Dave Pidgeon is a professional writer and photographer from Lancaster, PA (the home of HippoCamp!). His work experience includes newspaper and magazine journalism, where he learned the value of deep investigatory skills. He returns to HippoCamp this year for two great sessions: “Finding Truth in Your Family’s Rumors and Legends” and “’Oh You Write? That’s Interesting’: A Panel on Writing While Parenting.” We asked Dave a few questions about what is going to make this year’s creative nonfiction writing conference the best one yet.
HM: Tell us a little about your involvement this year at HippoCamp. If you’re running a break-out session or workshop, what can attendees expect? If you’re on a panel with others, what are you most excited to share?
DP: I’m excited to be part of two presentations, both of which mean so much to me personally and to many others. I’m hosting a breakout session about tapping your inner detective and seeking truth in those family rumors and legends that have lived for many generations. We’ll have a lot of stories to tell that will hopefully induce some goosebumps. But that’s just a part of it. We’re also going to discuss how to deliver the news of what you’ve found (WARNING: The truth is often not quite what the legends tell you it is). It can be traumatic for people like your parents to learn the truth is different than what they believed. We’re going to deploy a little mental health therapy about how to present what you’ve discovered.
The second part of my involvement in HippoCamp places me on a panel about being a writer and a parent, two parts of our identities that often complement one another but also can be in conflict. I have the privilege of being on this panel having welcomed our third son into the world just a few short weeks ago, and I can tell you the impact on my writing has already been profound. My hope for both presentations is to pass on a little knowledge, a little entertainment, and a little wisdom so those in attendance can find new paths in their own journeys.
HM: Our motto is “memorable creative nonfiction.” Tell us about one of the more recent memoirs, essay collections, or individual essays you’ve read and why it was memorable.
DP: Michael Chabon’s Pops stands out. It’s a collection of his essays about fatherhood, and it’s told in that achingly poignant and at-times funny way Chabon writes fiction.
HM: What made you decide to participate in HippoCamp this year as a speaker? If you’re a returning speaker, how did your past experiences encourage you to want to come back?
DP: The audience feedback I received from last year’s HippoCamp inspired me to return. The people who attended were gracious, and I thought, “What else from my personal experience can I share?” In that way, being a speaker at HippoCamp is like writing a memoir because we infuse stories and personal experience into the practical how-to’s we share.
HM: What’s going to keep you busy between now and HippoCamp?
DP: We welcomed our third baby boy into the world in June, and I started a new public relations job with Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education. Life looks VERY different now than it did at last year’s HippoCamp. So I appear a little sleep deprived, yes, I’ll take a little coffee, thank you. I want to share, too, that I’m hoping to find new inspiration. My own efforts at creative nonfiction writing, be it a book or a blog, have sputtered, honestly, and I look forward to being around this collective of enthusiastic, understanding, inspiring people.
HM: Since you’ll also be attending the conference, when you’re not wearing your “speaker hat,” what are you most looking forward to learning or doing?
DP: Listening to everyone else’s stories and catching up with friends I’ve made at previous HippoCamps and see only once a year.
HM: We love introducing Lancaster to attendees. If you live here or have been here before, what would you recommend to other attendees? And, if this will be your first time here, what are you looking forward to?
DP: Stand in Penn Square on Friday or Saturday night. Take just a moment and look around. Notice the crowds and the enthusiasm, consider all the options within a few blocks. And realize this is a small city in the United States that’s been thriving for many years and keeps going. We’re lucky to live here and to be raising children here.
***
Thanks, Dave! We’re excited to celebrate your new baby, new job, and, of course, your return to HippoCamp.
And reader, it’s not too late to join us and see why more and more attendees keep returning to HippoCamp. Click here to register!
There are 0 comments