Hello, everyone. Thanks for visiting me here — including those of you who read my Father’s Day piece in the Washington Post and to everyone who is continuing to read and respond to Amy’s inspiring story from August 2023. Her essay continues to reach readers all over the world. I appreciate every one of you.
I’ve been keeping very busy, which keeps me grounded and focused – and this is shaping up to be another full year for me. I’m excited to announce that I’m back for another round of small and intimate creative writing classes at Stanford University through their continuing studies program.
Coming this October – a brand-new Stanford class called Strange Sparks: Unlocking Stories Through the Uncanny and Supernatural. The class is not yet open for registration but save the dates — the sessions will take place on Zoom on Thursdays, Oct 9, Oct 16, Oct 23, Oct 30, Nov 6, from 6 to 8 p.m.
I’ll post the sign up link here as soon as it is available. Since this is offered through Continuing Studies, the course is open – you don’t have to be a Stanford affiliate to take the course – but I need to hold the enrollment down to 30 students. More soon.
Here is the detailed class description: Ignite your imagination in this supportive, creativity-boosting course designed to spark fresh ideas for your next story, essay, or book. The experience is designed to jolt your imagination and help you access deeper layers of your storytelling mind through unconventional prompts, close readings of experimental texts, playful writing exercises, and “improv for writers” sessions. This special autumn edition adds a twist: a focus on the uncanny, the supernatural, and the monstrous.We’ll explore haunted objects, craft ancient-style incantation bowls, and dive into the eerie tradition of ghost stories. Inspired by fabulist readings from Mary Shelley, Kelly Link, and others, students will conjure folkloric fiends to rival the Boogeyman, invent cryptids scarier than Bigfoot, and share true tales of miracles and inexplicable events. We’ll also welcome a guest author who specializes in monstrous fiction—and you’ll even get to doodle your own paper monsters into existence (no art skills required!).Though this low-pressure course celebrates the joy of unbridled invention, there will be opportunities for supportive feedback and classmate connection as you build a literary community.
For students who have previously taken the course, the structure is the same but the content is new. Past students are encouraged to join.
I am also glad to announce that I will be teaching a 10-week intensive and intimate memoir-writing course in the winter, also at Stanford, also on Zoom. That is a very small class — I believe the maximum number of students is 15. I’ll post the applications/sign up link when that is ready.
For those of you who would like to see other writings or check out my watercolors – (I moonlight as an artist), I post my paintings frequently on my Instagram page and my Facebook . Fine art prints on watercolor paper are always for sale — and some originals are also available.
And stay tuned for more personal essays and stories in the Washington Post and elsewhere.
If you would like to reach me, please send me an email at dwhitescruz@yahoo.com – you can always leave a comment here, but I get so much spam and bot messages that it can take me a very long time to muck through it all and find the genuine messages. Until then, good camping to you and I hope our paths cross very soon!!