Archiving Ancestors, Collective Grief, and the Illusion of Time

The quiet and stillness of quarantine transported many of us beyond the bounds of time and space. Through our unexpected journeys, we may have traced new threads from ancestral roots to our present moments and felt them stretch towards an unknown somewhere on a vast continuum of time. Loss of place, people, and ways of being from the past, present, and anticipatory future left grief to linger and blur the edges of things. This generative writing series will invite us to craft multi-genre pieces that archive the transcendent, dizzying, perplexing, and new. We will honor our ancestors, known, unknown, and chosen. We will write from the dark blue of sorrow to expand our capacity for joy. We will dissolve the illusion of time to embody our place in the here and now, leaving behind our own ancestral trail. All levels welcome.

Participants will…

1. 1. Create an archive of objects and artifacts representative of experience with class themes.
   2. Write narratives and poems that explore class themes.
   3. Explore a variety of multimedia texts as inspiration for writing.
   4. Share writing in a safe and supportive community of writers.

Access Program
We want our writing classes to be accessible to everyone, regardless of income and background. We understand that our tuition structure can present obstacles for some people. Our Access Program offers writing class registrations at a reduced rate. The access program for writing classes covers 60% of the class tuition. Most writing classes have at least one access spot available. Contact Susan Moore at susan@literary-arts.org if you would like to take a writing class at the Access Rate.

Jacqueline Fitzgerald is a transformation coach, educator, and artist who centers healing, creativity, and embodied equity to cultivate collective belonging. After over a decade of experience as a teacher and facilitator in Portland area public schools, Jacque brings a trauma-informed, joyful, and loving approach to her values re-alignment work. Her writing has been published in The Oregonian, The Learning Network of the New York Times, and Beacon Magazine. Currently she is recording her debut album under the artist name Echo Onda.