WHO WE ARE AND HOW WE GOT STARTED
Writers in The Mountains is a local writing group whose mission is to provide a nurturing environment for the practice, appreciation and sharing of creative writing. WIM, as we informally call ourselves, began in 1992 when Shelley A. Barre offered a course in Journal Writing. From this original group of eight participants, present day enrollment has mushroomed to over two hundred students. Workshops now include Journal, Fiction, Poetry, Play-writing, as well as advanced workshops where manuscripts are critiqued and evaluated in depth.
Our resident instructors are all talented and experienced writers. Most have been published nationally and others in local publications. Some are retired teachers and all of them bring their own unique perspective and leadership to the workshops they lead.
Throughout the year we invite professionals in various genre of writing to lead workshops or to conduct one-day seminars in the area of their expertise. This year we are proud to include Playwright Barry Jay Kaplan, novelist Mermer Blakeslee and teacher/writer Melora Wolff among our guest instructors.
Our workshops are informal, meeting from three to six sessions. Each participant has the chance to read aloud either a new work, or a work in progress. The instructor and the other writers in the workshop will critique the writing, offer constructive criticisms and suggestions for improvement. The number of participants in a workshop will vary from as few as six to as many as twelve. We want to be sure that each participant has an opportunity to read and receive evaluations. At the end of each workshop a public reading is arranged so that the work can be shared with the community.
Workshop participants include an eclectic mix of the Catskills’ population ranging from native-born residents to the summer visitors who migrate to the Catskills from all over the world.
Some of our participants have no writing experience at all and others have written for years. There are workshops geared toward all styles, genres, and experience. All that is required is a love of language and the desire to tell a story.