'Copper Nickel,' ‘Women Writing West’ explore new altitudes, inspire new attitudes
(Oct. 20, 2008) Each writer, each speaker, each participant in the “Women Writing West” three-day symposium Oct. 15-17 shared a unique, important and inspirational perspective that culminated in the launch of the10th edition of the literary journal Copper Nickel.
Throughout the course of the three-days, more 500 people attended the events, with more than 100 people attending the launch party Friday, Oct. 17, at the Denver Press Club. “Our rooms were full at every hour,” says Jake York, faculty sponsor for Copper Nickel.
The three-day symposium featured readings and talks by Alyson Hagy, Pam Houston, Teresa Jordan, Page Lambert, Dierdre McNamer, Maria Melendez, Lee Ann Roripaugh and Karen Volkman.
Each of the talented writers brought to the symposium her own definition of what it has meant what it now means to be a woman writing in the west. “As a writer and a scholar,” says York, “I appreciated both the great diversity of opinion and the amount of intersection and overlap in their responses; the points of commonality show that there are ways to make it as a writer in the west and that there are many forms of supporting community, and the points of divergence show that there is always room for the individual talent to assert itself.”
The event proved an inspiration for students and professionals alike. “For me, the best highlights came in those moments when I saw a student talking to one of the symposium participants, the professional writers who model what I believe we all aspire to become,” he stresses. “When you can see someone experiencing enlightenment in real time and see them realizing that their aspirations are attainable, that is a moment that is worth all work.”
To coincide with the Women Writing West symposium, this issue of the Copper Nickel is entirely composed of the literary works of women. “I think we have a sense of solidity,” says York. “This issue is larger and sharper than any we’ve published before.”
The symposium directly extended the university’s various teaching missions by providing students with direct access to artistic expertise, by showing students how they might begin to reach for such accomplishment, by drawing into our events members of the surrounding community, and by showing that the various departments of the university can work together to create a smart and memorable event. “This is especially important because it proves the promise of the university, that many disciplines can live together and support one another,” York notes. “Too often it seems as though events appeal to the interest of a narrow constituency, but a university is a place where ideas, however specialized, connect to and support one another.”
Copies of the Copper Nickel can be purchased through the website at http://www.copper-nickel.org, for those who use Paypal. Students interested in purchasing the journal for a reduced price should contact the staff (element29@copper-nickel.org). UCD faculty and staff members on the downtown campus should have received, in the last few weeks, a special subscription offer and copies will hit the shelves at the Auraria Book Center and all Tattered Cover locations around Halloween. “And, of course,” York quips, “anyone willing to brave the wreck of our office at 1051 9th Street Park No. 103 can purchase copies on site.”