Archive for July, 2010

Two ACU English majors have proved they have the talent and creativity to stand out among their peers as writers.  Sophomore Jordan Smith from Escondido Calif. and senior Grant Vickery from Atlanta, Ga., wone honors in the student writing contest as part of the 2010 Conference on Christianity and Literature.

The annual student writing contest is open to undergraduate students from across the nation. Each year, three winners are chosen in the categories of poetry, nonfiction and fiction.

Smith was awarded second place in the poetry category for his piece “Bulverde,” a poem about finding an unexpected moment of peace at an empty house. Vickery’s essay, “Things Fall Down,” earned him an honorable mention in the nonfiction category.

Each of the winning pieces was originally written for a class assignment. Al Haley, writer in residence at ACU and associate professor of English, taught both students.

“Jordan’s winning poem was one of more than 30 he wrote for my Poetry Workshop. It’s a carefully crafted piece with fine use of language and unexpected line breaks,” says Haley. “Grant’s essay was actually his first assignment in my Creative Nonfiction Workshop. I didn’t assign them a topic, but I suggested they might find something to write about by considering how nature affects them.”

The first, second and third place winners of the 2010 writing contest received a generous selection of books, a one-year subscription to Image, and a one-year membership to the Conference on Christianity and Literature. Their work was also published on the conference website.

“It’s the quality of writing that really counts in this contest,” says Haley. “Both of these students used language to create really unique pieces.”

Eight English faculty and graduate students attended the Christian Scholars’ Conference held at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, on June 3-5, 2010.  The theme of this year’s conference was Beauty in the Academy: Faith, Scholarship and the Arts.

Highlights of the conference included plenary speeches by James Elkins, E.C. Chadbourne Professor in the Department of Art History, Theory, and Criticism, at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; poet and critic Dana Gioia; and award-winning playwright John Patrick Shanley.  

Below are some of the papers and panels presented by English faculty and graduate students:

Nancy W. Shankle, Abilene Christian University, Convener: “Teaching Doubt”

• Mikee Delony, Abilene Christian University: Panelist

• Barrett Huddleston, Oklahoma University: Panelist

• Sherry Rankin, Abilene Christian University: Panelist

• Steven T. Moore, Abilene Christian University: Panelist

• Vickie Smith, Abilene Christian University: Panelist

• John Williams, Harding University: Panelist

Mikee Delony, Abilene Christian University: “Monstrous Beauty: Contemporary Aesthetics of Beauty” (Session I)

• Susan Jeffers, Independent Scholar: “Gross or Grotesque Beauty?: Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ”

• Shelly Sanders, Abilene Christian University: “Who’s to Blame?”: Naming the Monstrous in Whale Rider”

• William Carroll, Abilene Christian University: “The Apologetics of Clive Barker’s Monstrous Sublime”

Shelly Sanders, Abilene Christian University, Convener: “Monstrous Beauty: Contemporary Aesthetics of Beauty” (Session II)

• Steven T. Moore, Abilene Christian University: “Monstrous Beauty in the Moonwalk:  Examining the Hidden Reality of Blackness in the Music Videos of Michael Jackson”

• Mikee Delony, Abilene Christian University: “Evil Beauty: The Vampire in Contemporary Media”

• Perry Harrison, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales: “Neon Gods: The Faded Humanity of Dr. Manhattan”

Jeremy Elliott, Abilene Christian University, Convener: “Issues in Social Justice”