We are grateful for our place in the Northwoods at Bemidji State University beside the lake known as Bemidjigamaag – where the river crosses – which has been a sacred gathering place for countless generations of indigenous peoples, including Dakota, Lakota, and Anishinaabeg, who remain the spiritual caretakers and thriving members of the greater community to which we all belong, situated as we are, between three Ojibwe reservations – Leech Lake, White Earth, and Red Lake. We recognize and support the sovereignty of Native nations. We will continue to work with indigenous teachers, elders, and youth to protect and honor all of our relationships with the land, all our relatives, and the truth.

Writers gather beside the lake for a week of enlivening literary activity at the Minnesota Northwoods Writers Conference where participants have the opportunity to inhabit a single intimate workshop with an award-winning writer for the duration of the conference. Faculty are chosen for their writing accomplishments and their success in teaching. Each morning, faculty present a craft talk or conversation, and each evening, faculty read from their work and share insights on writing. Group activities bring our writing community together, such as pontoon rides, shared meals, participant readings, panels, etc. Then participants often gather informally, on their own, for readings and conversations, late into the summer evening.

Here is a short video produced by Elizabeth Day:

Plus, see a few of the faculty and attendee testimonials and a video clip of the 2013 Minnesota Northwoods Writers Conference from LakelandPTV’s Common Ground.

WE ARE GRATEFUL TO OUR MANY CONTRIBUTORS, DONORS, PARTNERS, SPONSORS and SUPPORTERS: The American Indian Resource Center, Bemidji State University, Extended Learning, The Loft Literary Center, Red River Valley Writing Project, The Minnesota Writing Project, Jackpine Writers Bloc, Lake Superior Writers, Ecotone Journal, The Missouri Review, Pleiades: A Journal of New Writing, Rain Taxi Review of Books, and our numerous community supporters, including KAXE Northern Community Radio, Watermark Art Center and others.

If you would like to support, partner, sponsor, or in some way contribute to the Minnesota Northwoods Writers Conference, please contact us at writersconference@bemidjistate.edu.