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Register online for 2010 conference here. Contact Conference Director, Christian B. Gal cgal@bancroftschool.org Further Information The Conference Weekend The 2010 Young Writers' Conference runs from 8:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. on Saturday, November 20th, and from 10:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. on Sunday, November 21st. Core groups Each student works with a small core group over the course of the weekend. These core groups allow students to work on revising writing that they have brought to the conference and developing new pieces. In core groups, young writers become close to a small group of peers and a mentor. Workshops Students also participate in two other workshops, with two different mentors, giving them exposure to different peers, mentors, and ideas. The Keynote Address The weekend culminates with a keynote address that illustrates, inspires, and gives a glimpse into the techniques and practices of an accomplished professional writer. Over the course of the weekend, students also have the opportunity to network with peers from a variety of schools; look at and purchase books by mentors; work quietly on their writing; participate in a student reading; and enjoy the buzz of creativity that the conference generates. The Mentors Writers’ Conference mentors lead core groups and workshops. They are published authors with a passion for, and experience with, teaching teen-age writers. Polly Brown lives in Hopkinton and teaches at Touchstone Community School in Grafton. Her poems have appeared in various journals, including Beloit Poetry Journal, Appalachia, and Terrain.org. She won first prize in the Worcester County Poetry Association contest and received an award from the Massachusetts Artists Foundation. Polly’s book Blue Heron Stone still receives wide acclaim, as does her new book, Each Thing Torn from Any of Us. A former Bancroft parent, Polly was the Keynote Speaker at the 2008 Bancroft Young Writers’ Conference. Jim Beschta taught English at Quabbin Regional High School in Barre for over 30 years and for several years ran the Quabbin Poetry Conference. Jim’s first book of poetry, Cutting the Cemetery Lawn, was published in 2002. Jim was named English Teacher of the Year in 1992 by the Massachusetts Council of Teachers of English. He was the Keynote Speaker at the 2006 Bancroft Young Writers’ Conference. This former bear wrestler is retired and lives in Barre. Cecilia Galante holds a BA from King’s College, Pennsylvania, and an MFA in creative writing from Goddard College, Vermont. Some of her previous books include Hershey Herself, The Patron Saint of Butterflies, which was named an Oprah’s Book Club Teen Reading List Selection and a Cosmo Girl Book Club Best Beach Read, and Willowood, which came out in March of 2010. Her latest novel, The Sweetness of Salt, is scheduled for release in November. A former high-school English teacher, she now teaches creative writing at Wilkes University. Regie Gibson, Keynote Speaker and Former National Poetry Slam Individual Champion, received his MFA in Creative Writing from New England College. He has performed, taught, and lectured at universities, theaters and various other venues in seven countries, including Havana, Cuba. In 2008 he competed for and received the Absolute Poetry Award in Monfalcone, Italy. He and his work appear in the New Line Cinema film "love jones,” a film based on events in his life. He has been featured on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam and numerous times on NPR and has been nominated for a Boston Emmy Award for his performance on WGBH-2's Art Close-Up. He has received the Walker Scholarship for poetry from the Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center, and is a Chernin Center for the Arts Writer’s Fellow. He has been published in Poetry Magazine, Harvard’s Divinity Magazine, The Iowa Review and The Good Men Project, among others publications. His volume of poems Storms Beneath the Skin received the Golden Pen Award. Regie is the founder and Artistic Director of the literary-music ensemble NeoN JuJu which combines music with classic and contemporary literature. In 2010 Regie received the 2010 Massachusetts Cultural Council Award for poetry. John Hodgen has won numerous awards, including the Worcester County Young Writers’ Conference 1st Pen and Ink Award in 1999. John’s first book of poetry, In My Father’s House, received critical acclaim and his second book, Bread Without Sorrow, was published in 2001. John taught English at Shrewsbury High School for over 30 years and now teaches at Assumption College and Mt. Wachusett Community College. John won the Foley Prize from America Magazine and also won the AWP Donald Hall Prize in poetry, which included the publication of his third book, Grace. His most recent book, titled Heaven & Earth Holding Company, came out in August of 2010. John has come twice to Bancroft as a visiting poet and was the Keynote speaker at the 2005 Young Writers’ Conference. Scott McLennan, former long-time Entertainment Columnist for The Worcester Telegram and Gazette, writes for The Boston Globe and for Hawthorn Publications. While best known for his writing on live and recorded music, Scott also reviews books, architecture, and even ski resorts. Scott teaches writing to law students at Massachusetts School of Law. As well as an accomplished writer and teacher, Scott is a Bancroft Parent. Don McMillan’s award-winning fiction has appeared in literary magazines, such as Confrontation, SNReview, Pitkin-in-Progress, and Dogwood: A Journal of Poetry and Prose. A former newspaper reporter, Don recently completed thirteen years of service at Bancroft School, where he dedicated himself to enriching young people’s lives as Tennis Coach, English Teacher, English Department Head, Director of Curriculum, Creative Writing Guru, and Acting Director of College Admissions. He now guides adolescents through the college process as Managing Partner at Howland, Spence & McMillan, educational consultants.Comments From Past Participants and Mentors “The writers' conference brings everyone's thoughts to equal ground. The adults here aren't teachers; they're mentors, guiding and supporting you.” ~Priya D., participant "At the writer's conference, I write. Everything else just falls away; I get two days alone with my thoughts and a few beacons of light (the mentors) to lead me to pen, to paper, to words that come out of nowhere, and I finally feel peace inside, because whatever it is that keeps me up at night comes out, and I get to understand myself; and the best part is, the people at the conference generally get me too. Its like walking into a candle shop—the minute you inhale the air around you, you feel a dream-like sense of calm." ~Aashana D., participant “Being able to have published poets give you such positive and constructive feedback really makes you feel like this writing thing is possible. It's such a wonderful intensive time. All you have to do is write, eat, sleep, think, dream writing.” ~Molly S., participant "When you get students and teachers - who all feel the same way about words and books and language - under one roof, magic happens." ~Cecilia Galante, mentor "The writers’ conference is a formative experience for high school writers who may not get that kind of recognition or notice." ~John Hodgen, mentor |
 
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