March 7th-March 8th, 2025
WCoNA 2025
Our annual flagship conference, this year featuring keynote speaker Sarah Elaine Smith, poet and author of the acclaimed novel Marilou Is Everywhere.
Location
Saint Francis University - Loretto, PA
Registration
Registration will open on Friday, January 3rd.
Create an account to be notified when registration opens.
Presentations
Special Friday Night Session
The Spirit & Essence of Northern Appalachia: Exploring Our Literary Identity
featuring PJ Piccirillo, Sarah Elaine Smith, and Book of the Year short list recipients; moderated by the 2025 WCoNA Book of the Year Committee.
Session One
Documenting the Places and People of Northern Appalachia
This panel features two poets from Central PA who have turned to writing documentary poetry, a deep tradition in American literature that combines the values of journalism with the techniques of creative writing to create work that tells truths through close attention to place and people. Julia Spicher Kasdorf will offer an introduction to the sub-genre and share examples of her own work in the fracking and farmer’s fields of Northern Appalachia. Abby Minor will share poems from her project that engages with the history and characters in her rural village. Participants will experiment with documentary exercises and discuss the pleasures and pitfalls of representing the places we come from.
The Historiography of Northern Appalachia--How We Remember Our Past
Portrayals of the Northern Appalachia region have varied over time in folklore, literature, and histories. This presentation surveys the evolution of how the region has been remembered and discussed by those within the region and those without. A special emphasis is given to popular works by Shoemaker, Stover, Rupp, Wallace, Allen, McCullough, and others.
Developing Place In a Poem
Using the models gleaned from poets of Northern Appalachia, participants will explore ways to capture the physical and emotional senses of a community, using its landmarks, both real and invented. Examples may include “Showing a Friend My Town” by anthracite region native Harry Humes. In this poem, the speaker, perched on a hillside, describes for a visitor those places within sight and those only held in memory, to capture the scene of a region in decline. Julia Kasdorf’s “Night Like This” is another example of a way to construct place. In this poem, participants will examine how the narrator explores the idea of isolation by charting the solitary nighttime rituals of her Camp Hill-region neighbors both near and distant. The goal of the workshop is to allow participants to create a place poem of their own, and to provide those who are instructors a method for teaching this type of work.
In Service of Stories: Facilitating Writing Workshops for Veterans
The U.S. military has long been a deep influence on northern Appalachian culture. Beyond the customs and social networks of the VFWs and Legion halls that dot the region, the military affects higher education access, local economies via defense contracting, and healthcare through small-town VA clinics. When veterans return home after service, they bring everything from leadership skills to psychological traumas to new perspectives on politics and American values. According to the ARC, over six hundred thousand veterans currently live in northern Appalachia. If you didn’t serve in the military, it’s likely a family member or close friend did. The stories of veterans are the stories of us all. How can we encourage former service members in our communities to share their military experiences through creative writing? How can we use poetry to initiate difficult conversations with this traditionally reticent group, to learn not only about them but also ourselves? How can prompt-based, generative writing workshops help participants process intrusive memories and complex emotions related to war and moral injury? This presentation will include an overview of lessons the presenter has learned during the past twelve years of leading writing and art workshops for service members and veterans across the US. He will cover his experiences compiling books of writing produced by these groups, collaborating with several nonprofits to host open mic readings for USOs and military hospitals, and teaching veterans how to make paper from their uniforms. He will also talk about how teaching outside academia in unconventional spaces has provided him a sense of purpose following his own Army service. Time will be provided for audience questions and discussion.
DEEPENING FICTIONAL CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT THROUGH INTERACTIONS WITH ANIMAL WORLD
Many works of literature, particularly of Appalachian and rural themes, have used the interactions of human characters with the animal world to illuminate and more deeply convey human virtues and flaws critical to understanding the story. Consider The Old Man and the Sea (Hemingway), Moby Dick (Melville), Of Mice and Men (Steinbeck), The Cat (Colette), Where the Red Fern Grows (Rawls), The Crossing (McCarthy), Last Days of the Dog Men (Watson) and many Breece D’J Pancake stories. Human love of an animal is conjectured by many to be a form of anthropocentrism, the projection of our emotions onto another species from a superior perspective. But there is a pureness and logic to the animal world that often magnifies human shortcomings in those areas. At the same time, it can reveal the human soul and heart. The written animal connection can be real or metaphoric. If done well, it can propel a character and story to a new level. As we write of the northern Appalachian region, how can we use the animal world to enhance both complexity and understanding? What are some effective techniques? What are the pitfalls and risks? Are there distinctions in writing of domestic versus wild animals?
Session Two
Confessions of a Writing Group Junkie
Is a writing group right for you? Author Maria Simbra/Em S. A’cor participates in four distinct writing groups (novel writing, screenplay, memoir, narrative medicine). She also leads writing groups and belongs to an avant garde reading group. Find out how writing and reading groups can * improve your writing, * help you publish, * save you money, * earn you money, and * connect with potential readers. In this presentation, you will * learn about different types of writing groups, from style to organization and execution * learn about the benefits and pitfalls of writing groups * learn about considerations before joining a writing group * learn about writing group red flags * learn how to run a writing group * learn about reader groups to meet potential readers
Finding Your Muse in Northern Appalachia
Part reading, part generative workshop, this session will begin with a brief reading of new poetry collections by Judith Sornberger (The Book of Muses) and Marjorie Maddox (Small Empty Space) that showcase the people, places, and creatures of Appalachia. The authors, two veteran creative writing professors, will then lead the class in writing exercises based on references to Appalachia. Open to writers of both prose and poetry, this class will encourage participants to recognize, claim, and respond in writing to their own muses of Northern Appalachia.
Demythologizing Northern Appalachia
In It’s a Wonderful Life, Northern Appalachian native son Jimmy Stewart plays George Bailey, a character that experiences his community in two drastically different ways on the same night. The bucolic and charming Bedford Falls and the garish and decrepit Pottersville represent the opposing planet poles that are the tropes used to portray Northern Appalachia. This creative reading, workshop, and roundtable discussion will explore how neither extreme accurately portrays a region marked by its beauty and difficulties. Utilizing works published in The Northern Appalachian Review as a launching point, the panelists will be using Roland Barthes’s theory of mythology as a layer of meaning that is deeper and inaccessible to conscious thought to explore how neither the Bedford Falls nor the Pottersville portrayals of the region do it justice. While embracing one aspect of the region and ignoring the other can be an effective device for establishing a particular mood, it can also lead to stereotypes and a willful ignorance to a region that contains real people with very real problems. If the function of art and literature is to provide a mirror by which people can see themselves and imagine new possibilities, the Bedford Falls and Pottersville versions of Northern Appalachia fail to fulfill this vital function of creative expression. This presentation will conclude with a generative exercise that will invite participants to write about the region that resists the impulse to represent our communities as either just Bedford Falls or just Pottersville.
Ridgelines Language Arts: Teaching New Northern Appalachian Writers, ages 5 to 95
Founded as a 501c3 in 2017, Ridgelines Language Arts provides expert language arts instruction to those who are impacted by stigma and injustice in the rural ridges and valleys of central Pennsylvania. Our programs–from poetry and storytelling to creative writing and journaling—take place in settings outside of academic institutions, including our area’s domestic violence shelter, low-income nursing home, youth detention center, state women’s prison, queer and trans youth groups, and more. Join Ridgelines co-director Jenny Hwozdek for a lively overview of the work Ridgelines’ Teaching Artists do in settings outside of academic institutions. Learn about the unique challenges, joys, and discoveries of teaching language arts in non-traditional settings. How do we invite people who may never have identified as “writers” to lift their voices, explore their imaginations, and enjoy the study of language arts? How do we respectfully and effectively enter learning settings where students may be experiencing trauma, loss, and/or stigma? Bring your own questions and teaching experiences, and gain inspiration and resources for encouraging new Northern Appalachian writers in your own neck of the woods.
The New Nature Poem: Writing at the Confluence of Place, Space & Identity from Rachel Carson’s Pittsburgh
“Will have, instead of/a tail in its mouth, the word/sprawl…”—from “The New Nature Poem,” by Martha Silano. Published in The Fourth River, Issue 13. Spring, 2016 What does it mean to write nature poems in the 21st century? What does that word “nature” even mean? How can/should we honor nature writing that came before while making space for new voices by writers of color, queer and nonbinary writers, neurodivergent writers, women writers, immigrant writers and other voices left outside the canon? What can be written about urban gardens, native pollinators, protected greenspaces and riverine ecosystems when we are also dealing with frack water run-off, the failure of recycling programs, encroaching invasive Japanese and the daily Smell Report App that reminds us that our air quality is the second worst in the country? What do we mean when we say, as Chatham University’s most famous alumna, Rachel Carson, did, that “In nature, we are never alone?” In this session, Sheila Squillante, poet, professor, and Editor-in-Chief of The Fourth River, a literary journal of nature and place-based writing out of Chatham University’s MFA program, will discuss the ways in which the journal has sought to push on and expand a definition of “nature” and clear space for new voices filled with criticism, humor, despair and inspiration we need to hear. She will present a curated look at work published in The Fourth River, now in its 20th year, that attempts to help make sense of this new landscape and time. The session will include the close reading and performance of work from the journal and a discussion of craft tools writers can use in their own writing about nature and place. Further, insight into how to engage readers and editors at journals which publish such writing will be offered.
Session Three
Navigating the Art of Playwriting: Perspectives & Practices from Northern Appalachia
This presentation explores playwriting for place and space, particularly from the unique cultural lens of Northern Appalachia. The session provides aspiring playwrights with insights into the craft, using the presenter’s experiences in playwriting as a case study. By the end of a dramatic monologue writing craft workshop emphasizing rich regional storytelling traditions, participants will be equipped with essential playwriting foundational elements such as structure, character development, dialogue, and a burgeoning idea for their own play. Additionally, this workshop provides resources to inspire local playwrights and writers transitioning into playwriting to tell their stories, empowering Northern Appalachian voices to thrive in the world of theater.
Written accuracy and detail about the natural world will enliven setting and enhance your credibility among readers.
Writers of fiction and poetry can enliven setting and boost their credibility among readers by including aspects of the natural world in their work. These may include topography, vegetation, soils, geology, birds, fish, mammals, reptiles, or various natural processes that influence ecology of our region. The presenter will locate (haven't done this yet but have ideas) examples of fiction and poetry writers using precise, accurate depictions of nature in their work. These depictions, because they are accurate and precise, enhance the reader's "sense of place" and lend greater credibility to the writer, because the reader accepts and understands the writer's "authority," demonstrated in the writer's familiarity with nature in this place of ours--Northern Appalachia. Participants will discuss the examples and the presenter will offer suggestions of how participants can improve their own familiarity with nature in Northern Appalachia.
Reading Writing, and Writing to Read
Public readings are an opportunity to engage audiences, market publications, and present your unique voice. Don't lose that voice when you get to the mic. In this interactive workshop, you will begin to transform your written voice into something audible and embodied. We will begin by drawing lessons from writers who work in both performance and text. Then, we will focus on key elements of performance—such as time, vocal expression, and action-to understand how they can be instrumental in giving a dynamic, authentic reading. Group exercises will focus on: developing confidence as a speaker, responding to the environment, and practice strategies. Finally, we will cover tips for revising writing with reading / performance in mind.
The Elements of Smile
The Elements of Smile - What makes things funny In this session, humorist Dave Agans will present the fundamentals of funny, including obvious techniques (e.g. timing and surprise), various kinds of incongruity (e.g. serious vs. trivial), and various humor types (e.g. puns and meta jokes). Dave will discuss how to get the most out of humor with slow builds, recalls, and running gags. And he will demonstrate every technique with an example from a popular writer, TV show, or movie, so this will be a funny sixty minutes.
I Do Declare
Through readings and discussion, discover how poets harness declarative power in the genre best characterized by figurative and enigmatic language. Bring a draft of your own poem for this participatory workshop.
Session Four
Origins and foundations of Pennsylvania mountain folktales, legends, and folkloreFireside Tales
Description of how, acting as an investigative reporter, I collected, researched, and wrote about the many Pennsylvania mountain folktales and legends I have collected throughout the entire state over the last 50+ years, even traveling to Europe to trace their origins.
Resilience - How to push through challenges, avoid burnout, and keep writing.
Writing for publication is a difficult path. Other life commitments get in the way, friends and family don’t understand, your peers quit, and constant rejection is just a fact of life. How do you push through and to keep submitting, creating, and growing? How do you find support and success? How do you even define success when it feels like a moving goalpost? Join us for a discussion on surviving the writing life.
Floaty-Groundy: A Way of Thinking About Character and Plot
In the past, students have labeled this idea The Floating Brownie and The Bloated Townie, but, whatever you decide to call it, we will be talking about the invisible and symbiotic interplay that happens at the meeting point between character and plot. Characters can be thought of as either "floating" or "grounded," as can plots, and problems arise in the making of the fiction when two floaties or two groundies are paired together in the same story. We will talk about what these labels mean, look at examples, and think about how to revise your fiction to take advantage of the ideal pairing of floating and grounded, character and plot. Examples, questions, and much discussion. Readings from packet to be distributed.
Watermark: Poems of the Great Johnstown Flood of 1889. A reading and video presentation.
A creative reading from the book, Watermark: Poems of the Great Johnstown Flood of 1889, paired with an original video production of archival images. Watermark is a docu-lyric collection in the voices of victims of the "great flood," drawn from the original morgue book and archived material. Imagined accounts of historical figures associated with the flood, such as Clara Barton, train engineer, John Hess, and telegraphers along the railway also animate the poems. This work is a narrative of witness, honoring those who perished without a name, the survivors, and the heroes who helped the city rebuild. It is dedicated every last lost voice and to the resilience of the poet's hometown, Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
Northern Appalachia
By examining a narrative of their own choosing—anything from a lighthearted memory to a cherished family story or bedtime tale—and reshaping it on and off the page, writers will engage with non-linear narratologies within a distinctly Appalachian context. Rooted in collaboration, this workshop offers participants from any genre or background clear, actionable techniques for incorporating Appalachian storytelling into their own writing and broader creative practice.
Session Five
Landscapes of Witness: Poetry Writing in Northern Appalachia
This poetry workshop will focus on the intersection of place and witness in the context of Northern Appalachia, a region is known for its deep history, complex landscapes, and multifaceted communities—each element contributing to a vibrant, rich story of resilience, memory, and identity. Through writing prompts, discussion, and close readings of relevant poetry, participants will explore how the land and its history shape—and are shaped by—observation and the act of witnessing. Participants will consider the environment around them, draw on personal experiences, and explore collective histories through the lens of poetry with the following discussion points in mind: • What does place mean to you as a writer? How does your relationship to land, city, or community inform your writing? • What does it mean to witness history? How does witnessing history shape our identity and our writing? • Can a place itself be a narrator? How can we write poems that give voice to a place, Our discussions will consider poems by contemporary Appalachian Writers, which may include poems by Lee Smith, Silas House, Damon Young, Yona Harvey, Jan Beatty, James Wright, and Annie Dillard.
How To Pitch Short Non-Fiction to National Newspapers or Magazines
Trying to write for a national outlet is hard, but not impossible. In this session, I will share the secrets of how to craft a non-fiction pitch for a national magazine or newspaper, as someone who has successfully done it. Key elements include: combining meaning with narrative, creating questions for the reader, thinking from the editor’s point of view, and—of course—bringing a well-developed writing craft. We will discuss each of these elements one by one by looking at successful pitches together. For each pitch we look at, we will analyze its strengths and weaknesses, asking what made the editor take the piece. It may surprise you to see that some pitches are themselves finely crafted pieces of literary art. Strong pitches offer a narrative or scene, sometimes in a cinematic fashion, and propose a puzzle or question about what those events mean. In a successful pitch, the reader is hooked by a sense of curiosity about a question raised by the writer. As Ira Glass has pointed out, it is that combination of narrative with meaning that makes great storytelling. Editors also usually want a story that is relevant now, with the pitch writer making the case for why a story is changing the world in some way, or hurting or helping some party. Finally, we will discuss common strategies for honing one’s craft that can contribute to stronger pitch-writing (such as reading, writing often, and asking for feedback). As time allows, we will also discuss key resources for developing non-fiction craft, such as William Zinsser’s On Writing Well, Ira Glass’s discussion of the art of storytelling, The Open Notebook’s pitch library, and Michael Thomas’s article on The Art of Pitching, which helped me craft a successful pitch myself and to develop the ideas for this session.
Appalachian Cryptids as Creative Catalysts
Wampus Cats, Sheepsquatch, the Flatwoods Monster—and that’s not even all the cryptids in West Virginia! The Appalachian region has an abundance of supernatural creatures that can be an excellent source of inspiration for writers and poets of all genres. This workshop will start with a brief introduction to some Appalachian cryptids, both to their legend and their potential in a literary context. Then, we’ll do some exercises where attendees can play with using Appalachian cryptids in their writing (and not necessarily just in a fantasy or horror context). Attendees will also get handouts with more information about the cryptids that are discussed and resources where they can learn more if any of the critters pique their interest.
Two's Company: Writing, Editing, Reading, and Marketing Together
Poets Wendy McVicker and Cathy Cultice Lentes, authors of Stronger When We Touch (The Orchard Street Press, 2023) will read from their book and discuss the process of working as a creative team, writing and editing together over time, and compiling a manuscript that moves forward with a narrative arc deepening theme and story as poetic conversations progress. In addition, the authors will discuss the benefits of reading and marketing together, hoping to inspire dialogue among conference participants on innovative ways for collaboration. Time for Q & A will be included.
The Art of Tension: Keeping Readers on the Edge of Their Seats
Tension is the lifeblood of storytelling, the invisible thread that keeps readers turning pages, desperate to know what happens next. Whether it's the subtle unease in a character’s internal conflict or the high-stakes drama of a ticking clock, mastering tension is essential to creating compelling narratives. Let’s delve into the techniques for building and sustaining tension in your writing. Whether you're writing a psychological thriller, a romance, or a literary novel, this workshop will provide you with tools to heighten your story's emotional impact, maintain the energy throughout your work, and leave a lasting impression on your audience. This workshop is ideal for writers at all levels who want to sharpen their skills in creating gripping, emotionally charged fiction.
Accomodations
This years accomodations are generously provided by the Comfort Inn Ebensburg. Use the reservation link below to reserve your room at our special group rate.
Comfort Inn Edensburg
111 Cook Rd, Ebensburg, PA 15931(814) 472-6100
