TEACHING WRITING with ELLEN S JAFFE

TUES NOV 10 

7.30p.m.-9.00p.m.

the LINC classroom, 4th floor, Central Branch, Hamilton Public Library   

Can creative writing be taught?  Can it be learned? What is the difference between writing courses for "writers" and for people who don't primarily identify as writers (e.g. seniors, people with various health and living problems)?   How can this second group of people benefit from writing workshops? And can books on writing be helpful?  Ellen S. Jaffe will talk about her experiences teaching writing in schools and community settings, and hopes other people will share their experiences of both learning and teaching -- remembering that we also learn when we teach.

Ellen S. Jaffe, a poet and fiction writer, has also written a book on the craft of writing, Writing Your Way: Creating a Personal Journal.  She has taught writing to children, adolescents, and adults in schools and various community and health-oriented organizations, everywhere from Fort Greene, Brooklyn to Moose Factory, Ontario -- and including Toronto and Hamilton, and has received Artist in Education and writing grants from the Ontario Arts Council.  Her most recent poetry collection is Skinny-Dipping With the Muse, Guernica Editions, 2014.  Ellen grew up in New York City, came to Canada in 1979, and has lived in Hamilton since 2000.