The momentum in Benjamin Percy’s stories takes off from the beginning and pulls the reader along, said Chase Colton, a University of Idaho graduate student in creative writing.
“The first few stories I read of Ben’s, I was riveted,” Colton said. “It was incredible the way he operates the tension he creates in his stories. The people seem real and full and fresh.”
Percy will read from his work at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 16 in the College of Law Courtroom. His visit is sponsored by the UI English department, as part of a four-day workshop he will be conducting with the Master’s of Fine Arts Creative Writing Program, said Doug Heckman, the program director.
Percy said his “literary thrillers” are a fusion of the novels he grew up reading and the literary fiction he was introduced to in college.
“I went through phases where I was reading spy thrillers, mysteries, horror novels, westerns,” Percy said. “(Then) here I was at these fiction workshops at the university being told that the stories I admired so much before were poorly written, and that I should focus my attention solely on the anthologies.”
Percy said he admired the way literary fiction writers told stories, but also realized that some popular authors were using literary techniques in their writing.
“They have these page-turning plots, but they also have exquisite language,” Percy said. “Sentences you could pull off the page and frame and admire on the wall.”
Growing up, Percy said he only cared about the story of a novel, but his time at college gave him an appreciation for the craft used to tell a story.
“I was able … to build stories that drew from the best of both worlds,” Percy said. “I pay close attention to character, to language, but I also hope that my reader will feel compelled to turn the page and wonder desperately what happens next.”
The MFA creative writing program hosts three distinguished authors each year to meet with about 12 students for two-and-a-half hours every evening for four days and critique their work.
“It’s a great chance for the students to work closely with a writer of national acclaim,” Heckman said. “One of the benefits of our program — a lot of programs bring in some top-notch writers, but not many programs allow their students to work with one of these hot writers.”
Heckman said authors who participate in the Distinguished Visiting Writers program must have a desire to teach and work with the students.
“(They) must be willing to read a lot of student work,” Heckman said. “We are just getting ready to mail off 12 stories to Ben. So, little does he know he’s got a thick packet of stories coming to his doorstep … They have to be willing to spend that time with the students.”
Participating graduate students are required to take three workshops during their time at UI. Colton, a third year, said he’s hoping Percy will help him understand how to keep his characters believable.
“How to better create a story where you deal with heavy emotional material, but you don’t sacrifice the action, the drama, the momentum,” Colton said. “That’s really what he’s able to create.”
Colton said the workshops are always beneficial to his development as an author, because the visiting writers provide a different perspective and different advice than he hears from professors at UI.
“(They are) often much more concerned with the art than the craft,” Colton said. “They care what a piece can do if it’s working, as opposed to identifying the elements that make most stories go.”
In Colton’s first DVW workshop, he had the opportunity to work with Steve Almond.
“It was a pivotal moment in my learning and in my writing,” Colton said. “The things he said to me. He just didn’t pull any punches and was just no BS right away. And that’s what I needed to hear.”
Colton said Percy is an example of what a young writer can do.
“In some ways it’s really inspiring as a young writer, and in some ways it’s really daunting,” Colton said. “It’s like ‘How do I do that?’ But he … symbolizes a certain model of fearlessness in writing.”