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What Is This Thing Called ‘Weird’?
VIRTUAL Craft Seminar + Workshop
While the category of “the weird” is generally associated with horror and speculative fiction, weirdness exceeds these genres, serving up a certain kind of shivery, intoxicating strangeness wherever it shows itself. In “What Is This Thing Called ‘Weird’?” (both the Craft Seminar and Workshop), we will explore the pleasures and delights of weirdness, asking what it can give to us as readers and how—and why—we might harness it as writers.
The title "What Is This Thing Called 'Weird'?" riffs on Cherry Smith’s “What Is This Thing Called ‘Queer’?” (1996), an oft-taught text in queer studies classrooms. Prior to the twentieth century, ‘queer’ was synonymous with the weird—used to describe the odd, the uncanny, the suspect, the perverse. Adopting a pro-queer/pro-weird perspective, we might view both as offering something surprising and strange (i.e., “nonnormative”) that invites as to rethink our understandings of what (for example) gender, sex, and intimacy can look like, or in the case of fiction, what a story can be.
The Craft Seminar can be taken on its own or in combination with the Workshop.
Similarly, the Workshop can be taken on its own or in combination with the Craft Seminar.
Full payment is due upon registration. You can pay me via Venmo (at M-Milks) or via Paypal. I'll be in touch with you within 2 days after receiving your registration info and payment to confirm your spot and provide logistical details for joining the class.
Craft Seminar
Sunday, June 7, 4-6 pm ET
$50
This two-hour Craft Seminar is designed for those who want a crash course in weird literary aesthetics along with some generative writing exercises. In our first hour together, we’ll get our bearings with the term “weird”, asking what it is, what it has meant and can mean in literature, and how and why we might want to court weirdness as we write. In the second hour, we’ll turn to writing exercises.
There is no workshop component to this seminar. Participants will have opportunities to share their writing briefly in the chat and/or out loud if they would like to.
Workshop
Wednesdays, 7:30-9:30 pm ET
July 8, July 15, July 22, July 29, August 5, August 12
$400-500 sliding scale (up to you where you are in this range)
This six-week Workshop is designed for those who are interested in a deeper exploration of weird literary aesthetics, an intimate writing/reading/thinking community, and the opportunity to get intensive feedback on a short-form prose manuscript.
Over our time time together, we’ll (continue to) wrangle with this term “weird”, asking what it is, what it has meant and can mean in fiction (and some nonfiction and poetry), and how and why we might want to court weirdness as we write. Our first two sessions will focus on discussing model texts and trying out generative writing exercises; our last four sessions will combine short readings and writing prompts with workshop of students’ short stories. Throughout, we will discuss examples of weird-leaning, weird-infused literature by writers who may include K-Ming Chang, Callum Angus, Rani Som, Sofia Samatar, Dodie Bellamy, and Carmen Maria Machado.
Each student will have an opportunity to workshop one short-form prose manuscript of 4-12 pages. Reading load will be 3-4 short stories per week (including both student and published work).