The Shape of the Wind: Illness, the Family and Healing with Jeanne Bryner

This community writing workshop is designed for those facing serious illness in themselves or family members. It is an interdisciplinary course that focuses on themes of survival and freeing our voices through creativity. The Shape of the Wind will explore journal writing, photography, drawing, and signs found around us. We will explore how these wells and mirrors pertain to our lives, silences within ourselves and others and the whirlwind of illness.
Photography will be utilized in this class, using a cellphone or disposable camera. You need not be an expert photographer, just a thoughtful one. The goal is to offer an opportunity to reflect on the natural world and your specific reactions to your illness. We will also consider how others have responded or are responding to your illness and how these reactions affect you.
Meeting times: Wednesdays June 3rd-July 15th from 11:00am- 12:30 pm
Location: McKinley Birthplace Home, 40 S Main St, Niles, OH (note: this workshop will meet at the McKinley Birthplace Home, not the McKinley Memorial Library). The two are nearby but are separate locations. This location has an elevator to the second floor and is ADA accessible.
This workshop is intended for individuals experiencing illness and the families of those experiencing illness. Please note, seating is limited to 20 participants. To register, please visit
www.lityoungstown.org/post/the-shape-of-the-wind-workshop-with-jeanne-bryner-june-3
Session leader Jeanne Bryner was born in Appalachia and grew up in Newton Falls, Ohio. A practicing registered nurse, she is a graduate of Trumbull Memorial’s School of Nursing and Kent State University’s Honors College. She has received writing fellowships from Bucknell University, the Ohio Arts Council (1997, 2007), and Vermont Studio Center. Her poetry has been adapted for the stage and performed in Ohio, West Virginia, New York, Kentucky, and Edinburgh, Scotland.
Many thanks to the McKinley Memorial Library and Birthplace Home for providing a venue.
Lit Youngstown is a literary arts nonprofit with programs for writers, readers, and those who love a good story. More information is available at www.LitYoungstown.org/