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The Principles By Which We Live and Write

As is the custom at Goddard, we acknowledge and celebrate that CWC will be a “process.” We continue to revisit these principles each year at our final community meetings and throughout the conference. At the first annual CWC in 1997, we agreed on several principles to guide the conference as it grows:

  • CWC will continue the Goddard tradition of innovation by providing a place for writers to teach and learn from each other in a supportive, non-competitive atmosphere. Our purpose is two-fold: to create an opportunity for Goddard MFA alumni to work and nurture their writing lives, and to support the MFA program by providing a unique, ongoing community of writers for Goddard MFA alumni.

  • CWC will reflect and draw from the deep talent the Goddard MFA program attracts and inspires. Many writing conferences are developed around specific teachers, “stars” who are well known in the writing world. Many of us have benefited from those experiences and probably will continue to do so. The CWC will provide another kind of experience; we will come to learn from each other—because we know what magic can happen here, and because we trust one another for inspiration.

  • CWC operates separately from the MFA residency, with its own program, leadership and community meetings. The conference will overlap with the residency informally around campus and at meals, as well as at readings and CWC workshops coordinated with the MFA Faculty Lead. CWC participants will not participate in residency workshops or community meetings unless invited by the MFA Faculty Lead, and will respect the need for current MFA students to have time with their advisors.

  • CWC will be accessible in terms of cost and disability.

  • CWC will be planned and organized each year for Goddard MFA alumni by a steering committee of volunteers from the previous year’s conference.

Ideas for additions or changes to these principles are always welcome and can be given to any steering committee member during or at the end of the conference. Changes and additions will be made through consensus at the final community meeting.
©2007 CWC