Books Feb 13, 2013 at 4:00 am

Hugo House's New Program Gives Writers What They Really Need: Each Other

Eric McMillan, Irene Keliher, Katharine Ogle, Anca Szilagyi, Bill Carty, Elissa Washuta.

Comments

1
Would be dope if any of those writers were people of color.
2
Great program. Would be dope if any of those writers were people of color. Startling lack of racial diversity for 2013.
3
One of the writers is Native American and a member of the Cowlitz tribe. While it is unfortunate, the truth is Seattle is a very white city (second whitest major city next to Portland), and I think the make-up of the group is largely a reflection of that.

Diversity is a concern for us, and in the forthcoming program year, we will increase our efforts to reach out to young writers of color, various backgrounds, etc., but in the end, the driving force behind selecting writers for the program is good writing.

4
Don't judge a book.
5
Elissa Washuta is a Native American woman, to me, that's pretty dog-gone "dope."
6
I take issue with this headline.
7
King County is 75.8% white.
If 1 spot were given to an Asian person, there would be a disproportionate amount of Asian people represented (1/6th is 17%, 14% of King County is Asian).
Not to mention a black person (6%).
9
tt
10
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11
Since you have to be 35 or younger I am curious whether this is a violation of anti discrimination laws regarding age. I can't say if it is or not without more research. Regardless, the age limit seems unfair and also fixates on mass media's worship of youth and throwing people away when they get older. Why can't the award/grant be based on merit regardless of the age of the writer?
12
Given that Elissa Washuta is Native American, can we express our disappointment by those who judge others by the photographed color of their skin and their perceived race? This is the essence of Political Correctness, which, we should note, started in Chairman Mao's China.

At 11, there is something to be said about putting too much emphasis on youth and less on the wisdom older writers might have, though I am not sure I would bring the lawyers in.
13
Kudos to Hugo House (I'm a long-time fan and student) though I'd note that this sounds very much like Artist Trust's EDGE program for emerging writers. Only thing is EDGE doesn't have an age limit -- which I kind of think makes sense, because an emerging writer is an emerging writer regardless of age. Another option for aspiring writers is take a class, then out of that group form a writing group of like-minded writers on a similar trajectory. Peer support makes a HUGE difference.

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