{"id":28536,"date":"2024-03-24T21:36:44","date_gmt":"2024-03-25T03:36:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/registration-open-for-mesa-verde-writers-conference-in-mancos\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T00:32:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T06:32:24","slug":"registration-open-for-mesa-verde-writers-conference-in-mancos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/registration-open-for-mesa-verde-writers-conference-in-mancos\/","title":{"rendered":"Registration open for Mesa Verde Writer\u2019s Conference in Mancos"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Attendees
Attendees of the 2023 Mesa Verde Writer\u2019s Conference listen in during a workshop at Harmony Barn. (Courtesy Photo)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

Registration has opened for the Mesa Verde Writer\u2019s Conference in Mancos on July 11-14.<\/p>\n

The conference, which is \u201cfor published and aspiring writers,\u201d was created by local authors Lisa Taylor and Mark Stevens in 2023 as a way to connect and inspire fellow writers.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe met at an event and we started talking and we thought, \u2018Wouldn\u2019t it be cool if we had this literary event in this area?\u2019 Because there\u2019s nothing like it,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cHe (Stevens) and his wife own a retreat space called Harmony Barn, and it\u2019s this beautiful barn surrounded by mountains. And he said, \u2018Well, it would be a really great space to have this.\u2019 So we just came up with it. We wrote down all of our ideas and launched it last year, and to our surprise, it filled really quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

In its first year, the conference attracted local writers, as well as bringing writers from Indiana, Illinois, New Mexico, Utah and Oklahoma. The writers ranged in age from 21 to 83.<\/p>\n

Now, registration is open for the 2024 conference, and it is already more than half-filled. Taylor told The<\/em> Journal<\/em> that the conference can only host 26 individuals at this time, as the conference hall at Harmony Barn can only hold that capacity.<\/p>\n

As of Tuesday, 14 individuals have registered, including writers from Ohio, Maine and Missouri.<\/p>\n

The event is not only great for writers, but Taylor shared that it is great for promoting tourism in Montezuma County and surrounding areas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also want to encourage tourism in the area,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cIt\u2019s great that lots of people come to the area for our conference and that people get to see this beautiful part of the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

While at the conference, the writers will have a chance to network with each other, allowing ideas to be shared and connections to be made.<\/p>\n

Writers will also have the opportunity to share some of their work at an open mic night that will include music and a bonfire.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ability to begin and sustain creative work requires time,\u201d organizers said on the conference website. \u201cLet us provide this weekend for writing, dreaming, networking with other writers and gazing at the stars in a Western sky framed by mountain peaks.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2024 faculty for the event are Alyse Knorr, Anita Mumm, Stevens and Taylor.<\/p>\n

\"Alyse
Alyse Knorr<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Knorr is an associate professor of English at Regis University, and is the author of Ardor<\/em>, Mega<\/em>\u2013City<\/em> Redux<\/em>, Copper<\/em> Mother<\/em> and Annotated<\/em> Glass<\/em>. She has also written two video game history books and four poetry books.<\/p>\n

\"Anita
Anita Mumm.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Mumm is an author and development editor living in Salida. She \u201csupports first-time novelists and bestsellers alike,\u201d and the authors she has worked with have been recognized on The<\/em> New<\/em> York<\/em> Times<\/em> bestseller list, Publishers<\/em> Weekly<\/em>, Booklist<\/em>, Kirkus<\/em> and more.<\/p>\n

She also teaches at various writing conferences and retreats, as well as Unbound Authors, \u201ca program that serves incarcerated writers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Mark
Mark Stevens.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Stevens is the author of The<\/em> Fireballer<\/em> and The<\/em> Allison<\/em> Coil<\/em> mystery series. One of his books in the series, Trapline<\/em>, won the Colorado Book Award for Best Mystery. He was also named Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers\u2019 Writer of the Year in 2016 and 2023.<\/p>\n

\"Lisa
Lisa Taylor.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Taylor is the author of three poetry collections, and her most recent collection is titled Interrogation<\/em> of<\/em> Morning<\/em>. She has also published two short-story collections, Impossibly<\/em> Small<\/em> Spaces<\/em> and Growing<\/em> a<\/em> New<\/em> Tail<\/em>, one of which received the Hugo House New Fiction Award in 2015.<\/p>\n

Taylor\u2019s collaborative work with Irish poet and writer Geraldine Mills, The<\/em> Other<\/em> Side<\/em> of<\/em> Longing<\/em>, was given the Elizabeth Stanley Garson Honor for Irish Literature at the University of Connecticut.<\/p>\n

The<\/em> Shape<\/em> of<\/em> What<\/em> Remains<\/em>, her first novel, will be published sometime in 2025.<\/p>\n

The conference\u2019s workshops will be spread across the four-day event, and attendees can attend whichever workshops and however many workshops that they\u2019d like.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a unique design,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cWe offer like seven workshops, and we don\u2019t run anything concurrently so everyone can do everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Knorr will be hosting the workshops \u201cThe Art of Description\u201d and \u201cMining Memories,\u201d and Mumm will be hosting \u201cA Feast for the Senses: Writing to Immerse Your Readers\u201d and \u201cThe Joy of Revision: Essential Self-Editing Strategies for Prose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stevens will host \u201cCuriouser ad Curiouser,\u201d while Taylor\u2019s workshop will be \u201cSecrets, Lies and Imperfect Truths: Writing as a Reality Check.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taylor shared that she hopes writers leave the event feeling encouraged and inspired.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope they feel very encouraged as a writer, if they\u2019ve always wanted to write or if they\u2019re already published,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cI want them to go away with more confidence as a writer and that it really doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re published or not. I believe that everybody has a story or a poem or a memoir. We all want to tell our story.\u201d<\/p>\n

Registration for the conference is $425, and it includes the Thursday evening reception of appetizers, beer and wine, breakfast, lunch and dinner Friday and Saturday and breakfast on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Registration is not complete until payment is received. One scholarship is available for one applicant who expresses financial need, but Taylor, who is on the board of the Mancos Creative District with Stevens, said they hope to offer additional scholarships in the future.<\/p>\n

Questions and additional information can be found by contacting organizers at mesaverdewriters@gmail.com<\/a> or by visiting the website at www.mesaverdewritersconference.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Those who wish to get involved in the writing sect of the county can also join the Four Corners Writers, a free event that takes place once a month at Zu Gallery in Cortez.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Conference attracts writers and writers throughout the country<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28537,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[364,28,60,29],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-28536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-community","tag-headlines","tag-montezuma-county","tag-newsletter"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28536"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80451,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28536\/revisions\/80451"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28536"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=28536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}