Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering: testimonios y fotos (sponsored by the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing and ASU's Creative Writing Program.)

For the second consecutive year, the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing at Arizona State University, along with ASU's Creative Writing Program, have been the principal sponsors of the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering. What follows are the testimonios from this year's participants, representing three institutions: Arizona State University, University of Notre Dame, and the University of Minnesota.

2016 Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering: testimonios

Jacqueline Balderrama (Arizona State University)

In coordinating the fourth chapter of the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering, my goal was to share the inclusivity that I experienced last year. Thanks to our wonderful sponsors, we were able to host visiting writers, attend panels, and participate in private discussions with faculty. I think the most meaningful moment during the week was our first round table where we heard from everyone on their graduate programs, areas of interest, and writing. I continue to be amazed at the diversity in the Latina/o community and what a difference it makes to be involved as a writer. At another point, we talked over milk tea about our role in the literary scene as magazine editors with Roy’s, Luis’s, and Kelsey’s insights on seeking out minority writers. While Maria, Ernesto, and Maritsa attend ASU, this initiative allowed us to become closer friends. I am so glad Joel and Marco could be a part of this. Just prior, they were accepted into ASU’s MFA program. With the addition of their voices and their familiarity with the Phoenix area, this new cohort has such variation and enthusiasm. It is a gift to call them my friends. 

Joel Salcido (Arizona State University)

The moments that were the most poignant for me during Desert Nights Rising Stars were the moments with the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative group. We gathered as strangers and shared our poetry in a room surrounded by books. Everyone listened and we all saw each other and were seen. It is important to distinguish "looking" and "hearing" from "seeing" and "listening". The former are passive acts detached from interconnections, gestures without substance. The latter are active and engaged, acts of solidarity, full of unbending intention with sincerity. For many of us it felt like we hadn't been seen or listened to in a long while.

We also spoke about silence. The weight of it. The deafening volume of it in our respective workshops. But like all good poets we cast a spell with words and broke the silence, promising each other implicitly not to let the silence quiet our singing. Now it’s time to sing until no one can avoid hearing and seeing us.

Kelsey Castaneda (University of Notre Dame)

I have always had a complicated relationship with my own Latina identity. My mother is Caucasian and my father is Puerto Rican, but, growing up, neither my father nor Puerto Rican culture were a part of my life. So, I have always felt that I could not really identify with that part of my heritage, and that to do so made me, in a way, a fraud. However, because of the encouragement of Francisco Aragón and the generosity of ASU’s MFA Program and Letras Latinas, I was able to attend the incredible Desert Nights, Rising Stars writers conference where I met other young Latino writers, and finally realized that, for all of us, our identity and relationship with latinidad means something quite different. I found myself surrounded by emerging writers and MFA students of Spanish, Guatemalan, Mexican, and Honduran descent, each with their own unique writing aesthetic. I had conversations with inspirational writing mentors such as Alberto Ríos, Cynthia Hogue, and Melissa Pritchard. I attended discussion panels about race and its implications on the writing world. I found myself writing new pieces at night in my hotel room, that, were it not for this conference and gathering, would surely not exist. For me, the four days that I spent at ASU were some of the most exciting and influential days that I have had since beginning my MFA at the University of Notre Dame. I not only made new friends that have become a supportive and encouraging family, but also finally, for the first time, felt like I was a part of latinidad and the entire Latino writing community. I am incredibly thankful to ASU and Letras Latinas for the opportunity to be a part of this conference, as well as the fourth edition of the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering.

Roy Guzman (University of Minnesota)

As a Latino, I am constantly searching to recapture the sounds of my childhood, and the 2016 Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering—which met during the Desert Nights, Rising Stars Conference—brought back those echoes of Tegucigalpa and Miami. In an ambit of camaraderie, insightfulness, and sensibility, my new friends and allies empowered me. By writing from an angle of resistance, in spaces traditionally controlled by privilege, power, and patriarchy, I was reminded that my struggle is one I share with others—a sentiment the inaugural poet of Arizona himself, Alberto Ríos, validated.

We heard from one another and we read each other’s work. Our schedule included panels and small gatherings on poetics of witness, bilingualism, immigration, trauma, marginalization, and survival. In our meeting with Cynthia Hogue, I shared information I wouldn’t normally share in an MFA space; Melissa Pritchard reaffirmed us on why we risk our lives as writers. We got a chance to explore Tempe and Phoenix as well, and I was exposed, for the first time, to the dreamlike landscape of Arizona.

This experience has shown me new doors where I didn’t think there were any, and I am profoundly grateful to our sponsors and for Letras Latinas’ vision.

María Isabel Alvarez (Arizona State University)

As a Guatemalan writer, I am constantly striving for communities where I may share my work, where it might not only be appreciated, but also understood. The Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering offered me the opportunity to bond with fellow writers of color, writers who shared without hesitation their risk-taking, unapologetic style of writing, writers who spoke of their Latino background with an unwavering sense of pride, not fearing judgment but seeking an opportunity to embrace commonalities, and it is in this space where I have felt the most comfortable throughout the course of my MFA experience. I felt not only comfortable but encouraged to share and discuss my work, something that has rarely been the case in other workshop experiences. The Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering offered a safe space to discuss my greatest passions, writing and literature, with a group of people who not only share in this passion, they also share in the greater experience of Latinidad. I walked away from this year’s Letras Latinas initiative feeling reinvigorated about my work, excited about the work of my peers, and comfortable in my place as a Latina writer in contemporary literature. Thank you, Letras Latinas for making me feel en casa!

 Ernesto Abeytia (Arizona State University)

It’s been a week since Desert Nights, Rising Stars, and I’m just now sitting down to reflect. A conference geared toward offering invaluable instruction from seasoned writers, DNRS was three days of thought-provoking panels and inspiring readings. It showcased distinguished faculty—local, national, and international—and emerging writers sharing fresh, startling work coming out of Arizona State University’s MFA program in Creative Writing. In all, it was a weekend well-spent.

But the moments I keep coming back to, the moments that still resonate, are those I spent with fellow Latino writers from ASU and those visiting from the Universities of Notre Dame and Minnesota. These writers, some just starting their MFAs, some about to finish, were humble, generous people writing from a world outside of privilege, outside of whiteness, using a blend of English, Spanish, and Latin flare. They wrote of otherness, thoughtfulness, life between the seams, life straddling international, artificial, man-made borders; they wrote about art and first grade, being awkward in a bar, fighting in the city, and seeing you, I see you.

They were Puerto Rican, Mexican, Guatemalan, and Honduran. And though I, being Spanish, am not technically Latino, they looked past my geography and into our shared culture. We talked about food and music, boys and girls, and even Walter Mercado. We talked about the best lit journals for Spanish-language writers, those we could see our work in and those we could not. We talked about our favorite writers, the ones whose origin stories didn’t matter, whose names were pronounceable because of their work. And in all of this, I felt like I belonged. For the first time in my MFA career, I belonged.

It’s this feeling, this experience I will never forget. It’s the sonrisas and amistades, abrazos and te entiendos I will never forget. And though the panels I attended may improve my writing, it’s the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative that improved my being.

Luis Lopez-Maldonado (University of Notre Dame)

Under the scorching Arizona sun, this queer brown boi genuinely smiled for the first time since last August. When you are displaced into a place where Mexican/Chicano culture is not embraced, of course you feel like your writing doesn't matter! The Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering this year was a breath of fresh, legit and inspirational air. Times one-hundred. Thousand. 

During The Desert Nights Rising Stars Conference, I met the inaugural poet laureate of Arizona, Alberto Ríos, among many other distinguished faculty and guest faculty; they inspired me tremendously. But most importantly, I was introduced to my new comrades y amigos, those of who I will continue to bloom with artistically and personally. It was a humbling experience to gather and discuss issues surrounding our journey in the MFA programs we currently attend, dissecting the themes of race, sex, gender, normality, family and personal history, among many others. I shook hands. I embraced shoulders. I opened doors. We gathered in community and comradery. I feel very blessed and fortunate to have met these strong and talented Latino writers; Viván los writers Latinos! 

Maritsa Leyva Martinez (Arizona State University)

Having lived in Mexico for four years before deciding to return to Houston it was important for me to find a Latino community within the creative writing program. I am a proud Mexican and staying in touch with my roots is imperative to, not only my personal development, but to my writing career. That being said, when I was invited by Jackie to participate in the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering, although I was a little confused as to what my role in the whole process would be, I felt thrilled. Despite my joining the conference at a later day in the week, everyone welcomed me with open arms; they where warm, happy, and vociferous, and happy, like all good Latinos. What a wonderful feeling it is to share stories with a group of fellow writers and to look around the room and recognize that they know exactly how you are feeling. As many of my peers have iterated, what I most value about the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering is the camaraderie. 

Marco A. Piña (Arizona State University)

Before this conference I wanted nothing more than to find a space where my voice could be appreciated, a support system that would encourage me to push my experiences forward, one that would never let me slow down until I waited for people understand.

For me, the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering at ASU became the only place of sanctuary I’ve experienced in a PWI while trekking across the limitation

created by my barrio eccentricity. The loving words and the open ears of my new comrades created a space for healing and personal growth. What was most beneficial for me was obtaining the peace of mind that, although we may struggle separately to find the spaces to release our santas palabras, together our voices have the ability to rouse this sleepy country from its eternal slumber.

Notre Dame and ASU partner again.....

Letras Latinas Writers Initiative Convenes Fourth Gathering

Letras Latinas, the literary initiative at the University of Notre Dame’s Institute for Latino Studies, in partnership with the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing and the MFA Program at Arizona State University, is pleased to announce the fourth Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering, which brings together Latino/a writers enrolled in creative writing programs. The gathering will coincide with the annual Desert Nights, Rising Stars Writers Conference at ASU on February 18-20.

In all, nine writers will be taking part, representing ASU, Notre Dame, and the University of Minnesota. They are:

Jacqueline Balderrama (coordinator)

MFA candidate, Arizona State University

Ernesto L. Abeytia,

MFA candidate, Arizona State University

Maritsa Leyva Martinez,

MFA candidate, Arizona State University

María Isabel Alvarez,

MFA candidate, Arizona State University

Luis Lopez-Maldonado,

MFA candidate, University of Notre Dame

Kelsey Castaneda,

MFA candidate, University of Notre Dame

Roy Guzman,

MFA candidate, University of Minnesota

Marco Pina,

incoming MFA candidate, Arizona State University

Joel Salcido,

incoming MFA candidate, Arizona State University

The gathering convened on three previous occasions: in 2013 and 2014 at the University of Notre Dame—the Initiative’s institutional founder—and last year at ASU.

“The launch of this initiative was the result of conversations that had been taking place for years about the need to create a space for those Latino/a poets and writers who have made the conscious decision to pursue graduate training in the field, but who often find themselves isolated in their respective programs. The goal is straightforward: to create a space, for a few days, where Latino/a writers from different programs can create community with one another,” said Francisco Aragón, director of Letras Latinas.

Writers who have experienced these gatherings, thus far, while enrolled in graduate programs, are:

2013 @ Notre Dame

Lauro Vazquez

(coordinator)

University of Notre Dame

Thade Correa

University of Notre Dame

Lynda Letona

University of Notre Dame

Lauren Espinoza

Arizona State University

Marcelo Hernández Castillo

University of Michigan

*

2014 @ Notre Dame

Lauro Vazquez

(co-coordinator)

University of Notre Dame

Lynda Letona

(co-coordinator)

 University of Notre Dame

Suzi F. Garcia

University of Notre Dame

Jonathan Diaz

University of Notre Dame

Elizabeth Acevedo

University of Maryland

Javier Zamora

New York University

Nayelly Barrios

McNeese State University

*

2015 @ ASU

Lauren Espinoza

(coordinator)

Arizona State University

Jacqueline Balderrama

Arizona State University

Ae Hee Lee

University of Notre Dame

Steve Castro

American University

Melisa Garcia

University of New Mexico

The Letras Latinas Writers Initiative will be presenting a panel at AWP in Los Angeles this year, featuring last year’s participants. A previous AWP panel, introducing the initiative, took place at AWP in Boston a few years ago.

Here are statements from some of our 2016 stakeholders:

"I am honored to be facilitating the fourth edition of the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering. It means a lot to me for my writing, which explores my family heritage, and for my identity as a writer and a Latina. I had such a powerful experience last year, I am so looking forward to sharing that with the incoming participants. I think the expansion of this project speaks to the diversity in the Latina/o community and that each individual has something to add to that experience. My fellow ASU colleagues and I are looking forward to meeting everyone." 

—Jacqueline Balderrama, MFA candidate, Arizona State University

*

“Taking part in the fourth gathering of the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering translates into an opportunity that many writers of color, unfortunately, do not have […] As a queer Honduran writer raised in Allapattah—an impoverished neighborhood in Miami, Florida—very seldom is poetry seen as a means to secure “nuestro pan de cada día,” as a viable pursuit […] My MFA advisor, poet Ray Gonzalez, has pushed me as well to consider my work as part of a broad collective of experiences that add to the richness of our diverse Latino culture. Having the opportunity to interact with other Latino/a writers who are also in other MFA programs will mean that I can be in linguistic trenches with them, and build friendships and connections for possible collaborations in the future.”

—Roy Guzman, MFA Candidate, University of Minnesota

*

"The Creative Writing Program at Arizona State University, together with The Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing, is excited to co-sponsor students under the auspices of Letras Latinas Writers Initiative for a second year.  Part of our mission has to do with community outreach and serving--and reaching--diverse communities.  Letras Latinas helps us to reach such communities at a national level, linking them with local constituencies.  Upon arrival, visiting students are invited to attend our Desert Nights Rising Stars Conference, with its rich array of readings, panels, and workshops, as well as focused discussions with, for example, Arizona's Poet Laureate Alberto Ríos, and local events organized especially for them by our indefatigable MFA candidate, Jacqueline Balderrama.  It's a deep honor and great pleasure to welcome the Letras Latinas Writers Initiative back to ASU!"

—Cynthia Hogue, director of ASU’s Creative Writing Program

*

"At the heart of the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing is a mission to promote diverse perspectives from throughout our local and international writing communities.  The Letras Latinas Writers Initiative gathering has a powerful impact on the educational scope of our annual Desert Nights, Rising Stars Writers Conference, guiding important discussions about craft, culture, and identity in the arts, as well as connecting and inspiring our many conference participants--from students in the MFA Creative Writing program here at ASU, to readers and writers across Arizona and other campuses and creative communities worldwide."​

—Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing

Here is a closer look at our 2016 participants:

Ernesto L. Abeytia is a Spanish-American poet residing in Chandler, Arizona. He holds a Master of Arts in English from Saint Louis University and a Master of Arts in Anglo/North-American Cultural and Literary Studies from the Autonomous University of Madrid. His critical research and writing focus on early 20th century literature and poetry, robots, and superheroes. He is currently working on a collection of poems about his life and travels in and around the Iberian Peninsula and can be found reading some of his work online at PBS NewsHour. Ernesto is currently a Teaching Associate and MFA candidate in Creative Writing, Poetry at Arizona State University

María Isabel Alvarez is an MFA Candidate in fiction at Arizona State University. She was born in Guatemala City, Guatemala where most of her fiction takes place. Her short stories have appeared or are forthcoming in Arts & Letters, The Gateway Review, Sakura Review, and Agave Magazine. She is the First-Looks Editor for Hayden's Ferry Review. Follow her on Twitter: @maria_i_alvarez

Jacqueline Balderrama is an MFA candidate in poetry at Arizona State University where she teaches and serves as Poetry Editor for Hayden’s Ferry Review and Iron City Magazine. She volunteers as a creative writing instructor at Arizona State Prison in Florence and is involved in the third and fourth chapters of the Letras Latinas Initiative. Her poems have received the Ina Coolbrith Memorial Poetry Prize and are forthcoming in Cream City Review and Blackbird.

Kelsey Castaneda is a poet and MFA candidate at the University of Notre Dame. Enthusiastic about teaching and travel, Kelsey spent the 2014-2015 academic year teaching English in Slovakia through the Fulbright Program. She volunteers at the Robinson Community Learning Center, leading writing workshops for young writers in the South Bend community. Kelsey is the copy editor of YIELD Magazine, a creative photography project produced by the Snite Museum of Art at Notre Dame. Her current poetry project is a feminist yawp that experiments with erasure and translation of Vergil’s Aeneid.

Roy G. Guzmán is a Honduran writer, raised in Miami, and a current MFA student in poetry at the University of Minnesota. His work has appeared or will appear in The Adroit Journal, Word Riot, Reservoir, Connotation Press, and Notre Dame Review. Roy is the poetry editor for Sundog Lit and a blogger for the MFA Years. Moreover, he is the recipient of a Pushcart prize nomination and a Gesell Award honorable mention in fiction. Roy will be completing a writing residency at the Vermont Studio Center this summer. Follow him on Twitter: @dreamingauze.

Luis Lopez-Maldonado was born and raised in Orange County, CA. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California Riverside, majoring in Creative Writing and Dance. His work has been seen in The American Poetry Review, Cloudbank, The Packinghouse Review, Off Channel, and Spillway, among many others. He also earned a Master of Arts degree in Dance from Florida State University. He is currently a candidate for the Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing at the University of Notre Dame, where he is a poetry editorial assistant for the Notre Dame Review and founder of the male-pod writing workshop in the St. Joseph County Juvenile Justice Center. 

Maritsa Leyva Martinez is an MFA candidate in fiction at Arizona State University where she will begin teaching in Fall of 2016. In addition, she has recently been selected to serve as International Editor for Hayden’s Ferry Review. She is passionate about volunteering and most recently has served as social media manager for Sweet Dreams, a documentary film about a remarkable group of Rwandan women who defy the devastation of the genocide to form the country's first all-female drumming troupe and open the country's first ice cream shop, with the help of Blue Marble Dreams, a New York based non-profit. Maritsa has also served as photographer, in Houston, for Blue Marble Dreams new project Bel Rev, coming soon to Port Au Prince. She asks that if you have a chance please do check out http://www.bluemarbledreams.org

 

Joel Salcido was born a Los Angeles cockroach and smuggled to the Westside of Phoenix, where he translates the poetry of the barrio pigeons into surrealist prophecies. He is blessed with a beautiful wife and two sons as well as a cadre of talentedly mad brothers, friends, co-conspirators and fellow hood radicals. He writes poetry and prose and is working towards a mastery of arts while building a boat out of editor’s rejection letters to float back to the moon. He is a member of the Gutta Collective and an incoming MFA candidate at ASU (poetry).