Pen Welsh

“Briana had a very fine line to walk, given different levels of experience with writing, a variety of comfort levels with weighty material, and contrasting communication styles that ranged from indirect to very direct. She navigated this with grace and kept us focused on moving our work forward - each and every one of us. Demonstrating respect for each class member as a valued teacher is one of the greatest gifts a teacher can give. I am grateful to Briana for giving this her very best effort. She is a natural teacher...I've made clear steps toward freeing myself to write what may (or may not) become creative non-fiction essays, as opposed to a fictional memoir. I thought I would reach into, and organize, my archive of texts and images during the program. I did to some extent. However, the material I've generated anew is what is most exciting to me. It is more vulnerable and closer to a sense of urgency than what I'd created prior to the program. I‘ve gained a greater sense of the variety components I need to include in any given essay to keep the writing process interesting to me. This is due in part to the great reading suggestions made by Briana Gwin.”