How to Blog: WICE Writers’ Workshop

As part of Wice’s 20th Annual Writers’ Workshop in Paris, tomorrow, July 5th, Pamela Poole will be giving a lecture on how to blog! 1:30 -2:30 pm for 15 Euros (not a bad price!). Covering all the issues regarding blogging in hour will require some speed-talking, for sure. Also, there’ll be a lecture on Paths to Publication (in France and in the US) from 3 to 4 pm.

WICE is located at 20 Boulevard Montparnasse, Metro: Duroc
Tel. 01 45 66 75 50

I’ve mentioned WICE in past posts as a hotbed of activity for Anglophones living in Paris. Two of the biggest attractions (in my opinion) are the annual writers’ workshop and the accelarated TEFL courses (which have just wrapped up at the end of June. New Fall courses will start up in September.

Several years ago, I attended the WICE writers’ workshop and it was definitely a good experience. Did I write the great American novel after attending? No, but I’m still writing. In truth, I’m not sure whether writing workshops do much to improve a writer’s skills, but it’s a great excuse to get together with other writers - and admire those that are better writers than we are! In this case, Dennis Hirson, who led our writing group at the time is an admirable example.

If anything, attending a writers’ conference might give you good material for future writing projects. Throw a bunch of writers into one room and you’re likely to come up with a nuclear meltdown or fireworks to be sure. Ron Suckenick, if you’re out there, remember Boulder! Michael McClure, Richard Hugo, etc, etc. Yes, it’s too easy to become a Writers’ Workshop junkie.

I’m glad to have some of these filed away in my memory banks - someday when I decide to write poetry again - I’ll put out Michael McClure’s deck of word cards - jasmine, jaguar, hiss and roll. Richard Hugo taking a gang of us in his convertible -off to the ice cream parlor.