WORKSHOP

Write to Change the World

Have you wondered if it’s possible to take a leap in your writing to impact change on a broader scale? How to pivot from writing “for the sake of art” to writing work that persuades, influences and inspires others to action? This master class begins with a framework that will help you articulate goals, establish a timeline to achieve them, and hold yourself accountable to impact change on a massive scale. Then, we’ll move on to a series of generative writing prompts sure to set your artist soul on fire. You’ll leave this course with a plan to take your work to the next level and accountability buddies who will make sure you stick to your plan.

Facilitated by Cleyvis Natera

WORKSHOP

Finding the RIGHT Literary Agent: Maximize Your Query's Potential

Confused about how to find an agent? Frustrated by queries that receive no response or form rejections? Just what does agentspeak like "character-driven," "genre-bending," and "intersectional" mean? This interactive workshop will teach you strategies and show you resources to find the best agents for you and your work. A former librarian, Leslie uses her expertise with research and readers' advisory to show you how to target your query to the right agents for you. 

Facilitated by Leslie Zampetti

WORKSHOP

Curso/Taller sobre técnicas narrativas. 

El objetivo del taller es convocar escritores que deseen comprender mejor como introducirse al mundo de las técnicas narrativas. Lograr que los participantes entiendan el impacto en una novela del uso de las técnicas narrativas y como se convierte en el elemento clave para darle estructura a toda la novela. Asimismo lograr que los talleristas conozcan los elementos que componen el estudio de las técnicas literarias. Los grandes representantes de estas técnicas así como grandes novelas donde se hacen uso de ellas. 

Facilitated by Roxana Marte

PANEL DISCUSSION

Atrévete! Reading, Writing, and Teaching Ourselves 

In Atrévete! Reading, Writing, and Teaching Ourselves we invite panelists to discuss the role of identity and language in their creative, academic, and pedagogical practices. The use of regional English, Spanish, and Spanglish dialects, particularly in the works of writers like Julia Alvarez, Angie Cruz, and Ana Castillo—convey not just a message, but also a place, a culture, and an entire people. At the center of our discussion are questions that explore culturally sustaining practices: how our work as creatives, educators, and scholars sustain our cultures as POCs, immigrants, and/or marginalized communities. What techniques have we learned or developed to read, teach, and write works that represent us? 

Facilitated by Ayendy Bonifacio

PANEL DISCUSSION

You wrote a book now what? A Panel discussion on Self-Publishing

Panel discussion among 3-5 self published authors discussing their self publishing journeys; The discussion will cover topics including but not limited to layout, copy editing, creating the book cover, how to choose a self publishing platform to marketing, promotion, booking book tours, and getting your book into book stores once it's printed. 

Facilitated by Nancy Ruffin

PANEL DISCUSSION

How public universities like CUNY and SUNY could help sustain Dominican American culture through teaching and study 

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Proposal Summary/ Resumen de Propuesta:  A group discussion on the need for full-fledged and well-funded academic departments of Dominican Studies in CUNY and SUNY as tools to guarantee rigorous teaching and learning about the Dominican cultural heritge by Dominican-American students and interested students of all other cultural backgrounds, plus an exploration on how to make them a reality.

Facilitated by Anthony Stevens-Acevedo

WORKSHOP

Dare to Follow Your Voice: An Experiment

Dare to Follow Your Voice: An Experiment is a hands-on workshop designed for participants to discover their authentic voice and leverage its power in telling their stories.

Facilitated by Riquelmy Sosa

WORKSHOP

inQluded presents: You deserve to take up space: How to write about your intersecting identities and make a career out of it.

As queer people of color, living in a world that has historically sidelined our identities, it’s challenging navigating the publishing world and feel that we deserve to take up space. 

Facilitated by Medina

WORKSHOP

Build Your Community,

Get Sales & Be Noticed

"Build Your Community, Get Sales & Be Noticed" is a workshop where writers who independently publish their book learn what to avoid when publishing their book, the nuts & bolts on how to create an online community to market their books to get noticed and make sales. The attendees will get tactical information on sales and marketing, and a workbook that asks questions that will help them gain insights on how they are currently marketing and selling their book and how they can plan a better funnel. 

Facilitated by Clara Torres-Jamison

WORKSHOP

Contar la historia: historia y narrativa dominicana

En este taller exploraremos las intersecciones entre la historia dominicana y la narrativa de los autores de la isla y de la diáspora. A través del análisis de conocidas novelas que toman hechos históricos como centros de la obra de ficción, exploraremos las formas en que la ficción puede iluminar y expresar nuevas perspectivas identitarias dentro de la historia dominicana. 

Facilitated by Hayden Carron

WORKSHOP

Historical Research and Creative Writing from the Archives 

This workshop is focused on the process of using primary sources from institutional and personal archives in creative writing. We will introduce participants to a variety of local as well as online archives that contain collections covering the history of Dominicans and the rest of the African diaspora (collections from the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute Archives, the Schomburg Archives, etc). We will also discuss using personal archives, and using sources such as personal journals, photography, and video to enhance creative work. We will review a few pieces of literature written by Dominicans which were based on extensive historical research (works by Nelly Rosario and Julia Alvarez), showing participants a sampling of the primary sources that inspired these works. The workshop will end with participants engaging with a primary source--whether from an institutional or personal archive--to write a short, creative piece.

Facilitated by Dr. Sandy Plácido

and Dr. Omaris Zamora 

WORKSHOP

Lay a Successful Path to

a Writing Career 

Buckle up, Writers! This is an express ride sure to illuminate and inspire. We’ll discuss all you need to know to lay a successful path to a writing career. Should you get an MFA? What are alternatives to it? What journals move the needle on establishing your genius? How to get funds to pay for a writing career until the writing pays for itself? We’ll engage in a few brief writing exercises to keep you focused on your goal.  

Facilitated by Cleyvis Natera

WORKSHOP

I Am Here: Affirmation as a

form of Resistance

A catalyst for choosing oneself through difficult times and practicing the importance of our truth “I Am Here: Affirmation as a form of Resistance” is a workshop where participants can speak back to that which has made them feel small, invisible and impossible throughout their lives. In these workshops we will be reading texts by Audre Lorde, Lucille Clifton, James Baldwin, Jericho Brown, and Ocean Vuong in conversation with visual artists like Frida Kahlo, Kehinde Wiley, Flying Lotus and Nick Cave—all of whom’s work reminds us to speak our truth, love and do more than survive.

Facilitated by Gabriel Ramirez

Exploring Today's Washington Heights

Cultural Production

Dominican cultural production has grown to position Dominican-Americans in the broader Latinx culture. In particular the voices of these writers and artists articulate the Dominican experience in the Diaspora. Their work interrogates matters of identity, race, gender, language and other important challenges they face in a transnational community. This panel seeks to highlight the contributions of a few Dominican-American writers and artists who through multiple mediums represent dominicanidad in their work. Some of the voices are Josefina Baez, Angie Cruz, Raquel Cepeda, Tony Peralta, Crystal Rodriguez, Firelei Báez and Scherezade Garcia. Paying close attention to the interconnections between race, class, and gender, we will discuss the importance of cultural productions in the construction of a Dominican-American identity. This panel will serve as a space for dialogue for conference attendees who might be interested in the work of these Dominican-American writers and artists.

Facilitated by Sharina Maillo-Pozo

PANEL DISCUSSION

PANEL DISCUSSION

MFA in Creative Writing at CCNY: Writing Our Stories Within Harlem's POC Community Space

TBA

Facilitated by Sydney Valerio

WORKSHOP

Writing The Spirits

TBA

Facilitated Alicia Anabel Santos

CUENTACUENTOS+18 

Lectura/Readings

Lectura de cuentos y poemas con alto contenido de narrativa. Todo el material será denso y con temas que circunden la “rabia del Caribe”.

Yaissa Jiménez, Luis Reinaldo Peña y

Ashley L. Perez Hart