The Crusader Publication, the official student publication of Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan, in partnership with the Nagkahiusang Magsusulat sa Cagayan de Oro (Nagmac), a young artists collective of poets, essayists, fictionists, and playwrights from Northern Mindanao, is announcing the holding of the 2nd Veritas Writers’ Workshop which will be held on Jan. 27, 2018 at Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan. The workshop caters exclusively to undergraduate, graduate, and professional  students and alumni of Xavier University. It is open to aspiring writers who have not been awarded fellowships to any national or regional writers workshop. Fictionist-essayist Abigail C James will serve as workshop director with other Nagmac senior writers—poet, essayist, and editor Alton Melvar Dapanas, spoken word artist Adeva Jane Esparrago, playwright and screenwriter Dennis B Flores, novelist EJ Villena, and others—as panelists. Other local writers will also serve as guest panelists. The workshop includes critiquing sessions, craft lectures, and other parallel writing activities for the fellows. The 2nd Veritas Writers Workshop will focus on poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction/essay in English, Tagalog, and Binisaya. Six fellowships will be available for the workshop. Interested applicants must submit a manuscript of any of the following:
  • Poetry: two to four poems; or
  • Fiction: two short stories or flash fiction; or
  • Creative nonfiction & essay: a suite of micro-essays or two works of creative nonfiction, e.g. travel writing, personal essay, literary journalism, nonfiction memoir, lyrical reportage, and other forms.
Applicants may submit works in English, Tagalog, Binisaya, or a mixture of these three languages to reflect the multilingual context of Northern Mindanao. Subject heading of the email should be “Literary piece” and in the email’s body, write applicant’s name, course, college/department, literary genre, a short biography, and mobile number. Entries should be sent as attachments and named after the title of the piece(s) to veritasfolio@gmail.com or at The Crusader Publication Office, StC 302, by 17 January 2018. Late submissions will be disregarded. (nagmac)