Mil-Writing Workshop, Brookings, S.D., Feb. 28-Mar. 1

The Veterans Writing Project's Ron Capps will be conducting a free writing workshop, from Sat., Feb. 28 to Sun., Mar. 1, on the campus of South Dakota State University, Brookings, S.D.

The workshop was inspired in part by a conversation at the 2014 Great Plains Writers' Conference, also hosted by the university, in which students, military science and English faculty members, veterans agencies and offices, and other stakeholders explored opportunities for mutual support.

Based in Washington, D.C., the Veterans Writing Project facilitates literary writing workshops nationwide; supports research on writing as a therapeutic intervention in healthcare; and promotes military-themed writing through its "O-Dark-Thirty" on-line and print journals. Workshop participants–including service members, veterans, and family members–learn about techniques that are applicable to writing fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and plays.

Amber Jensen, an instructor at SDSU, also notes that Capps' South Dakota seminar is an extension of a writing workshop that meets regularly on the campus of South Dakota State University. Attendance ranges from 4 to 8 participants, and meetings are every other week. "Our goal in the workshop is to create a sense of community, and to ensure that our military-affiliated students and community members know that we value their stories," she writes.

Space in the Veterans Writing Project weekend workshop is limited. Lunch is provided. To register for the workshop, contact Jensen via e-mail: amber.l.jensen AT sdstate.edu