S124. The Lives of Others: Biography as Creative Nonfiction

Room 13, Tampa Convention Center, First Floor
Saturday, March 10, 2018
9:00 am to 10:15 am

 

Amid the explosion of memoir, attention to biography as creative nonfiction has been scant. Few MFA programs teach the genre, and reviewers often summarize the life at the expense of the writing. Panelists will discuss biographical research; ways to create historical context, including issues of race and gender; and how to face gaps in the record and ethical quandaries. The panel will explore recent innovations in literary structures as well as biography's boundaries with other genres.


Participants

Moderator:

Joanne B. Mulcahy, a teacher of creative nonfiction, is the author of Birth and Rebirth on an Alaskan Island, Remedios: The Healing Life of Eva Castellanoz and Writing Abroad: A Guide for Travelers (with Peter Chilson). She is currently researching a biography of artist Marion Greenwood.

Terese Svoboda has published seventeen books of poetry, fiction, biography, memoir, and translation, most recently Anything That Burns You: A Portrait of Lola Ridge, Radical Poet in paper. She teaches frequently at Stonybrook/Southampton.

Michael N. McGregor is the author of Pure Act: The Uncommon Life of Robert Lax, a finalist for several awards, including a Washington State Book Award. A professor of creative writing for over twenty years, his essays, articles, poems, and short stories have appeared in a wide variety of publications.

#AWP24

February 7–10, 2024
Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City Convention Center