Maggie Smith in Conversation with Jeannine Ouellette
In her memoir You Could Make This Place Beautiful, poet Maggie Smith explores the disintegration of her marriage and her renewed commitment to herself in lyrical vignettes that shine, hard and clear as jewels. The book begins with one woman’s personal, particular heartbreak, but its circles widen into a reckoning with contemporary womanhood, traditional gender roles, and the power dynamics that persist even in many progressive homes. With the spirit of self-inquiry and empathy she’s known for, Smith interweaves snapshots of a life with meditations on secrets, anger, forgiveness, and narrative itself. The power of these pieces is cumulative: page after page, they build into a larger interrogation of family, work, and patriarchy.
Neither the Madonna nor Mommy Dearest: Why and How to Write Real Mothers
Writing well about mothers means balancing the drive for truth with the influence of misogyny. Mothers are uniquely attacked in psychology and pop culture, but also falsely venerated, a binary that papers over complexity. These writers share how they’ve resisted demonizing imperfect mothers, depicting them instead with context and curiosity. They offer techniques for writing truthfully and vividly about the mother wound without leaning on the escalating "mother blame" in American society.
AWP Offsite In the Raw: On the Complexities of Exposing Yourself and Your Family in Memoir
We know creating is inherently risky, but what really happens after you publish a very vulnerable and revealing memoir? Not only might you have shared your own deepest flaws, but the work will have included other family members or former family members. Whether they betrayed you, supported you, or were bystanders, they will be deeply affected by your portrayal of them. On top of these considerations, you must eventually face the challenge of moving on creatively. What do you focus on next, now that you’ve so wholly exposed yourself? Join four accomplished writers of memoir and fiction as they read from brand-new forthcoming work and discuss strategies for navigating these creative complexities.
Book Signing at Zenith Bookstore
Meet Minneapolis author Jeannine Ouellette who will sign copies of her recent book The Part that Burns.
Named a "Best Indie Book of 2021" by Kirkus Reviews, The Part That Burns is a fiercely beautiful memoir. Caught between the landscapes of Lake Superior and Casper Mountain, between her stepfather’s groping and her mother’s erratic behavior, Ouellette lives for the day she can become a mother herself and create her own sheltering family. But she cannot know how the visceral reality of both birth and babies will pull her back into the body she long ago abandoned, revealing new layers of pain and desire, and forcing her to choose between her idealistic vision of perfect marriage and motherhood, and the birthright of her own awakening flesh, unruly and alive. The Part That Burns is a story about the tenacity of family roots, the formidable undertow of trauma, and the rebellious and persistent yearning of human beings for love from each other.
"Vital, full of energy and wisdom, Jeannine Ouellette’s memoir crackles with excitement. From the shores of Lake Superior to the mountains of Wyoming to the banks of the Mississippi River, this is a story of American migration — not just of families but of spirits." — Rene Denfeld, author of The Child Finder and The Butterfly Girl
Jeannine Ouellette teaches creative writing with the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop, and is the founder and director of Elephant Rock, an independent creative writing program in Minneapolis. She earned her MFA in fiction from Vermont College of Fine Arts and is working on her first novel.
Zenith Bookstore, Duluth, MN
Oct. 28th 11am-1pm
A Reading with Jeannine Ouellette and Tim Moder
Join us for a reading with two Duluthians.
Jeannine Ouellette spent their childhood in Duluth and is the author of the memoir The Part That Burns (Split/Lip Press, 2021), the children’s book Mama Moon, and several educational titles. She is the recipient of a Margarita Donnelly Prize, Curt Johnson Fiction Award, Proximity Essay Award, Masters Review Emerging Writer’s Award, two recent Pushcart nominations, as well as awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the Medill School of Journalism. Her work has been praised by Joyce Carol Oates as “simply beautiful, precisely imagined, poetically structured, compelling, and vivid.”
Tim Moder is an Indigenous poet living in northern Wisconsin. He is a member of Lake Superior Writers. His poetry has appeared in a variety of literary magazines and journals, including Parentheses Literary Magazine, Pittsburgh Poetry Journal, the South Florida Poetry Journal, Sisyphus Magazine, and other venues.
FREE and open to the public
Martin Library, Duluth, MN
Family Matters: The Ethics, Challenges, and Rewards of Writing About Family
Hosted by The Writers Center. Register (for free) here.
You have a story you’re burning to tell, but it is not yours alone. Other characters include family members or former family members—and whether they betrayed you, supported you, or were bystanders—they will be deeply affected by your portrayal of them on the page. Some writing teachers say, “It’s your story, and you get to tell it.” Or, “If he didn’t want you to write about what he did, he shouldn’t have done it.” Others insist that the privacy of the people in your life is an ethical priority that must be honored.
In this event, seven-time author Laura Davis (The Courage to Heal and The Burning Light of Two Stars) and Jeannine Ouellette (The Part That Burns) share their decades of experience writing about family. Both authors have outed abusers on the page, navigated subsequent estrangements and reconciliations, and written long-running columns about their children (while sometimes paying a price). Their perspectives on writing about family have changed over time, and yours might, too, after this thought-provoking workshop.
During this free event, we’ll talk about:
• The therapeutic value (and challenges) of writing about family secrets, history, and trauma
• The difference between personal writing and work we publish
• How to create a safe container for writing about family, free from concerns about publication
• How to walk the fine line between publishing things that may negatively affect family members while serving the greater world
• Why it’s essential to face our fears and consider the worst possible outcomes
• Why the strongest reactions—negative and positive!—sometimes come from the people you’d least expect
• If, when, and how to inform family members about writing that involves them
FREE and open to the public
7pm Eastern/6pm Central/5pm Mountain/4pm Pacific
Catapult Class: SOLD OUT
8-Week Online Prose Workshop: The Art of the Fractured
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Sign up (SOLD OUT) on the Catapult website, here!
There are a million ways to tell stories, and sometimes, a straight line from start to finish is not the best or most beautiful option. Sometimes, we can tell our stories in pieces. Fragmented, nonlinear, and other inventive forms can be both powerful and artful. Plus, it’s fun!
In this class, we’ll read some outstanding fragmented and broken essays and stories and study the techniques behind these nontraditional forms. Then, we’ll gather bits and pieces of our own stories and begin to list, braid, collage, erase, and rearrange these items into... something else. We’ll examine how to effectively combine multiple subjects, images, and motifs within a single piece. We’ll examine how fragmented structures can add complexity and amplify meaning without confusing the reader. Participants can expect weekly readings, in-class writing exercises and assignments, opportunities to share work weekly as well as two opportunities to be workshopped with thoughtful feedback from instructor and peers. The Art of the Fractured will be accessible yet challenging and inspiring for beginning writers as well as seasoned writers.
Class meetings will be held over video chat, using Zoom accessed from your private class page. While you can use Zoom from your browser, we recommend downloading the desktop client so you have access to all platform features.
COURSE TAKEAWAYS:
- Expand and deepen your unique voice as a writer
- Elasticize your writing practice
- Learn craft techniques to create fragmented short stories that communicate deeper thoughts or emotions to readers
- Read critically and discuss work of established writers and peers alike
- How to fragment work in ways that amplify meaning rather than obscure it
- Various practical, applicable options for creating fragmentation on the page
- Write and revise several short pieces using different fragmented forms
- Identify literary journals that publish fragmented and experimental work
- 10% discount on all future Catapult classes
COURSE EXPECTATIONS:
Assigned readings will range from 5-15 pages per week. Weekly writing assignments will have a flexible word count in the generally accepted range for flash (approximately 500-1,500; in general, the most successful fragmented work tends to be on the shorter side in terms of word count). Each student will have two opportunities to be workshopped and will receive verbal and written feedback from their peers and the instructor.
During class time, participants can expect a blend of in-class writing exercises, craft talks, sharing of newly written work, and group discussions. Outside of class, we will have weekly readings (craft essays and creative essays) that exemplify or explore various fragmented forms.
COURSE SKELETON:
Week 1: Overview of Fragmented Writing Forms and Containers
Week 2: “I Remember” Essays
Week 3: The Magic and Metaphor of Braiding
Week 4: Lists and Definitions as Essays
Week 5:The Letter/Epistolary Essay
Week 6: The Hermit Crab Essay
Week 7: Erasing and Cutting Up
Week 8: One Sided Stories
Ethel Rohan in conversation with Jeannine Ouellette
Ethel Rohan and Jeannine Ouellette discuss their new books, the writing life, and the themes their works share.
Registration and more information via host, The Writer’s Center, here! Limited space, so sign up now!
Ethel Rohan in conversation with Jeannine Ouellette
The Writer’s Center welcomes authors Ethel Rohan and Jeannine Ouellette for a discussion about their new books, the writing life, and the themes their works share.
More information and RSVP with the Writer’s Center here!
Jeannine Ouellette and Athena Dixon
Join Jeannine Ouellette and Athena Dixon, two Split/Lip authors, in a conversation hosted (virtually) by the Philadelphia based A Novel Idea bookstore! Registration and further information can be found here!
Jeannine Ouellette and Keisha Bush
Join Jeannine Ouellette and Keisha Bush (No Heaven For Good Boys) for an online reading and conversation hosted by SubText Books! Sign up via Crowdcast here!
Jeannine Ouellette and Sue William Silverman
Sue William Silverman (Because I Remember Terror, Father, I Remember You and How to Survive Death and Other Inconveniences) joins Jeannine Ouellette for a reading and discussion hosted by Madison based A Room Of One’s Own Bookstore. The conversation will take place via crowdcast at 6pm central. Sign up here!
Jennifer Pastiloff and Jeannine Ouellette
Join Jeannine Ouellette and Jen Pastiloff at this virtual event hosted by Literati Books. The evening will include readings & conversation about the relationship between embodiment & empowerment, especially through storymaking. Sign up here!
Jeannine Ouellette, Gina Frangello, and Lilly Dancyger
Join Jeannine Ouellette for a reading and discussion with Gina Frangello (Blow Your House Down and A Life in Men) and Lilly Dancyger (Negative Space and Burn It Down), moderated by The Adroit Journal editor Heidi Seaborn. This virtual event will be hosted through Magers & Quinn Booksellers, via their YouTube channel and Facebook page. Their Youtube channel can be found here!
Jeannine Ouellette Joins Memoir Monday
Jeannine Ouellette joins Candace Jane Opper (Certain and Impossible Events), Marcos Gonsalez (Pedro's Theory: Reimagining the Promised Land), and Randa Jarrar (Love Is an Ex-Country) for Memoir Monday. Memoir Monday is a collaboration between Narratively, Catapult, The Rumpus, Granta, Guernica, and Literary Hub to bring the very best first-person writing together in a weekly newsletter and a quarterly reading series. Register here! 7pm Central.
Jeannine Ouellette Joins Michele Filgate’s Red Ink Series
Jeannine Ouellette joins Michele Filgate, Avni Doshi (Burnt Sugar), Jo Ann Beard (Festival Days), Katherine Angel (Tomorrow Sex Will Be Good Again), and Dantiel W. Moniz (Milk Blood Heat) for “Desire,” March’s virtual Red Ink Series Panel. The Red Ink Series is hosted by Brooklyn based independent bookstore, Books Are Magic. This promises to be a juicy evening! 6pm C/7pm ET
Jeannine Ouellette at Hidden Timber Books
Jeannine Ouellette joins Hidden Timber Books for their Small Author Reading Series. Free registration (with zoom link) here.
Jeannine Ouellette at The Writer’s Center: Virtual Craft Chat
Jeannine Ouellette joins TWC for a free virtual chat about the craft of memoir writing. RSVP here to be emailed a zoom link on or before February 25th.
Jeannine Ouellette at Sundress Academy for the Arts
Jeannine Ouellette joins the Sundress Academy for the Arts Reading Series. Past performers have included Ada Limón, Chen Chen, Tiana Clark, Kathy Fagan, Raena Shirali, Ruth Awad, Meghann Plunkett, James Arthur, Emilia Phillips, Karen Skolfield, Jane Wong, Michael Robins, Chad Davidson, Karen Craigo, and Jasmine An. Access Zoom event here!
Jeannine Ouellette at 1455 Authors Series
Jeannine Ouellette will be interviewed on her writing process, influence, and advice with 1455’s executive director Sean Murphy. More details here!
Jeannine Ouellette at Readings on the Pike: February
Jeannine Ouellette joins Hannah Grieco’s Reading’s on the Pike for their February reading. A zoom link for the event will be added the week of the event at here!
Jeannine Ouellette, Maggie Smith, and Michele Filgate
Book Launch for The Part That Burns hosted by Moon Palace Books in conversation with Michele Filgate (What My Mother and I Don't Talk About) and Maggie Smith (Keep Moving and Good Bones)
The Part That Burns Launch Party and Reading with Split/Lip Press
Join Jeannine and her publisher, Split/Lip Press, for a reading, celebration, and Q & A in honor of the publication of The Part That Burns! Everyone who attends is eligible to win an autographed copy of The Part That Burns. Please join us!
Jeannine Ouellette at Midstream Reading Series
Jeannine Ouellette joins the Midstream Reading Series with fellow readers Mike Finley (A Tribute), Norita Dittberner-Jax, John Minczeski, and host Don Brunnquell. The event will take place on zoom. More details to come at: https://midstreamreadingseries.wordpress.com/2020/12/11/next-reading-via-zoom-thursday-january-14-2021-730pm-cst/.
PREORDER The Part That Burns
Preorders for The Part That Burns available through Split Lip Press through the week.