Iowa City is a UNESCO City of Literature and home to the famed Iowa Writers Workshop MFA program. Iowa State University and Cornell College also offer MFA programs, but there are far more writers and people who want to write outside of academia. Sometimes it can be hard for an aspiring writer to find resources and a supportive community.
On this episode of Talk of Iowa, host Charity Nebbe chats with three Iowans building communities for writers.
Julie Gammack produces the Okoboji Writers' Retreat and founded the Iowa Writers Collaborative last summer. Ana McCracken is the founder of the Ames Writers Collective which recently marked the first anniversary of its mission of building and uplifting communities through the art of writing and storytelling while advancing literary arts in central Iowa. Andrea Wilson is the founder of the Iowa Writers' House and the Bicultural Iowa Writers' Fellowship. Wilson is continuing to expand the reach of the fellowship and is relaunching the writers' house this coming year after letting the physical location go in 2020.
This episode was originally produced in November 2022.
Guests:
- Julie Gammack, columnist and producer of Okoboji Writers' Retreat
- Ana McCracken, founder and executive director of Ames Writers' Collective
- Andrea Wilson, certified narrative therapist, founder and executive director of Iowa Writers' House
