Whether during active combat or after returning home from a tour of duty, many of our nation’s veterans have had traumatic, stressful experiences that are difficult to discuss or share with others. For many who have served, having a safe and creative outlet to share their thoughts and experiences or explore their original ideas can be rewarding and enriching.

The Veterans Writing Workshop is designed to help veterans, active military, and their family members develop writing and narrative skills that can empower them to tell their stories, whether they are true-life accounts or wholly original tales. Each of the sessions is free and conducted by professional writers and educators; they provide the same high level of instruction as a college or university writing course.

All Veterans Writing Workshop sessions take place on Saturdays, September 15 through October 13, at the Plaza Branch, 4801 Main St. The workshop series is free and open to past or present military members and family members of veterans. Attendees must register for each session and are strongly encouraged to attend all five. For questions or to register for the series, visit the links below, email vetswrite@kclibrary.org, or call 816.701.3757.

Presented by the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. and Missouri Humanities Council. Co-sponsored by the Kansas City Public Library, Missouri Arts Council, Mid-Continent Public Library, Moral Injury Association of America, and The Writers Place.

KICKOFF PROGRAM

The psychological toll of military combat was underscored a year ago by the Department of Veterans Affairs, which found suicide rates more than a fifth higher for America’s veterans than non-veterans. The Veterans Writing Workshop is designed to address those “invisible wounds,” offering a creative outlet for sharing thoughts and experiences or for exploring original ideas.

The first of five weekly sessions at the Plaza Branch opens with a public presentation featuring Iraq War veteran and acclaimed author and poet Brian Turner. He joins Rita Brock, senior vice president of moral injury programs for the nonprofit Volunteers of America, and George Dent, a trauma/PTSD psychologist, in discussing PTSD, moral injury (the inability to reconcile wartime actions with a personal moral code) and other traumas and how writing and other creative arts can help in recovery.
 

2018 VETERANS WRITING WORKSHOP SESSIONS

The workshop is FREE, but space is limited.

September 15:  Session 1 - Writing through Injury
1 - 3 p.m.

REGISTER HERE

September 22:  Session 2 - Poetry Writing
9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

REGISTER HERE

9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

REGISTER HERE

October 6:  Session 4 - How to Revise Your Work
9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

REGISTER HERE

October 13:  Session 5 - Writers' Critique
9 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

REGISTER HERE