LBCC’s English department hosted their visiting writer series with guest speaker, CSULB English professor and writer Suzanne Greenberg, on Nov. 16.
Suzanne Greenberg selected stories from her most recent work “Shopping for Dad and Other Stories,” including “Under the radar,” “How it Happens,” and the titular “Shopping for Dad.”
Greenberg gave short backgrounds for each of the stories which mostly revolved around coming of age teenage girls.
Greenberg also hosted a Q&A after her readings, with most of the questions concerning her style of writing and advice for up and coming writers.
Greenberg attributed the influence of her work on her own life experiences and observations of people’s lives.
“A lot of them are small bits from bits from my life and lives of my neighbors and people around me and then me filling in the blanks making stuff up and imagining things. There’s almost always some grain of truth in each one, but then I fictionalized them and turn them into stories,” Greenberg said.
Greenberg last spoke at LBCC in 2003, around the time her book “Speed-Walk and Other Stories,” was released.
Organized by English professor Jeffrey Epley, also a former student of Greenberg’s, the visiting writer series brings on two writers every semester to read some of their works and participate in a Q&A.
The event brings in a variety of writers across different genres, but Epley’s main aim is to bring on poets and fiction writers.
“I think it’s good to have writers from many different genres. We had a writer who was a prime fiction guy one semester, we had a short story writer last semester who also writes plays and this semester we have Suzanne Greenberg,” said Epley.
The poet speaker of this semester was Luivette Resto, who spoke on October 23.
Aspiring writers were also in attendance, with some having classes in neighboring rooms and were dropping in.
Robert Almaraz, a short story writer and current LBCC student, graduated with a degree in psychology but has since returned to school to pursue an English degree.
Almaraz explained that he was tired of psychology and sought to pursue his actual passions.
“I was kind of over it when I was still going to college full time. I always wanted to switch back to English but I never had the time or the credits, there were too many credits, so it was a lot, a lot of obstacles,” said Almaraz.
Almaraz had a piece of his writing, titled “Concrete Flesh” published in LBCC’s SAGA literary journal, the most recent volume available on the creative writing program’s website.
The visiting writers series will continue during spring semester with more information to be announced.