Highlights of the Creative Writing Department: An interview with Professor Peschiera

Creative Writing is one of the many degree programs offered at Hope College. Located within the
English Department, it allows students to express themselves through stories, poems and other forms of personal writing. In a recent interview with The Anchor, Professor Pablo Peschiera dove into the many aspects of the program, as well as his own love for writing and teaching.

Dr. Pablo Peschiera has been teaching at Hope for seventeen years. As an avid
reader and writer from an early age, he enjoys poetry and literature. During his time in grad
school, Peschiera started taking creative writing classes himself. These classes are what inspired
him to pursue teaching. To honor Hispanic Heritage Month, Dr. Peschiera recently delivered a lecture
about his relationship with poetry and how it has allowed him to take on a new perspective on
how people live their lives. Poetry grants him the ability to understand different subcultures–especially the Latiné community. “It was really through poetry that I began to gain a better perspective on humanity and build my skills in empathy,” said Peschiera. “It took a long time, but my life is much better because of poetry.” His lecture, “How I Learned to Open Myself Through Poetry,” is now available on the Hope College YouTube channel.

For creative writing majors, the English department offers numerous creative writing courses in addition to plenty of prose-based literature courses. According to Dr. Peschiera, “We feel that being able to be a good reader is absolutely necessary for being a good writer.” Therefore, creative writing majors are required to take literature classes at Hope with the intent to further their knowledge of writing and reading comprehension. English classes for the creative writing emphasis also focus on poetry, fiction and nonfiction as creative genres. Occasionally, the department even has classes in playwriting and graphic novels. Other occassionally-offered genres include science fiction, fantasy, mythology and Shakespearean literature.

The program also works with many other aspects of the college, such as the Jack Ridl Visiting Writer Series. This series has at least two events and three to four authors visiting every semester. Additionally, the creative writing program partners with the Big Read Lakeshore Program. This program culminates every November, and it features a notable guest writer whose novel explores complex themes. Last fall, the Big Read Lakeshore Program featured Yaa Gyasi, the author of the novel “Homegoing”. Outside the classroom, many creative writing students also get involved in Opus, the campus literary magazine. This student-run magazine allows students to submit works of poetry, prose and digital art to be reviewed and showcased in their printed edition of the magazine. Creative writing students also extend their talents to The Anchor, and The Bell Tower, Hope’s undergraduate research journal that centers around the intersection of academic research and the Christian faith.

As Dr. Peschiera said in his lecture, poetry can change lives and allow an omniscient perspective on life. Therefore, the English department and the Creative Writing program at Hope heavily encourage students to learn all about poetry, prose, literature and other genres. Not only will these studies benefit students’ writing, but also their views on the world around them.