DCWYTBMA in First Quarter ’09
29 Dec
I hope you all enjoyed your holiday break. Santa (who does so exist) was very nice to my family. Even nicer was the opportunity to be away from the internet for a few days. I do love you so, internet, but sometimes it’s nice to take a break and see other technologies.
Now I’m back. Here’s what will be on my mind in the early part of 2009.
1. Teaching
I’m back at Carleton College teaching creative nonfiction this winter. Here is the course description:
Do you like it when true things happen? Would you like to take those true things and make them sound truer than true? Would you like to use words while doing that? In this course, students will write a rant, a reported essay, and also explore a creative non-fiction form of their choosing. Class time will be spent on live writing assignments, giving and receiving feedback, learning basic research techniques, and having discussions about things that seem trivial right up until the moment that their ultimate significance is revealed.
The course will be similar to the freshman seminar I taught in 2006, but with some nice upgrades. I’ll keep you posted on anything I learn.
2. Speaking
I’m giving a talk called “The Always-on Artist: Technology, Creativity and Making Meaning in the 21st Century” at the Minneapolis Central Library on Tuesday, January 20th. Here is the description:
If Shakespeare were alive today, would he be on YouTube? If so, would it diminish him as an artist, or prove his relevance? Author and journalist Dennis Cass will talk about the tension between the opportunities technology creates and the dangers of getting caught up in the “Next Big Thing,” and also offer tips for aspiring writers and artists on how to make a name for themselves in our crazy, mixed-up world. The “Living Arts Series” is a program of The People’s University. Books available for purchase and signing. Seating is first come, first served. Doors open at 6:15 p.m.
I will be testing out material for the talk on this blog. You would do me a great honor by hitting me hard with any criticism you may have. I’m setting my expectations higher than usual this time and will appreciate any tough love you can love me with.
3. Blogging
Even though I was only gone for a week, the distance gave me a chance to give some serious thought to this blog. Here are some goals for 2009:
- Teach myself iMovie and Photoshop
- Sharpen and clarify the blog’s mission and/or better define the “awesome” in Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome
- Get the posts on a regular schedule
- Help 100 new people
- Twitter?
Final thought:
I will always remember 2008 as the year I learned to stop worrying and love the internet. It hasn’t been easy, and I would have quit months ago were it not for good readers like you. Thank you for your attention, for your insightful comments, for your skepticism and for your honesty. For those of you who I have helped directly, I’m especially grateful that you would put your trust in a stranger to help you with your life’s passion. That takes a lot of guts. I hope you feel your courage was rewarded.
That’s all for now, my friends. Here is to 2009 being that breakthrough year.
Isn’t the whole point of awesome that it defies definition?
Man, that *is* a great course description.
Why iMovie and Photoshop? I found the former to be really intuitive, but have managed to uncover maybe 3 of Photoshop’s secrets in the past few years. (I suppose Reading The G-damn Manual might help — siiiiiiiiiigh.)
Re: the nonfiction course… frequent DCWYTBMA commenter “mapelba” is wondering, in a blog post from last night, why exactly does “true” seem so important?
As Adrianne said, that’s a kick of a course description. Can we audit it online?
Thanks for one of the writingweb’s most consistently interesting — or maybe that should just be “anomalous” — concept sites. Looking forward to seeing what you (we) do with it in ’09!
Well, as JES mentions above, I’ve been trying to work on that truer than true sort of thing on my blog. I’m always looking for how to be more awesome… I say that as if I’m awesome at all. Don’t know about that.
Good luck on your talks, and if I’ve any tough love to give, I certainly will.
@Michelle: I’m thinking of a definition that describes a nirvana-like ideal as opposed to a set of constraints (stools have three legs and you sit on them and they’re often made of wood).
@Adrienne: I want to make funny, evocative pictures and movies for you.
@JES: I will see if I can reformat some of the lessons to make them online friendly.
@mapelba: A magazine editor I once met gave me a piece of advice that I think about all the time, even if I don’t follow it nearly enough:
“A fact in every sentence.”