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The Kurt Brown Prize, which supports writers applying to residencies, workshops etc. can go towards applying for the Prague Summer Program as well! ![]()
www.awpwriter.org/contests/kurt_brown_prizes_overview
Association of Writers & Writing Programs
www.awpwriter.org
AWP provides community, opportunities, ideas, news, and advocacy for writers and teachers of writing.
"Brought back—& this is far beyond nostalgia—an *authentic* sense of a time that it was a privilege to be touched by." - Stu Dybek, permanent faculty member, on our latest symposium ✌🏼
Alan Levy and the Left Bank of the 90s: A PSP Symposium on Prague's Ex-Patriot Literary Tradition
youtu.be
"If a writer is of a certain age, no matter where she or he may place in the vaunted Pecking Order, that individual will have accumulated many, many names. A...
Missed it? Here's a recording of our entire symposium on Alan Levy and the "left bank of the 90s." It was quite a long conversation - almost like ones we might have on the ground in Prague during a PSP session (feel free to skip the intro by moderator Ema Katrovas.) For an overview of the panel members, open the video in YouTube and see description! We look forward to inviting you to future symposia!
Alan Levy and the Left Bank of the 90s: A PSP Symposium on Prague's Ex-Patriot Literary Tradition
youtu.be
"If a writer is of a certain age, no matter where she or he may place in the vaunted Pecking Order, that individual will have accumulated many, many names. A...
We had a lovely symposium today on Alan Levy and the idea of Prague as the Left Bank of the 90s. One of our panel members was Helen Epstein, who was kind enough to share this article Alan Levy wrote about her in 1994 (not available anywhere else online). ![]()
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If you missed it today, we will be sharing a video of the entire symposium here and with our mailing list. Stay tuned for future online events!
Alan Levy died April 2nd, 2004. Our conversation today will be talking about memories of him but also, in Richard Katrovas' words, discussing "just what the hell happened in the 90s in Prague regarding the interaction of a small, mostly American contingent of English-language writers and adventurers with the Czech literary culture and intelligentsia." ![]()
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Come listen in with your coffee (if it's morning for you) or beer (if's evening or afternoon.) 🍻
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We're preparing a very interesting panel discussion on the Anglophone expatriate scene in Prague. Check out our list of panel members in the description of the event!
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Sharing this for all of you who care about artists and artist-led organizations - Reginald Edmund is a playwright and co-director/founder of Black Lives Black Words which "commissions, develops and produces bold and unapologetic artistic responses to current social and political issues." They're about halfway through their virtual program - and ticket sales are still open. I hope some of the PSP community decide to attend - to support independent theater and an organization which happens to have been launched by a PSP alum. ![]()
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P.S.: I (PSP coordinator Ema Katrovas) virtually attended one show (Reginald Edmund's Ride Share) and it was top notch. The medium of live virtual theater through the (intimate?) medium of Zoom is a very interesting thing to explore!
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𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠: ![]()
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We have our dates for 2021 (fingers crossed!) and, besides halving tuition, we are really excited to announce four FULL Fellowships we will be offering starting in 2021: ![]()
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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐳 𝐊𝐚𝐟𝐤𝐚 𝐅𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 for unique and historically underrepresented voices![]()
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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨ž𝐞𝐧𝐚 𝐍ě𝐦𝐜𝐨𝐯á 𝐅𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 for working mothers![]()
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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐧𝐨š𝐭 𝐋𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐠 𝐅𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 for writers in need![]()
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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕á𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐯 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐥 𝐅𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 for writers who have not formally studied creative writing and/or have embarked on long-term, fulltime careers outside of creative writing![]()
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We will also be offering 𝐓𝐀𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬. . ![]()
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Learn more: praguesummer.com/program-info/scholarships/![]()
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We hope to be able to welcome you in Prague next summer! ![]()
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P.S.: We will provide a 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐝 should we have to cancel the program, or should you be unable to travel, due to the pandemic. ![]()
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P.P.S.: Regardless of whether we run a program next year, we will be running 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐲𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐮𝐦𝐬 which will be open to the public. Sign up for our mailing list at the top of this page so as not to miss our online meetings!
Our 3rd and last publishing symposium, this time with literary agent Marly Rusoff, is today at 12:00 ET / 18:00 Central EU / 9:30pm IST! Anyone can join (Zoom link below.) Questions are welcome! ![]()
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Marly Rusoff began her career as a bookseller in Minneapolis while still a student at the University of Minnesota. The store became a gathering place for writers and it was upstairs that she and a number of them formed the Loft, a nationally recognized nonprofit organization whose mission is to foster a writing community and an audience for literature.The list of authors with whom she has worked as a publicist and/or marketer includes Margaret Atwood, Thomas Cahill, Ethan Canin, Pat Conroy, Alex Kotlowitz, Tim O’Brien, Dennis Lehane, Bill Moyers, Sena Jeter Naslund, Cokie Roberts and Paul Theroux. At Doubleday she created the yearlong marketing plan for the launch of The Century by Peter Jennings and Todd Brewster. While at Doubleday, Rusoff also created the first Reading Group Guide specifically aimed at book groups, a popular marketing tool now widely used by publishers to encourage both sales and reading through active community interaction with books. In 2001, she opened the Marly Rusoff Literary Agency. She has sold fiction and memoir by authors such as Patricia Hampl, Arthur Phillips, Meg Waite Clayton, Ron Rash, Pat Conroy and others.![]()
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Join the Zoom meeting, here: ![]()
us02web.zoom.us/j/85293706306![]()
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rusoffagency.com/
rusoffagency.com
Marly Rusoff Literary Agency, Literary Agencies, Author Representation, Fiction, Nonfiction, Agent, Book Agent, Books, Publishers, Writers, Published, Unpublished
Our 2nd publishing symposium is today! Anyone can join the discussion and ask questions. Join us at 12 ET / 18:00 Central EU / 9:30pm IST at the link below: ![]()
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us02web.zoom.us/j/82073730149![]()
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Our panel: ![]()
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Hana Zahradníková holds a degree in English and Czech literature and linguistics from Charles University, Prague. She has worked as an EFL and CFL teacher, and taught English and Czech at high school. She has translated fiction and poetry of, among others, Michael Ondaatje, J.K. Rowling, Chris Cleave, Geraldine Brooks, and Robert Eversz. Currently she works as an acquiring editor for one of the oldest and biggest Czech independent publishers, Argo![]()
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Joshua Mensch is a poet and one of the founding editors of B O D Y. His poems have appeared in Plume, Brick, The Collagist, Smartish Pace, and elsewhere. He is the author of BECAUSE (W.W. Norton & Co. in 2018.) He lives in Prague, Czech Republic.![]()
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Maya Slouka is a private literary editor and writing coach specializing in both literary and commercial fiction and nonfiction. She focuses on helping clients develop structure, character, plot, voice, and style. Over the last nine years she has worked with bestsellers and newcomers and has acted as an on-call private editor for a number of literary agents.
Our first online publishing symposium, with Kate Gale, starts in half an hour - drop in at the link below! ![]()
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us02web.zoom.us/j/81574923288We are hosting our first of three online Publishing Symposiums tomorrow at 12:00pm ET. Anyone can attend! We'll post the link here. ![]()
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Our first guest will be Kate Gale. ![]()
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Kate Gale is the co-founder of Red Hen Press, founded in 1994, where she acts as Managing Editor. She is also the Editor of the Los Angeles Review, which is part of Red Hen Press. She was the 2005-2006 president of PEN USA, and serves on the board of the Poetry Society of America. She teaches in the MFA program at the University of Nebraska in Omaha and the MFA program in Ashland, Ohio.![]()
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redhen.org/
We are hosting our first of three online Publishing Symposiums tomorrow at 12:00pm ET. Anyone can attend! We'll post the link here. ![]()
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Our first guest will be Kate Gale. ![]()
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Kate Gale is the co-founder of Red Hen Press, founded in 1994, where she acts as Managing Editor. She is also the Editor of the Los Angeles Review, which is part of Red Hen Press. She was the 2005-2006 president of PEN USA, and serves on the board of the Poetry Society of America. She teaches in the MFA program at the University of Nebraska in Omaha and the MFA program in Ashland, Ohio.![]()
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redhen.org/
Peaceful protest is a privilege, a privilege the Czechs and Slovaks had in '89 during the Velvet Revolution. We stand with all those who protest unjust systems, regardless of whether they have the privilege of doing so peacefully.
We're cutting off registration for our online "soirées" on June 3rd! Visit www.praguesummer.com for details!
PSP 2020 has been canceled but new opportunities somehow grew out of that decision! We will be hosting free online get-togethers in June/July for 2020 and 2021 applicants (there will be a cutoff on the latter's participation in the online meetings because we want to keep the groups small.) We look forward to doing what we do best, which is bringing writers closer - at least virtually. ![]()
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www.praguesummer.com
The Prague Summer Program for Writers - Prague Summer Program for Writers
www.praguesummer.com
We love to be able to share this timely poem by Alison Deming, who was part of our faculty five times (she was kind enough to look up the exact years: 1999, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010.) You can even listen to Alison herself read the poem - click at the top of the page!
Letter to America by Alison Hawthorne Deming • Terrain.org
www.terrain.org
Click button above to hear Alison Hawthorne Deming read this poem, or click here to download the poem in .mp3 format. Territory Drive I went for a walk again today over the hilly street ...
Those of you who have been to Prague - especially in the summer - will appreciate how different it looks now.
Praha, jak jste ji ještě neviděli. A snad už ani neuvidíte - Novinky.cz
www.novinky.cz
Prázdný Karlův most, před staroměstským orlojem ani noha a kolem Pražského hradu pochodují maximálně vojáci. Kvůli zákazu volného pohybu osob se české hlavní město vylidnilo a v tě...
For anyone who was thinking about applying to the PSP 2020 session: Should the program be canceled this year, your acceptance and scholarships would be postponed to the following session. And it just so happens to have always been our policy that if you wish to postpone your participation, for any reason, including avoiding travel right after a pandemic, you may do so whilst retaining your scholarship, even should we decide to run the program this year! So now, in fact, is still a good time to apply. ![]()
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And remember: ![]()
- there is no application fee![]()
- every application is read by director Richard Katrovas and receives feedback ![]()
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For more info, see letter from founder and director Richard Katrovas to the writers accepted to the 2020 session.
Hear ye, hear ye! Want to pitch your project on Twitter? A former alumna wrote us about this Twitter event which allows writers to pitch themselves/their work this October 28th and 29th (YA literature and general fiction/non-fiction respectively). It is for a broad range of writers, but please read the description from their website: "#DVpit is a Twitter event created to showcase pitches from marginalized voices that have been historically underrepresented in publishing. This includes (but is not limited to): Native peoples and people of color; people living and/or born/raised in underrepresented cultures and countries; disabled persons (including neurodiverse); people living with illness; people on marginalized ends of the socioeconomic, cultural and/or religious spectrum; people identifying within LGBTQIA+; and more. Any decisions regarding eligibility are yours to make." dvpit.com/index
dvpit.com
Disclaimer: As #DVpit has grown, unaffiliated groups/accounts have appropriated the hashtag and logo without authorization. Please note that if an event or giveaway is endorsed by or affiliated with #...
Congratulations and thank you for the kind words, Saras Manickam! ![]()
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“I owe so much to Richard Katrovas, the founding director of the Prague Summer Program for Writers. It was largely attended by American writers and had fantastic teachers. It blew my mind, and each time I went, I learnt and grew exponentially.”
How small-town girl Saras Manickam became first Malaysian to win 2019 Commonwealth Short Story Prize
www.optionstheedge.com
The Malaysian writer dipped into a composite of reality to pen her winning entry.
Some snapshots from this year's PSP session - already memories. Eighteen writers hailing from the US, Ireland, Belgium and India attended this year's workshop. We presented readings by (in order of appearance) Francesca Bell, Stu Dybek, Kate Gale, Mark Slouka, Joshua Mensch, Justin Quinn, Richard Katrovas, and Patricia Hampl. Highlights of the special events include a wonderful lecture on publishing by Kate Gale, founder of Red Hen Press, followed by Q&A with Hana Zahradníková and Joshua Mensch and a visit to the samizdat library, Libri Poibiti, where students could pass around underground literature publications while listening to a lecture by samizdat publisher Mr. Gruntorád. And, like every year, we had tours by Miloš Čuřík (pictured) and professor Petr Bílek. We look forward to next year!
We must brag a little, now, as we wait for the announcement of the winner of the 2019 Commonwealth Short Story Prize: One of the only 5 (!) regional winners is Saras Manickam and her short story "My Mother Pattu." You may read her story, as well as that of the other finalists, at the link. Saras attended the program three times and it feels strange, this year, not to have her here!
Commonwealth Short Story Prize 2019 Regional Winners | Commonwealth Writers
www.commonwealthwriters.org
The international judging panel has selected five regional winners for the 2019 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, from 5,081 entries and a shortlist of 21 stories.
And...we're off! First day of workshops today, here in Prague at the University of Creative Communication, with a very engaging group of writers. Looking forward to the rest of the exciting month we have planned!
A recommendation for our Prague friends: #hypocrisy has been described as 'life-affirming artistry' (Everything Theatre ★★★★★), 'worthwhile and poignant' (The Wee Review), and 'a tonic for the tribal times we live in' (Darren McGarvey, Orwell Prize-winning author). You can see the show at the Museum of Alchemists in Prague between May 24th to 27th at 8pm!
www.praguefringe.com
5- star groundbreaking Scottish poet fuses a searing script with original music. #Hypocrisy crackles with energy and wit, sees the personal become political and reminds us that we are in charge of our...
Turns out there's a scientific reason writers should spend time abroad! This fascinating article is a must-read for any writer wondering if study abroad programs are a good investment.
For a More Creative Brain, Travel
www.theatlantic.com
How international experiences can open the mind to new ways of thinking
There's still time to apply to the 2019 Kurt Brown prizes! From their website: "Thinking about attending a summer writers’ conference? The Kurt Brown Prizes award $500 each year to emerging writers in fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction who wish to attend a writers’ conference, center, retreat, festival, or residency."
For our Prague (and Czech-speaking or at least Czech-curious) folks, there is a reading coming up of Mark Slouka's memoir /Nobody's Son/ translated into Czech as /Daleko v srdci/!
Václav Havel and Arnošt Lustig both died in winter seven years ago (December 18th and February 26th respectively.) Today, sometime between the anniversaries of their passing, is as good a day as any to go back to some memories we happened upon in our archives: The presentation of honorary doctorates to these two men by the PSP and WMU over a decade ago (to browse the content of this longer video, please view it directly on YouTube.)
Václav Havel and Arnošt Lustig Receive Honorary Doctorates for Literature
youtu.be
On July 3rd, 2006, in the Magna Aula of Charles University's Carolinas in Prague, the Prague Summer Program, then under the auspices of Western Michigan Univ...
Finally, the next video in our little series of interviews with our faculty, this time with Patricia Hampl. For those of you who visited Prague and attended the PSP already, this video will not contain a lot of new information but it WILL allow you to be in the warm, glowing presence of Patricia Hampl as she bravely weathers the direct summer sunshine (courtesy of inexperienced camerawoman, Ema Katrovas.)
Interview with Patricia Hampl About What Keeps Her Coming Back to Prague
www.youtube.com
Patricia Hampl, author of A Romantic Education, among many other books and memoirs talks about the Prague Summer Program and Prague.
Jan Palach, the Czech student who set himself on fire to protest the re-occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1968, died 50 years ago today, after a three-day battle with his burns. On the anniversary of his self-immolation three days ago, Czechs gathered on Wenceslas Square and over a hundred other places across the Czech Republic to pay their respects.
Ten years ago I visited Prague the semester I had a sabbatical! A city I first went to one June in the early years of the 21st c. as part of the Prague Summer Program for Writers, back when it was connected with UNO. I think they should have a reunion! If ever there is a city I could fall in love with, it's Prague. And Madrid... and Paris... and who knows where else?
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
Yesterday, the 17th of November, saw the 29th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. Many Czechs took to the streets to continue protests which had started last spring, focusing on the controvery surrounding prime minister Andrej Babiš. This is a story to follow if you're interested in how the issues facing the US are, in fact, part of a larger picture, a conflict unfolding in Europe as much as in the US.
For our friends in New Orleans, we recommend this Improv Conference starting November 30th. The conference in New Orleans brings together internationally known performers, artists and scholars in an exploration of improvisation across the arts – cuisine, music, literature, visual arts, politics and oral history. More at: www.improvconferencenola.com
Alumni News: Anuradha Vijayakrishnan's book of poetry /The Who-Am-I Bird/ recently out with Bombaykala Books (in in comments)! Anu joined us in Prague in 2010.
www.thehindu.com
Banker-writer Anuradha Vijayakrishnan on her maiden book of poems and what writing means to her
Another interview made during the PSP this summer - this time with National Book Award winner Jaimy Gordon!
Jaimy Gordon on Prague as a City for Writers
www.youtube.com
National Book Award winner Jaimy Gordon talks about Prague as a great city for writers.
Alumni News: Don't miss Micah McCrary's memoir-in-essays, Island in the City, just out this September! Micah attended the PSP in 2012 and has since been back to Prague several times. Congratulations, Micah!
Island in the City - University of Nebraska Press
www.nebraskapress.unl.edu
What forges the unique human personality? In Island in the City Micah McCrary, taking his genetic inheritance as immutable, considers the role geography has played in shaping who he is....
This is the first in a small series of interviews about the Prague Summer Program which we filmed in Prague this summer. Short interviews with Jaimy Gordon and Patricia Hampl coming soon!
Check out our ad in NewPages! As you can see from the lineup of writing programs, we are the only one of our kind on the list. Know anyone who might be interested? Put them in touch with us! We are always happy to answer questions.
www.newpages.com
NewPages Classifieds— Workshops, Conferences & Programs — Learn more about various writing conferences, workshops, festivals, residencies, and MFA...
equal parts hype and humble to appear alongside the legendary Stuart Dybek w this one. thanks to the Prague Summer Program for Writers for putting me on now, and for bringing me out to that fairy tale city way back when. in lots of ways it informed what i do in tufo each summer--foundational, for sure.
“Eyes On Me” by Patrick McNeil
meluzinazine.com
Meluzína is an online anthology launched in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Prague Summer Program for Writers. It compiles works by past and present students and faculty.
We have been quietly assembling our Meluzína zine since it launched at the end of July. These are our humble beginnings. Alongside past PSP students, you may find works by Barbara Cully, Stu Dybek and Richard Katrovas. Are you a former PSP student or faculty member? Consider submitting to our anthology zine! Visit www.meluzinazine.com!
For our Prague folks - we're excited that Helen Epstein will be giving a reading at the American Center on September 27th! She is a former PSP faculty member and, more importantly, a fabulous writer and important thinker. A conversation with her is not to be missed!
Helen Epstein: What We Do Not Talk About | DISCUSSION | Americké Centrum
www.americkecentrum.cz
Helen Epstein is the author, co-author or translator of ten books of literary non-fiction, including the ground-breaking Children of the Holocaust, one of the first books to examine the inter-generati...
Today marks 50 years after the sudden end of the Prague Spring. Even as we admire these photos let us remember that not all invasions involve tanks and machine guns.
Photos: 50 Years Since a Soviet Invasion Ended the Prague Spring
www.theatlantic.com
In August 1968, the Soviet Union sent 2,000 tanks and thousands of Warsaw Pact troops into Czechoslovakia to seize control and put down its growing pro-democratic government.
Our 2018 PSP family is dispursing today - armed, we hope, with lots of new knowledge and experience, though, like every year, the teaching was mutual. And we will never forget the 25th-birthday cake with which this year's students surprised Richard and Ema!
Nearly three decades after /A Romantic Education/, Patricia Hampl shares the story she did not tell in her first book about traveling alone in totalitarian Czechoslovakia. You'll want to listen to this excerpt all the way through or, better yet, read Hampl's latest book /The Art of the Wasted Day/.
Self-proclaimed "ex-poet" Richard Katrovas reads from his current project /Chained to a Tree: A Memoir in Essays About Poets and the Fools Who Love Them./ Don't be fooled by the sarcasm; Richard's love for poetry runs deep.
Spoken stories and written stories blended together seamlessly at Stuart Dybek's reading for the PSP last week, where he read from his now-classic /I Sailed with Magellan./
Ever wonder what National Book Award winner Jaimy Gordon has been working on? At Tuesday's reading, she gave us a sneak peek of her next novel and introduced us to her compelling anti-heroine Frau Doctor Änne Lepus-Fuchs. During her reading, Jaimy looked up and said: "By the way, don't be afraid to laugh. My whole take on life is to laugh at macabre things."
At yesterday's reading, Joshua Mensch read from his new lyric memoir /Because/ and (at 4:57) talked about the refrain "because," around which he structured the narrative. /Because/ was published by Norton in May and is available at the Shakespeare and Sons bookshop (see link in comments to order online.)
In the spirit of today's walking tour on Franz Kafka, here are some bizarre incarnations of him captured around Prague - besides the, now classic, statue by Jaroslav Rona next to the Spanish Synagogue (at which today's tour will end), there is also the installation by prankster-artist David Černý behind the shopping mall on Národní třída and - even stranger - the shopping mall's Kafka-themed ad campaign and a restaurant in Old Town offering "Kafka snob food." Kafkaesque? Certainly.
From last Thursday's Prague Summer Program reading: Mark Slouka, inspired by the Harely-Davidson convention in Prague last week, reads his story "Angels Come to Panorama Heights" from his latest book /All That Is Left Is All That Matters./
From last night's reading: Sylva Fischerová reads her poem "Hydra of the Little Daily Octopuses" co-translated into English with Stuart Friebert.
The first PSP reading of the year, with poet Justin Quinn, went by very fast last evening. Justin read not only his own poetry but also his translations of Czech poet Bohuslav Reynek. We will continue with the contemporary Czech tradition this evening with Czech poet Sylva Fischerová!
Yesterday was the last day to send work to our Meluzína zine - but don't worry, once we go live on July 23rd, we will be accepting submissions continually! We look forward to reading the work of our past students during July - and look forward to meeting this year's students later today!
Want to know a little more about the Meluzína zine? We´ve added some information on our website. While much of this information has been sent out to former students (the ones were could reach) this will put all the information in one place. Let us know if you have questions! praguesummer.com/meluzina-zine/
Meluzína Zine – Prague Summer Program
praguesummer.com
To celebrate our quarter-century of service, we are creating an online zine dedicated to the works of our students and faculty. Our zine, called Meluzína, will launch on the 23rd of July, 2018, at th...
We´re only a couple months away from beginning our 25th-anniversary session. As we prepare, we also reflect on the historical context of our program, 27 years after the Velvet Revolution. Here is PSP director Richard Katrovas´ reflection, followed by his daughter Ema Katrovas´ answer to that reflection. It is a meeting of the old and the new, which is, in a way, one of the things the PSP is about! praguesummer.com/why-the-prague-summer-program-for-writers-has-existed-for-twenty-five-years-and-...
praguesummer.com
Why the Prague Summer Program for Writers Has Existed for Twenty-five Years, and Why It May Endure Another Twenty-five From the Directorby admin on May 7, 2018 As we come upon our 25th anniversary ses...
Mark Baker, who writes for Lonely Planet and other travel guides, just posted this terrific guide to architecture in Prague. A good way to prepare for your visit, or just to enjoy a moment of armchair travel. markbakerprague.com/a-primer-for-reading-buildings/
A Primer for Reading Buildings - Mark Baker | Travel Writer in Prague
markbakerprague.com
A few months ago, a friend asked me if I could put together a corporate presentation on Prague for the American media company HBO, which had established a regional HQ here. The presentation would intr...
Congratulations to Patricia Hampl, who we are proud to say is one of our permanent faculty members, on her new book The Art of the Wasted Day. We can´t wait to talk more about this work with Trish in Prague this summer! Here is a wonderful review on NPR: www.npr.org/2018/04/23/604910290/art-of-the-wasted-day-makes-a-case-for-letting-the-mind-wander
'Art Of The Wasted Day' Makes A Case For Letting The Mind Wander
www.npr.org
Patricia Hampl's sharp new book argues that daydreaming is a vital part of life. Maureen Corrigan says, after reading it, "you'll understand more of what makes life worth living."
It pains us to say that Pavel Šrut, one of the most original Czech poets (full stop), passed away on Friday. His verse never seemed to take itself too seriously whilst, in its seeming banality, always brushing up against something profound; he was an embodiment, in other words, of the best aspects of the Czech spirit. The PSP had the privilege of taking part in preparing a book of his poetry in English. We do not know the exact circumstances of his death but we hope he spent his last days at his summer house in the beautiful spring weather, drinking a half-liter of beer. We know, at least, this is how he spent much of his last years. We´ll miss you, Pavel. www.novinky.cz/kultura/469892-zemrel-pavel-srut.html
www.novinky.cz
V pátek večer zemřel básník, autor knížek pro děti, textař a překladatel Pavel Šrut, bylo mu 78 let. Jménem rodiny to agentuře ČTK řekl publicista Jaroslav Veis. Šrut byl nositelem pre...
To celebrate our 25th anniversary, we will launch our very own online zine at the end of our 2018 session which we will call Meluzína! The zine will consolidate the works of our past students and faculty, including the students who will participate in the program this year! Are you a past PSP student we have not yet contacted? If so, let us know! In the meantime, enjoy our logo!
It´s the last day to apply to the Prague Summer Program 25th anniversary session! We´ve received some great applications (and perhaps still will) and look forward to meeting everyone in the summer!
We're excited to finally announce this year's PSP faculty! Stuart Dybek, Jaimy Gordon, Patricia Hampl, Joshua Mensch, Justin Quinn and Mark Slouka will lead workshops, conduct conferences and give readings with spirited Q&A sessions! Our Czech faculty includes literary scholar Petr Bílek and Hana Zahradníková, editor at the prestigious Argo publishing company. We are also happy to have Czech poet Sylva Fischerová on board for a reading and a talk on the Czech literary scene after 1989. As in the past, we will also arrange Skype conferenced with writers who are yet to be announced. Once our student list is complete, we will post faculty spotlights!
Another Thursday, another Bohemian legend, this time an actual translation of Alois Jirásek's famous retelling, which takes the form of a prophecy. praguesummer.com/bohemian-legends-iii-the-knights-sleeping-in-blanik-mountain/
Bohemian Legends III: The Knights Sleeping in Blaník Mountain – Prague Summer Program
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Bohemian Legends III: The Knights Sleeping in Blaník Mountain Uncategorizedby admin on March 1, 2018 At the end of Alois Jirásek´s 1894 book of Czech legends, from which we have drawn in our other ...
The Prague Summer Program for Writers 25th Anniversary!
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Writers, join the Prague Summer Writing Program June 30 to July 23, 2018 to hone your craft as they celebrate their 25th anniversary.
It´s legends Thursday again! Here we bring you another Czech legend, this time about Horymír, his talking horse, Šemík, and their battle with greed. Take note: Like the last one, this legend also partially takes place at Vyšehrad, just up the hill from Hotel Inos, where our students stay throughout July! praguesummer.com/bohemian-legends-ii-horymir-and-his-loyal-steed-semik/
Oh, the wonders of legends! Whether you´re preparing to join us in Prague, or have already been to Prague, or even if you´re simply a lover of stories, you´re sure to be enchanted by the tale of queen Libuše and her dealings with the patriarchy. No, she does not defeat it, but she does get to choose a just ruler in her place, a man who has likely been her lover for some time even as she ruled as an unmarried queen. Enjoy and stay tuned for more Bohemian legends! praguesummer.com/bohemian-legends-part-i/
Bohemian Legends, Part I – Prague Summer Program
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Bohemian Legends, Part I Uncategorizedby admin on February 15, 2018 For writers, legends and myths may be the most captivating records of a particular culture and Bohemian legends are particularly cap...
One of the Czech Republic´s many strange destinations - and our students get to see it every year!
Check us out at New Pages! www.newpages.com/workshops-conferences-programs/prague-summer-program-for-writers-2018
The Prague Summer Program for Writers 25th Anniversary!
www.newpages.com
Writers, join the Prague Summer Writing Program June 30 to July 23, 2018 to hone your craft as they celebrate their 25th anniversary.
Why is the Prague Summer Program the world's best residency for writers? Richard Katrovas has put together a list which you can now read on the front page of our website. However, it bears repeating here: ![]()
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--Beginning in 1993, PSP was the first study-abroad program for writers; we’ve learned how to blend creative writing and culture studies in a way that enhances the creative process. ![]()
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--The PSP is tethered to one of the world’s safest, most beautiful, most culturally rich cities.![]()
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--The PSP is the best-organized program of its kind in the world.![]()
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--The PSP is the least expensive program of its kind in the world.![]()
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--The PSP works with home institutions in the granting of academic credit.![]()
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--No one is invited to join the PSP whose work doesn’t show promise.![]()
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--The PSP mentors strike a balance between honesty and compassion.![]()
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--The PSP offers significant financial assistance in the form of partial scholarships.![]()
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--The PSP honors all aesthetic and philosophical points of view that are compassionate and life-affirming.
Finding time to write is as much about taking risks as it is about discipline! praguesummer.com/finding-time-to-write-during-your-study-abroad-program/
Did you know Prague is called the City of a Hundred Spires? Here´s the last installment of our Places to See in Prague series, this time focusing on three towers. praguesummer.com/places-to-see-in-prague-part-iii-t…/
Here´s part II of November´s Places to See in Prague blog series! praguesummer.com/places-to-see-in-prague-part-ii-keep-storming-the-castle/
Another piece “straight out the noggin” from our founder, Richard Katrovas, this time a rather trippy interview with the Golem. Do you have any work, no matter how strange, that is related to Prague or the Czech Republic? Let us know! More on that soon. praguesummer.com/the-word-made-mud-interview-with-the-golem-during-which-katrovas-attempts-to-hir...
praguesummer.com
The Word Made Mud: Interview with the Golem During Which Katrovas Attempts to Hire Him for the 25th Anniversary of the Prague Summer Program Uncategorizedby admin on November 23, 2017 The Golem, throu...
It´s never too early to begin planning for study abroad. Here´s a motley list of things to see in Prague during the PSP! It´s on our blog, where we post on a range of topics related to the program. More soon! praguesummer.com/have-fun-storming-the-castle-places-to-see-in-prague/
Our very own Ema Katrovas.
www.wmich.edu
contact: Dannielle SturgeonOctober 16, 2017 | WMU News Katrovas KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Western Michigan University School of Music alumna and soprano Ema Katrovas will perform a recital of songs by Czech ...
This piece of graffiti depicting Hašek´s iconic character and Czech mascot the Good Soldier Švejk is visible from the exit of Prague´s Vltavská metro stop where perhaps a thousand people see it each day. Hašek´s iconic character was a kind of non-violence activist; he avoided combat and conflict by acting child-like and naïve, the absurdity of which was at the heart of the comedy of Hašek´s writing. However, he came to represent the average Czech, and thus Czech pub and beer-drinking culture, which can be nationalistic and often xenophobic, even as it remains fundamentally passive and non-violent. Needless to say, we prefer this version of the Good Soldier. (Photo by Ema Katrovas, 10.5.17)
Anyone who has attended the PSP can probably name some of director Richard Katrovas' catchphrases. One of them is "fresh out the noggin," which he uses often to characterize recently written work (i.e. "show me your work, even if it´s fresh out the noggin.") Well, here is something fresh out the noggin by Richard Katrovas himself, an essay in which the PSP figures prominently. You may read it on our PSP blog! praguesummer.com/awp-and-me-a-meditation-by-richard-katrovas/
“AWP and Me: A Meditation” by Richard Katrovas – Prague Summer Program
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“AWP and Me: A Meditation” by Richard Katrovas Uncategorizedby admin on October 1, 2017 The following essay is from a book the PSP program director Richard Katrovas is working on: Chained to a Tre...
We started off as a unique study-abroad program in a city in front of which the Iron Courtain just recently rose. It required a leap of faith to believe it would all work. We´ve been an independent entitiy for four years, now, and the world is much more connected, and Prague much more touristy, than it was in the early 90s. Innovation, and maybe a little rule breaking, remain at the heart of our program, however. Here we have a little rule-rethinking in terms of academic credit available on our website. praguesummer.com/program-info/application-info/
Academic Credit – Prague Summer Program
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Over its first two decades, the PSP granted undergraduate and graduate credit first through Metropolitan College of University of New Orleans, then through the Haenicke Institute of Western Michigan U...
So called "non-traditional" students, usually women over 60, often form the heart of each PSP session and bring with them a host of diverse experiences through which they teach as much as they are taught. We proudly fight ageism in the arts and look forward to continuing to do so in our 2018 session! www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2017/sep/08/all-the-awards-for-young-writers-amount-to-discri...
All the awards for young writers amount to discrimination | Joanna Walsh
www.theguardian.com
Authors under 40 get disproportionate support and their valorisation tends to push women and minorities to the margins
Here's another reason to attend the Prague Summer Program.
A Prague church that defied Nazi rule
www.bbc.com
The killing of Reinhard Heydrich, a key architect of the Final Solution, was one of the greatest acts of wartime resistance in occupied Europe.
I believe this program was a turning point for me. While I have published in various venues, I've never worked really hard at keeping it up. This summer in Prague was beyond enriching, and has encouraged me to begin writing a memoir of growing up in central Texas in a small Czech community, populated by relatives and friends of relatives who immigrated from what was then part of the Austria-Hungarian Empire in the early to mid 1900's. Wonderful program led by inspiring and gifted folks!
On this day in 1939, World War II officially began. Today, our thoughts are with our former faculty member, the late Arnošt Lustig, writer and Holocaust survivor, who both inspired and challenged us throughout his collaboration with the Prague Summer Program. The Holocaust was only one of many hells which humans have created for each other. In remembering it, we acknowledge all such hells.
The arduous but endlessly rewarding process of editing which, even for the most experienced writers, is often a team effort - that´s what the Prague Summer Program is all about! www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/08/the-secret-life-of-a-book-manuscript/536982/
The Book He Wasn't Supposed to Write
www.theatlantic.com
A best-selling author submits a draft to his editor. Hijinks ensue.
On the night from the 20th to the 21st of August, Soviet tanks occupied Czechoslovakia, ending the Prague Spring. This is a clip from the film based on Milan Kundera´s novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being, mostly a collage of actual footage from the occupation. If you ever come to Prague, you´ll never take lightly this moment in history. www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FfR64aJ7fI
Wonderful to see great writing make it into the Atlantic as commentary on the upcoming eclipse! ![]()
www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/08/annie-dillards-total-eclipse/536148/
Annie Dillard's Classic Essay: 'Total Eclipse'
www.theatlantic.com
"Seeing a partial eclipse bears the same relation to seeing a total eclipse as kissing a man does to marrying him."
One of the many views from Vyšehrad, the oldest part of Prague, where all the legends come from:
The amazing 2017 PSP writers! So wonderful to have shared Prague with you, and to have your wonderful work shared with us! Thank you!
Thank you Gao, from PSP 2017, for capturing this beautiful sunset over Prague this summer!
It's always a blessing being in Prague! Can hardly wait to meet the PSP students 2017! Safe travels! Private message us for any questions regarding your journey to Prague!
Prague Summer Program is excited about our upcoming 24th year this July! It's always a magical time! 2017 Participants, We look forward to sharing this amazing program with you!
Yet another reason to study writing with the Prague Summer Program: There are amazing fruit stands, EVERYWHERE! ![]()
Applications are still being accepted for July 2017! ![]()
www.Praguesummer.com
Time to get ready for Prague!![]()
www.Praguesummer.com![]()
Still accepting applications for July 2017! ![]()
Come celebrate our 24th consecutive year studying and teaching writing in Prague!
www.praguesummer.co
Another reason to attend the Prague Summer Program for Writers...![]()
bibliofone.wordpress.com/2017/02/24/the-huge-prague-indie-lit-scene-you-wish-you-knew-about/
The Huge PRAGUE INDIE LIT SCENE You Wish You Knew About
bibliofone.wordpress.com
“We are living in the Left Bank of the Nineties.” When legendary International Herald Tribune correspondent and founding Prague Post editor Alan Levy wrote these words, about “living in an histo...
Prague Summer Program is excited for 2017! It's going to be special! ![]()
Still accepting applications for this summers session to be held in July! ![]()
Come write in Prague for an entire month, and fall in love with Prague! ❤️😊❤️
Founding Director of PSP is on the organizer committee at WMU for this very important gathering on Addressing Threats to Justice, the Climate, and Civil Rights! ![]()
MLK Jr. Day ![]()
10-3 pm![]()
Rooms 208-210 ![]()
The Bernhard Center![]()
Western Michigan University