Professor wins international fiction award
By: Elliot Wardlow
Issue date: 10/8/09 Section: News
Peace is Bausch's eleventh novel, and he does not have plans to stop writing. Bausch said his goal as a writer is to be involving and truthful.
"You can't cheat the story," Bausch said. "Write a good book and make it work on various levels. Be as clear as you can be. The rest takes care of itself."
Bausch's works have been published in magazines such as The New Yorker, Esquire, GQ, and even Playboy.
"Playboy publishes first class writers," Bausch said. "And it gives me a reason to keep it in the house."
Bausch had simple advice to offer for aspiring writers.
"Don't read how-to books. I have never read a how-to book. Read the writers. Try to absorb six good writers per year. You have to read a lot, and you have to write a lot," Bausch said.
Bausch has also won awards such as a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, a Guggenheim fellowship, the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Writers Award and the Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
These awards, along with the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, shed positive light not only on Bausch, but also on the English department at The U of M.
MFA candidate and fiction writer Jennifer Weber said it was an honor to have Bausch in the MFA program.
"Several professors have won awards here, but this is a real big one," Weber said. "An award like this elevates attention to our program."
Weber, currently in her third workshop with Bausch, said that he is one of the reasons she has a concentration in fiction.
"He encourages you as a writer, not by just looking at your work, but by looking at how you work when you write."
Weber said that taking a class with Bausch was not quite like taking any other class.
While walking into class with a friend Weber said, "Get ready for the hymns. It's time for church. It's like a religious experience."
MFA student Andrew Sall said the award lends credibility to the MFA program.
"Bausch is a real asset to our program," Sall said. "Because of professors like Bausch, students can find inspiration to write, publish and succeed."
Eric Link, chair of the English department, said Bausch's award shows The U of M has a really good faculty.
"Our university attracts well qualified scholars," Link said. "The award is certainly a big deal. It is clearly one of the greatest achievements of one of our fiction writers."
"You can't cheat the story," Bausch said. "Write a good book and make it work on various levels. Be as clear as you can be. The rest takes care of itself."
Bausch's works have been published in magazines such as The New Yorker, Esquire, GQ, and even Playboy.
"Playboy publishes first class writers," Bausch said. "And it gives me a reason to keep it in the house."
Bausch had simple advice to offer for aspiring writers.
"Don't read how-to books. I have never read a how-to book. Read the writers. Try to absorb six good writers per year. You have to read a lot, and you have to write a lot," Bausch said.
Bausch has also won awards such as a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, a Guggenheim fellowship, the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Writers Award and the Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
These awards, along with the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, shed positive light not only on Bausch, but also on the English department at The U of M.
MFA candidate and fiction writer Jennifer Weber said it was an honor to have Bausch in the MFA program.
"Several professors have won awards here, but this is a real big one," Weber said. "An award like this elevates attention to our program."
Weber, currently in her third workshop with Bausch, said that he is one of the reasons she has a concentration in fiction.
"He encourages you as a writer, not by just looking at your work, but by looking at how you work when you write."
Weber said that taking a class with Bausch was not quite like taking any other class.
While walking into class with a friend Weber said, "Get ready for the hymns. It's time for church. It's like a religious experience."
MFA student Andrew Sall said the award lends credibility to the MFA program.
"Bausch is a real asset to our program," Sall said. "Because of professors like Bausch, students can find inspiration to write, publish and succeed."
Eric Link, chair of the English department, said Bausch's award shows The U of M has a really good faculty.
"Our university attracts well qualified scholars," Link said. "The award is certainly a big deal. It is clearly one of the greatest achievements of one of our fiction writers."