"The Nuthatch's Challenge"

By Claudia Savage

Hawthorne Fellow 2012

Claudia Florence Savage has been awarded residencies at the Atlantic Center for the Arts, Jentel, and the Ucross Foundation, published a chapbook, The Last One Eaten: A Maligned Vegetable's History, and was recently named a finalist for the New Issues Press first book award.

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"The Nuthatch's Challenge
The daffodils abundance could make my father an optimist.
Eschewer of mud, he craved sunrises lit by Bach's architecture.
Preferred nature pinned under glass
for observation and dusting.

We seek the dank shadow between downed trees.
The way the moss becomes lantern in sun's absence,
the silence after the male Nuthatch's challenge.

Afterwards you may compose a page,
me, if lucky, a line.
There will always be Beethoven.
Some violinist straining to play another's vast monologue.
But you and I are holding out for possibility.
We're mud-tripping off trail,
the cedar chips splintering fire.
We are not going to be Faulkner or Coltrane today,
but we can test our full weight,
disturb the undergrowth;
we can release the tiniest insects
to the light.

The Attic Experience

"I have just finished taking the Generating Genre class, and have signed up for the same class next term. I cannot speak highly enough of it. The teacher is supportive, friendly, and non-judgmental, and makes excellent suggestions for how to work and what might be improved in a piece, without being directive or dictatorial--I was impressed with the ability to find genuine strengths in student work. Both of these skills are rare and must be prized. I would like to add that I find the whole Attic experience to be convivial and open (this was my first class). I moved to Portland a year ago from Minneapolis, where I had taken a couple of courses at The Loft. It is amusing to "contrast and compare" the differences between the two organizations with similar names, and very different identities. The Loft, as you probably know, is made of a very large group, has its own building; houses a press, a thriving book arts community and gift store, and a gallery. It is modern and airy, humming with activity. The Attic, of course, is very different, quiet and much more approachable. So I am very grateful for the opportunity to participate at The Attic."

Amy Briggs

The Classic Book for Writers, Updated and Revised

EVERY WRITER HAS A THOUSAND FACES

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"Finally, an anti-bullsht book on creativity!"* — James Marcus, former editor of Harper's

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A Statement of Our Values

The Attic Institute of Arts and Letters opposes the legitimation of bigotry, hate, and misinformation. As a studio for writers, we do not tolerate harassment or discrimination of any kind. We embrace and celebrate our shared pursuit of literature and languages as essential to crossing the boundaries of difference. To that end, we seek to maintain a creative environment in which every employee, faculty member, and student feels safe, respected, and comfortable — even while acknowledging that poems, stories, and essays delve into uncomfortable subjects. We accept the workshop as a place to question ourselves and to empathize with complex identities. We understand that to know the world is to write the world. Therefore, we reaffirm our commitment to literary pursuits and shared understanding by affirming diversity and open inquiry.