Patricia Ann Quinn praises the Kelly Writers House
Patty Quinn (a Class of 2002 CGS student) praises the 1999 Kelly Writers House Fellows seminar, taught by Gay Talese
To the Writers House: I'm a student in the Writers House Fellows seminar taught this year by Gay Talese at the Writers House. Last night at Nan Talese's talk, Director Kerry Sherin urged me to put my feelings about the seminar, so here goes. I have to admit that I had reservations about applying for the seminar, fearing that it might be just a matter of getting a celebrity writer to lecture for the value of their name recognition. But I'm happy to say that my fears about that were laid to rest as soon as Mr. Talese began to teach the first class meeting. I feel incredibly lucky to have been a part of this seminar. I'll be sorry to see it end, and I'll always look back on it with fondness. Mr. Talese has been generous as a mentor, sharing with us anything he feels will help us grow as writers. Also, as a team, Mr. and Mrs. Talese enhance the learning experience, giving us the perspectives of author and editor. I find them both to be principled people as well as masters of their crafts, and with their anecdotes about writing and editing, they made the experience enjoyable as well as instructive. --Patricia Ann Quinn