - and time is a premium.


Because we are so rushed, we often speak in shorthand.


This month, create a shorthand acronym, a shorthand abbreviation suitable for twitter, or a shorthand family  definition.


Examples: of an acronym - SONAR (SOund NavigationAnd Ranging)
 . . . of an abbreviation - LOL -Laughing Out Loud
. . . of family shorthand - pulling a Brenda


Now it's your turn. 


When you have one figured out - one you might consider using in your writing, prose or verse - please post it under commentsbelow.

Station of the Word for July

This month's Station of the Word  is vicissitudes.    Create a script for a one- to three-minute video to help high school students understand the word and its nuances.

I realize this is out of most of our comfort zones, but that's part of the Risk of writing.  And it helps get us ready for next year's Plenary Panel.

Please send me your scripts to post here.

And always feel free to comment below.

Writers Write

Carolyn Locke presented a workshop on Renga, a form of Japanese poetry that is written communally. She and Yvonne Rutford take time here to try their hand at writing Renga. (Photo by Jen McConnell, who took time from writing to snap this.)

CWC Participants 2010

Front row: Janet Bloom, Darlene Olivo, Kathryn Cullen-DuPont, Catherine Chambers, Jen McConnell

Second row: Carolyn Locke, Chrystal Wing, Yvonne Rutford, Sam Sherman, Chris Mackowski, Jill Moore

Not pictured: Julie Parent, Maggie Thompson

Photo by Jill Moore

Thoughts After CWC

This morning back in my own space, Lucy and Satsi not home yet from their pet resort, fans keeping the still-coolish night air circulating (windows closed against the rising heat outside), I sit with my journal and mug of iced coffee to reflect on, and not let go of, what it is that makes CWC at Goddard so special. As I was packing up to leave yesterday, the dorm was silent and breezy, and the thought occurred to me that, if financial circumstances require that I choose between going home for Mardi Gras and CWC next year, it might be better for me holistically to go back to Goddard.

This surprised me because I feel so alive in the Quarter on Carnival day--it satisfies my need to play in the visual paradise of creativity, to run into old friends, feel my homeland beneath my feet--know that I belong. Yet, the intensity, the expectations for peak moments (think of the joy at the crescendoes of laughter when we play If-Then) sometimes unmet make it risky; so much rides on that one day.

CWC unfolds gently. I emerge from my shell and am more who I really am: smart, funny, kind-hearted, involved, present, eager to learn. I feel valued (key word) among you because you reflect these things back to me, something often lacking in life outside Goddard. Or, at least, it's harder for me to detect and believe. The slings and arrows of non-safety are such that I'm guarded, and when too plentiful cause me to go into a fog. I slog as if through jello, weighted down with a kind of despair. I am very lonely.

So, for me, the seed is being valued. CWC in the context of Goddard (I doubt it would be the same off-site) provides the fertile soil, the nutrients and benevolent light that allows germination, encourages growth of a tiny bit of life long packed inside a hard ball of armor. And for that--for you--I am profoundly grateful.

Perhaps these musings are my debriefing plenary address--what's the closing parenthesis of plenary?--something I feel the urge to impart. I'm sure you have your own -- and if you choose to share them, you'll find a willing audience in me.

Blessings, blessings and hugggggggggggs that go on forever,

Darlene Olivo

Please feel free to comment below, and to send me (surog8@comcast.net) your thoughts and photos to post.

CWC 2010 Photos

The top photo is of the path to the Pratt Library. The lower one is the Clockhouse from the Manor back steps. Both photos by Jen McConnell Doron.

CWC-East Registration Information

The Goddard College MFACW (East) Alumni Writer’s Conference & Retreat:

The mornings are devoted to writing, the afternoons, to workshops, and the evenings, to readings.

CONFERENCE DATES:

Tuesday, June 29, 2010, 1:00-3:45 p.m. – Arrival and Check In

Saturday, July 3, 2010, 1:00 p.m. -- Departure and Check Out

A full conference schedule will be mailed to all registrants in early June. In the meantime, here's the schedule for the first day:

Tuesday, June 29th

1:00-3:45 p.m. - Arrival and Check-in

4:00-5:30 p.m. - Community Meeting

5:45-7:00 p.m. - Dinner

7:45 p.m. - Plenary Panel

The Topic: Striving for Balance in Writing

Scheduled Presenters: Kimberly Beam, Val Carnevale and Susanna Graham-Pye

Scheduled Moderator: Sam Sherman

DEADLINES

May 1, 2010: Registration and Selection of Housing/Meal Plan Options. Please note that some housing options are limited and that double-room reservations will be made on a first-come, first-serve basis, and that requests for single rooms will be filled after that.

Download the the information and registration form here.

Haybarn Retreat

Announcing the 2010 Haybarn Retreat! June 11-13 at Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont!
Join your fellow alumni, faculty, staff and friends for a celebration of Goddard's unique history and exciting future! Scheduled events include community art projects, a Trustee panel discussion, Michael Arnowitt in concert and much more! Click here to register now!

CWC Plenary Panel

Sam Sherman will moderate this year's Plenary Panel to kick off the Clockhouse Writers' Conference and Retreat East at 7:45 June 29.

The topic for this year is Striving for Balance in Writing, and the scheduled presenters will be Kimberly Beam, Val Carnevale, and Susanna Graham-Pye.

Register for CWC-East here.

CWC News

Clockhouse Writers' Conference and Retreat (East) will be held this summer on the Plainfield campus to overlap the MFAW residency.

The dates are June 29 - July 3, which will overlap the MFA-W residency.

The Plenary Panel, as you can see by the schedule below, will be the first evening after dinner.

Information and Registration are available at Clockhouse Writers' Conference and Retreat (East).

TUESDAY, JUNE 29

ARRIVAL AND CHECK-IN, 1:00-3:45 p.m.

COMMUNITY MEETING, 4:00-5:30 p.m.

DINNER, 5:45-7:00 p.m.

PLENARY PANEL, 7:45 p.m.

We hope to see you there. If you have questions, please contact Board of Stewards Lead, Bill Moser (surog8@comcast.net) or CWC&R Co-ordinators Kathryn Cullen-DuPont (kcd@womenandhistory.com) or Sam Sherman (sam2climb@aol.com).

We hope to see you in June.