• The Best in Creative Writing
By DR. BERNICE K. HARRIS
The director of the School of
Graphic Arts suggested that I
write for THE CHOWANIAN a
monthly column on: The Best
in Creative Writing. The idea
pleased me.
My immediate thought was
that the best in respect to crea
tive writing at Chowan College
has been pleasant associations
as well as the serious objective
of members meeting presently
in Marks Hall on Tuesday nights
and formerly in the science
building.
This reaction was due only
in part to meeting with choice
people who have enrolled in this
non-credit course. Even more
it is confirmation of my belief
that their enrollment is in a
sense related to the motivation
that produces writers.
When interviewed by Berna
dette Hoyle for her book, “Tar
Heel Writers I Know” (published
by John Blair in 1956), I began
with the statement that people
write because they are impelled
to.
“The motive varies,” I was
quoted at the outset. “Those
who say they write for money
are only telling half. For fun!
Half, too. To entertain? To in
struct? To voice anger against
injustice (As in propaganda no
vels.)
I think the urge is rooted in
something more mysterious than
writers admit. The creative im
pulse somewhere along the line
is at least related to a force
beyond the motives named.”
I went on to say that I be
lieve the urge to write is given
one and that I have respect for
the impelling. “I do, indeed,”
I added at the close of the
quotation.
So, seven years ago in Jan
uary 1963 my belief was tested
when Chowan College, through
the faith of Dr. Bruce Whitaker,
asked me to conduct a non-credit
creative writing course for stu
dents and off-campus members.
Both groups have prompted me
to reiterate my statement made
in 1956 that the best in creative
writing often comes from the
impelling.
It might be interesting to note
here that when I attended col
lege at Meredith the term,
creative writing, was not in gen
eral use. Yet three of us seniors
had such an urge to write that
the head of the English depart
ment arranged a special course
to meet our “impelling” urge.
Two of those became heads of
English departments (Dr. Mary
Steele at Meredith and Miss
Bertha Carroll at Chowan). The
other, after writing eleven books,
started conducting a course in
creative writing at Chowan in
1963.
The urge to write is not im
plicit in the continuing member
ship in the Chowan writing group,
though the three who have at
tended for six and seven conse
cutive years may justify a sense
of the impelling spoken of in
the 1956 quotation. The distances
traveled, the pleasant Tuesday
night activities at home waived,
the unfavorable weather that
seems so often due on Tuesday
nights have not affected the
attendance too adversely.
As for the distances, there
have been off-campus members
from Suffolk, Franklin, Court-
land, Drewryville and Newsoms,
Va., who have arranged car
pools to Chowan on Tuesday
nights.
One member drove her car
from Suffolk and spent nights
in a Murfreesboro motel. Ano
ther from Edenton was flown
by her son in Conway to attend
the creative writing class. A
woman from Roanoke Rapids
taxied to Weldon to join a car
pool there.
Three have driven from Cole-
rain, one of them a high school
girl whose mother paid her se
mester fee in order to have
company on the ride as well
as for the instruction available.
Ahoskie, Jackson, Conway, Gary-
sburg, Murfreesboro, Severn, Sea
board, Woodland and Winton
have been represented.
The Chowan students have
had worthy representation each
semester, and the few who
stayed on in a non-credit course
doubtless have a degree of the
impelling that has kept the class
alive and lively. One young man
declared, “I am going to write
a novel if it kills me.”
The response to the creative
urge has been shown by the
work of both groups. One member
who has written three books
that cannot be classed as crea
tive writing declares she was
impelled to follow her interest
in genealogy because she at
tended the creative writing class
at Chowan.
A student who wrote short
stories, one-act plays and poems
always signed his creative work
“Jones, the Florist” because
his creative interest was in
flower arrangement. He is now
a florist at Virginia Beach. He
still feels that the creative writ
ing class was not unrelated to
his objective.
Two short stories and two one-
act plays by adult members have
won awards from the North
Carolina and Virginia Woman’s
Clubs, one a first place State
award in Virginia.
Three one-act plays, produced
for the creative writing class
by the Chowan Drama Depart
ment, have won first place
awards at the State Drama Fes
tival in Chapel Hill, one of them
by a Chowan student.
Almost every member has had
features or stories published in
newspapers or magazines. A class
column has been printed in three
area newspapers under the head
ing, “Fragile Bits and Pieces,”
and individual columns are read
with interest under other head
ings.
A Folklore book prepared by
the class and published by John
son Publishing Co. of Murfrees
boro has had favorable reviews
and an order from as far away
as California (UCLA). Another
group book, this one with liter
ary intimations, is being pre
pared.
A display of the work of the
members would justify the af
firmation that people write be
cause they are impelled to share
their impressions of people and
of life as they see it. I have
respect for the impelling. I do,
indeed.
Tense situation
Meredith Kennedy of Alexandria finds herself in a tense
situation in Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew.”
On the business end of the sword is Michael Herbstreith
of Lorton, one of the suitors of Bianca, played by Miss
Kennedy. Miss Kennedy is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Thomas J. McCormick of 314 Clover Way and a graduate
of T. C. Williams High School. Herbstreith’s parents are
Mr. and Mrs. Leroy Herbstreith of 5913 Oak Grove Street.
He graduated from Mt. Vernon High School.
Creative Writing Class
Dr. Bernice Kelly Harris, author from Seaboard, discusses creative writing with her
evening class at Chowan College. Members, under the guidance of Dr. Harris, are cur
rently collecting material for a book on folklore and continuing a history of the Chowan
writing class which began in 1963.
For March, 1970
Taming with sword
Skip Holland of Suffolk gets his point across to Derwood
Gallop of Portsmouth during the Chowan Players produc
tion of Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew,” present
ed March 4-6 m McDowell Columns auditorium at Chowan
College.
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