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The University of Maine at Fort Kent's Arts and Science's English Program selected author Sarah Creech as the sixth Waneta T. Blake Visiting Professor.

Sarah Creech will offer a workshop “A Writer's Journey” on Tuesday, April 12. The public writers' workshop will be held from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in the Nadeau Hall conference room. Pre-registration is not required.

Sarah will talk about her writing journey from her first creative writing workshops with UMFK's Associate Professor of English and Creative Writing, Geraldine Cannon Becker; to her Master of Fine Arts at McNeese State University; and to the publication of her first novel, “Season of the Dragonflies.”

“Read widely, deeply, and seek out opportunities to fail. Failure is a teacher, if you allow it,” Sarah's advice to an aspiring writer.

On Tuesday, April 12, there will be a public reading and book signing for “Season of the Dragonflies.” at 7 p.m. in UMFK's Nadeau Hall conference room.

“Season of the Dragonflies” is a novel about a secret perfumery hidden away in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. The company is run by a dynasty of women who pass down the company from mother to daughter and have for generations. The perfume that only the Lenore family can manufacture guarantees any woman who wears it extreme success in the career she most desires. At the beginning of the novel, the company finds itself in crisis, and the current CEO needs one of her grown daughters to take over but neither is ready. The novel was published by William Morrow in 2014.

The novel was a SIBA OKRA pick for the summer of 2014. Publishers Weekly described the book as "charming and suspenseful...a memorable debut." Her short fiction and essays have appeared at various publications, including The Cortland Review, Writer'sDigest.com, StorySouth, Literary Mama, and UMFK's very own Aroostook Review. Sarah Creech's second novel will be published in 2017. It's a love story set in the contemporary music scene of Nashville.

According to Sarah, “The best thing about being an author is the community! Writing is a solitary practice, but writers, for the most part, are social creatures. We need to be with other people who fiddle around with language for hours on end and call that fun. It might seem like a strange vocation to some, so we need some solidarity. I also love being part of a community where our common goal is the exercise of empathy.”

Sarah received a Master of Fine Arts in 2008 from McNeese State University and currently teaches English and Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte. She resides in North Carolina with her husband and children.

The workshop and presentation are free and the public is encouraged to attend.

You may view the author's webpage at: http://www.sarahcreech.org/

For more information on the workshop or presentation, please contact UMFK's Associate Professor of English & Comparative Literature, Dr. Joseph Becker at (207) 834-7588.

The Waneta T. Blake Visiting Professorship is designed to bring noteworthy writers and scholars to UMFK to work with students through courses, workshops, and seminars.