Peer critique is essential for any writer! We’ve invited Matt Crist, JoCoLibrary staff member and fellow writer, to offer craft critique at this year’s Writers Conference. Matthew is an information specialist at the Lenexa Branch, but he is also an avid writer with two manuscripts and a dozen short stories lying around. He loves discussing all things related to writing, ideas, creativity and the arts. This will be a fun, casual setting where no judgement is allowed. You can find Matt in the open area outside of the Carmack Room with other drop-in activity tables to peruse in-between sessions.
You can register for the 2023 Writers Conference here. Registration isn’t required but is appreciated, and your RSVP includes both days of the conference, Nov. 3 and 4. Sessions are available on a first-come first-serve basis. We will also be hosting a Writers Conference Kickoff on Thursday, Nov. 2.
Inspired by this year’s conference book, By the Book: Writers on Literature and the Literary Life from The New York Times Book Review, we asked Matt a few questions to get to know him better:
1. What's in your TBR pile?
In my TBR pile I have so many books I have no idea where to begin.
2. What are you reading right now?
Currently, I'm finishing up Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy with a few friends. I've been reading it since January. When people ask me what it's about, I just say: "Everything."
3. Do you have a favorite book you love to recommend?
I love recommending Mark Danielewski's House of Leaves. Telling people about that book never gets old.
4. Do you have a favorite bookstore?
I once visited a bookstore in Ann Arbor, Michigan that had a mummy case!
5. Answer the question you wish we had asked.
What do I love the most about writing? I love taking the chaos in my head, whether tragic or rhapsodic, and letting other people experience it on the page.