kendra atleework

Writer

Bishop, CA

11/9/22—11/12/22

We first meet with writer Kendra Atleework at the base of Tungsten Peak, a seemingly small hill in comparison to the white giants that are the eastern Sierras rising up behind it. Yet, by the top of this hill, we are all huffing and puffing, and the nipping wind that earlier chilled to the bone is now a welcome friend to our reddened faces and sweaty brows. Atop this peak, where silence gives way to the gentle dripping and cracking of freshly fallen snow as it wakes up to the morning sun, Kendra and her father Robert introduce us to the narrow valley she has always called home: the Owens River Valley. This is the beginning of a three day writing workshop with Kendra.

Kendra’s writing is largely focused on place, which is why, on the top of Tungsten Peak, she encourages us to take a few minutes of silence to notice the microdetails; we will use this in our writing later. Each afternoon, after a morning of exploration and learning about the complexities that make up this valley and its landscape, Kendra guides us through a series of excerpts and essays that demonstrate world-building, writing from research, and voice. We then try our hand at some of these techniques through a series of short and long writing activities. With Kendra’s kindness, wisdom, and gentle soul, Westies were patiently guided toward a better sense of not only how to bring a landscape alive within our writing, but also how to allow the landscape to serve as a pivotal character in a piece of writing.

By Lila Foster