I have been a member of The Loft Literary Center for over two years. I currently work in communications and have also worked in PR and advertising. The resources, networking opportunities, classes, and venue itself consistently impress me. I have truly enjoyed being able to support such an organization.
I have also just loved the fact that the classes ACTUALLY help my writing!! It's hard to find good writing classes for people who work in communications and have studied writing in school. I've taken some other writing classes at other places, and they helped a little, but not even close to what The Loft has provided me. I really appreciate the expertise held by the class instructors. It is impressive. I have also greatly appreciated that the instructors have pursued writing professionally so I felt their advice and lessons were credible (at least the instructors I've had were writers) and also made themselves available to the students during and after the class. The classes have also provided wonderful networking opportunities with other writers.
Lastly, I have found The Loft to be just a great community of writers. It's hard to find such a large community of talented writers, and I believe The Loft makes that available.
So, needless to say, I am a fan of The Loft...and yes, I proudly sport my tote bag. :)
I’ve had the great pleasure of being on both sides of the desk at the Loft. Inspiring teachers such as Dale Gregory Anderson and Robert Voedisch taught me to craft compelling fiction. Through the Loft Mentor Series, lead by the amazing Jerod Santek, I was able to work closely with distinguished writers such as Pete Hautman, Jim Moore, and Mary Rose O’Reilly. Now, having moved to Pennsylvania, I’m lucky to still be tied to the Loft through teaching online classes. Kurtis Scaletta’s terrific work to develop this program means I have students from across the nation. Just as my Loft teachers have inspired me, my students now inspire me. At a time when the arts have been the first programs to be cut, The Loft community fosters and fuels a love of writing and expands an ever-growing support for the written word.
As a writer in the Twin Cities, it's difficult to overstate the importance of the Loft. Seriously. It just defies hyperbole. Imagine an aspiring guitar player whose freshman roommate turned out to be Jimi Hendrix, a painter who found that she went to same laundromat as Picasso, or a paper-folding enthusiast who lived upstairs from the World Champion of Competitive Origami. The Loft is like that. It's so vital. I've taken classes there, attended readings, entered contests, gone to conferences, and tucked myself into a corner when I needed a quiet place to write. The Loft is truly a spiritual center for the Minnesota writing community and beyond. I can't recommend it highly enough.