AWP Wrap-Up

On March 7^th, Creative Writing Department upperclassmen flew back from Baltimore, Maryland, concluding our trip to AWP. At the conference, we made connections with many literary magazines across the country, learned about the art of writing from experts in their field, and saw the sights of Baltimore. The field trip was an absolute success, and we’re hoping we can go next year when AWP is stationed in Chicago. 

One of the highlights of the trip for the whole group was the book fair that stretched farther than the eyes could see. In this incredibly large room were hundreds of booths representing different literary magazines, journals, authors, colleges, and other writing programs. It was not only the perfect place to buy new books and merchandise, but it was also great for networking. Élan traded books with eight other magazines, and we’re hoping to be able to run our own booth next year. 

There were countless sessions to attend at AWP, but out of the ones we attended, some of the most notable were “Words from the Deep, Dark Woods; Using Fairy Tales as Foil & Fuse” led by Jess Stark, a UNF Professor; “Debut Poets Speak: Five Writers on Bringing their first Book into the World” featuring Isabella DeSendi, a Douglas Anderson alum; and “Screenwriting Unlocked: The Smarter (Not Harder) Method for Writing Your Script” led by Adrienne Carter and Taylor Vaughn Lasley. In these sessions and others, we received so much great instruction on how to make a career out of writing and how to improve our craft.  

The trip was what we had hoped for and more. We want to thank the Creative Writing teachers, Ms. Flores and Mrs. Roland, and the Writers’ Guild Booster Association for all the hard work, time, and money they put into this trip. We wouldn’t have had this incredible experience otherwise. 

Signed,

Olivia Sheftall, Junior Layout and Design Editor