New “Conversations from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop” Featured on Big Ten Network

March 08, 2010

"Conversations from the Iowa Writers' Workshop," a series produced by the University of Iowa Center for Media Production, features new interviews on the Big Ten Network this year, with award-winning writers associated with the creative writing program at Iowa.

New programs include workshop alumna Yiyun Li, author of A Thousand Years of Good Prayers and The Vagrants, as well as Pulitzer Prize winner Marilynne Robinson.

Watch >> Yiyun Li
Watch >> Marilynne Robinson

The program is hosted by Writers' Workshop graduate and International Writing Program staff member Kecia Lynn. The full programing is available on the Center for Media website which has an archive of all previous UI programs. It is also available on the University of Iowa's YouTube site.

Iowa Writers' Workshop | Alumni | University of Iowa Television (UITV) Archives | Fiction | International Writing Program
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Live Discussion with Tarek Eltayeb, March 5, 11am

March 03, 2010

Lesen Sie das Archiv: Lesen Sie die Kommunikation in Echtzeit

Read the Live Discussion archive (German)

Die Writing University Website hat am Freitag, 5.3. zwischen 11 -12.Uhr (CST) zu einem Echtzeit-Chat mit dem IWP Alumnus Tarek Eltayeb eingeladen. Der Gespraech wurde durchgehend im Englisch und Detsch gehalten; die nachfolgende Abschrift wird ins Englisch und Arabisch uebersetzt.
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The Writing University website hosted an online chat with International Writing Program alum Tarek Eltayeb today. The discussion took place entirely in German on Friday, March 5 at 11:00 AM (Central Time). Transcripts in English and Arabic will follow the chat session, available in our Live Discussion archives:
Live Discussion archive

Tarek Eltayeb (novelist, fiction writer, poet, playwright; Austria) was born in Cairo to Sudanese parents and educated in Austria. He has published five collections of poems, most recently Bacd Az-Zann [‘Certain Suspicions’] (2007), two novels Bayt An-Nakhil [‘The Palm House’] (2006), and Mudun Bila Nakhil [‘Cities Without Palms’] (1992), two short story collections, and a play El-Asanser [‘The Elevator’], (1992). His writings have been translated into several languages, including English. His awards include the Elias Cannetti Fellowship from the City of Vienna and three Major Project Fellowships for Literature.

Mr. Eltayeb attended the International Writing Program residency in fall 2008 courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. In 2009, he returned to Iowa to teach creative writing at the IWP summer high school enrichment program for Middle East/Muslim world students, Between the Lines. He will teach again at Between the Lines in summer 2010.

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2010 Iowa Summer Writing Festival Now Accepting Registrations

March 01, 2010

The Iowa Summer Writing Festival at the University of Iowa is now accepting registrations for its 2010 sessions. Weeklong and weekend workshops including fiction, poetry, nonfiction and playwriting will run from June 13 through July 30. In all, more than 150 noncredit workshops will be held. Visit the Iowa Summer Writing Festival website for a full list of sessions and biographic sketches of the faculty.

A brochure is now available by mail, or registration forms may be printed from http://www.continuetolearn.uiowa.edu/iswfest/html/registration/Registration_Form.html Registrants may sign up for only one workshop per session, but they may register for as many sessions as they wish. Payment is required at the time of registration.

The Iowa Summer Writing Festival, based at the world's premier academic center for creative writing for more than two decades, is designed to benefit writers at all levels of experience and achievement. In small groups -- festival classes include no more than a dozen participants -- adult writers of all ages from throughout the country share, read and discuss their work under the leadership of accomplished writer/educators. The atmosphere is constructive and supportive.

Fiction | Poetry | Nonfiction | Dramatic Writing | Journalism | Translation | Summer Writing Festival
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Live Discussion with Yasser Abdel-Latif, Feb. 26th, 2PM

February 24, 2010

The Writing University website will host an online chat with International Writing Program alum Yasser Abdel-Latif at 2:00 p.m. (CST) Friday, Feb. 26th. Abdel-Latif will discuss modern literature in Egypt, his experience in Iowa among IWP writers, as well as his philosophy of teaching writing. You can find samples of Abdel-Latif's writing at the IWP website: http://iwp.uiowa.edu/writers/index.html.

Immediately following the Live Discussion, a full transcript of his responses will be available on the Virtual Writing University website's Live Discussion archive

Yasser Abdel Latif participated in the 2009 IWP residency courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the US Department of State.

Poetry | International Writing Program
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UI ‘Student Book Collection Competition’ Announced

February 22, 2010

The College of Liberal Arts & Sciences is calling all book-collecting students to enter its first Student Book Collection Competition. The contest is sponsored by the CLAS, University Libraries, Special Collections & University Archives, and the Center for the Book.

Currently enrolled students may compete in the following categories:

1. The CLAS Award for the Best Book Collection Submitted by an Undergraduate Student
2. The Special Collections Award for the Best Other-Than-Book Collection Submitted by an Undergraduate Student
3. The Center for the Book Award for Most Creative and Most Creatively Described Collection by an Undergraduate or Graduate Student

Winning entries will be displayed in the University’s Main Library. Prizes will take the form of monetary awards or gift certificates to Prairie Lights and Murphy-Brookfield Used Books.
Each contestant must submit the following:
For the CLAS Award for the Best Book Collection Submitted by an Undergraduate Student and the Special Collections Award for the Best Other-Than-Book Collection Submitted by an Undergraduate Student:

• A brief 250-word essay about the collection
• A bibliographic description of the collection (25-50 physical objects)

For the Center for the Book Award for the Most Creative and Most Creatively Described Collection by an Undergraduate or Graduate Student:

• A 500-2000 word essay about a collection. The essay can describe a collection that is entirely imaginary; contestants do not need to have actually collected any of the objects mentioned.

Essays and bibliographies must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. Friday, March 26th, 2010.
Semi-finalists in the Book and Other-Than-Book contests may be asked to appear before the judges with at least ten representative items from their collections.
Essays, bibliographies and a cover sheet should be sent to as a single MS Word document to rawan-alkhatib@uiowa.edu. For more information and competition requirements, see the Book Collection Competition website.

Media contact: Rawan Alkhatib, rawan-alkhatib@uiowa.edu

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