Wayne Gregory

Associate Fellow at the Attic Institute of Arts and Letters

A participant in Attic Institute workshops with senior fellow Merridawn Duckler and associate fellow Ariel Gore, Wayne Gregory was a 2010-2011 Atheneum Fellow and also a 2011-2012 Hawthorne Fellow. Wayne's work has appeared in The Sun, Alltopia, Ashe Journal, The Hawthorne, the Lambda award-winning anthology, Portland Queer, and the forthcoming anthology, Fashionably Late. His memoir, The Tongues of Men and Angels, has just been published by Rebel Satori Press. The story takes place in the evangelical South of the sixties and seventies and chronicles the beginnings of Wayne’s struggle as an adolescent, his budding sexuality, and how he hid his homosexuality from others and from himself for years until he was finally forced out in middle age. Wayne has taught at Willamette University and currently works at Portland State University. He is a linguist, a proud grandfather, and a card-carrying member of the Portland Gay Men's Chorus. Originally from Louisiana he now lives in Portland, Oregon.

Upcoming Classes

Sorry, nothing scheduled at this time.

The Attic Experience

I just finished up Zahir’s Personal Essay class and he was, by far, one of the best teachers I’ve had in my lifetime. In five short weeks, he taught me more about writing than I have ever learned; and I was an English lit major, I went to law school and have been in practice as a lawyer for more than 14 years. I mean no exaggeration here. Yes, of course, it was the subject matter and the lovely group that attended and their beautiful and vulnerable contributions as well, but his style, communication, confidence in me, time spent, recommendations, sense of humor, humanity, integrity and downright cool was unmatched. I couldn’t be more excited about my time there and look forward to more classes.

Rollie Wolfe, Workshop Participant

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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.