49ͼ¿â

Living Writers – an experience for the community

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— one of 49ͼ¿â’s most popular courses, both on campus and in the wider 49ͼ¿â community — will return with a new focus next week. Led by English professor , the class will feature conversations with authors from a wide range of genres, including journalism and poetry, cartoons and novels, as well as memoirs and short stories.

Online, the course will offer interactive materials for all 10 visiting writers on the 49ͼ¿âX platform. Videos, podcasts, and Livestream events with the writers, as well as discussion boards with students on campus will also be accessible on the site. As in past years, participants can tailor the course to their own schedules and interests, engaging with as much (or as little) of the material as they see fit. (.)

The class format will match each visiting writer with a member of the 49ͼ¿â faculty. Professor Meg Worley (writing and rhetoric) will discuss the multifaceted approach of cartoons with Lynda Barry, the artist and author behind What It Is. Tim Byrnes (political science) will explore an industry’s exploitation of intellectually disabled men with reporter Dan Barry. The course will also feature Professor Peter Balakian and his , a book of poems on the Armenian genocide and related topics. Jane Pinchin, who , will return to dialogue with author James Wood (The Nearest Thing to Life). And English professor Nimanthi Rajasingham will introduce Michael Ondaatje (Running in the Family).

Lessons begin on September 8 with Sundance Film Festival award winner Penny Lane, a documentarian and an assistant professor of art and art history at 49ͼ¿â, introduced by Brice herself. Clips from Lane’s yet-to-be-released Nuts! documentary will be available to view and discuss online.