Nancy Harris Mclelland
Poetry, Prose, Opinions about Aging from an Ex-cowgirl Octogenarian.
Workshops and Retreats
My background
I taught language arts for twenty three years in a rural community college. A high percentage of the students were adults either coming to college for the first time or returning after a prolonged absence. On the first day of introductions in any class that involved writing, many would say the same thing in one way or another: “I’m not a writer.” A young police officer, taking freshman composition to move up a pay grade, wrote on his first paper, “I’d rather fight crime than write an essay.”
I loved working with these students, helping them gain confidence in the value of their life experiences and in their ability to express themselves in writing.
My workshops
This philosophy has carried over to my writing workshops. I have taught writing workshops at the Cowboy Poetry Gathering; Great Basin College; the Great Basin Writing Project; and Mendocino Coast Writing Conference. After retirement, I opened my home in historic Tuscarora, Nevada for two day, one-on-one writing retreats: Tuscarora Writers Retreats.
My favorite writing workshops
Most teachers are lifetime learners. I’m no exception. After retirement, I enjoyed taking writing workshops in interesting places, focusing on my own poetry and memoir. My most memorable experience was at the Key West Literary Seminar in Key West, Florida. I was one of twelve students selected for a four-day poetry workshop with former Poet Laureate, Billy Collins.
In-person workshops in a post-covid world: Tuscarora There is a post-covid renewed vitality in Tuscarora, a place I consider my heart’s home. Classes have resumed at the Tuscarora Pottery School; Society Hall is open on the weekends. I’m beginning to get inquiries: “What about those writing retreats you used to do?”
I am considering reprising the two-day, one-on-one Tuscarora Writers Retreats on weekends from June-September, in Tuscarora. I am also interested in individual or group workshops in Carson City beginning in the fall. Email me if you are interested in either, nancymclelland0@gmail.com.
