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Writing to Forgive
February 23, 2010"If I am alive, I am going to write." Holly Payne '97 spoke these words as she lay on the edge of a road beside a cemetery. Seconds earlier, she stopped to assist two stranded cyclists. A passing pickup truck struck all… more>
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February 11, 2010
Auteur Rock Star Strikes a Chord
Listening to a brooding cello concerto, the writer strikes the keyboard as he begins his short story or book. He begins, yet does not know where it will end until he arrives there. "You know, it's hard for me to do this -- to… more>
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The Magic Poetry Bus
January 27, 2010I grew up within poetry — the sound of my mother’s voice reciting Great Poems. The poetry she recited was canonical: Shakespeare, Milton, Tennyson, Dickinson, Longfellow — but the way she told these poems… more>
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In & Out of Fiction
January 27, 2010Percival Everett doesn’t spend a lot of time considering his body of work. Instead, says the 52-year-old author, whose new novel I Am Not Sidney Poitier (Graywolf, 2009) came out in June, “I think about writing one… more>
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Reveling in the Ring
January 15, 2010Every Saturday afternoon a 9-year-old boy plunks down next to his father and together they listen. The radio dial properly adjusted, a broadcast of the Metropolitan Opera's production of Puccini's La Bohème begins. A… more>
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Taking a Poetic Path
November 17, 2009The question is often asked, What does one do with a bachelor's degree in creative writing? In USC College, the answer is plenty. Many go on to publish books of poetry or fiction. Some go on to teach writing, become editors or… more>
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Elegant Elocution
August 10, 2009"I write poetry because I have no choice. I've always been haunted by words, by the music of words," said Carol Muske-Dukes, professor of English and California Poet Laureate. A prominent and influential contemporary poet,… more>
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July 23, 2009 Author, Author!
Fourth grader Alex Flores clamps down hard on his pencil to finish his story that begins, "One day I came to school and no one was there." In his tale, Alex turns invisible and hears Mario singing the SpongeBob SquarePants… more>
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Wit Gets Its Due
April 16, 2009The hours of early-morning writing, the meticulous construction of his characters' psyches and the unmitigated need to research, chronicle and give contemporary America a good dose of wry wit, have again paid off for writer… more>
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‘Thou Whoreson Zed! Thou Unnecessary Letter!’
April 7, 2009Although Shakespeare is famous for his cerebral language, USC College's Bruce Smith wants his students to absorb the Bard with not only their minds — but their entire bodies. The Dean's Professor of English… more>
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