Introducing Songsong Stories — creative works by a village of writers
In 2020, the University of Guam Press launched the Mañe’lon i Mantitige’ Writers Fellowship with support from a grant from the Guam Economic Development Authority. The goal of the fellowship is to foster a community of local writers in Guam and the Pacific region who are interested in publishing. The fellowship has included peer-review writing workshops, presentations by published authors, and an intensive writing and revision retreat that took place in early February 2021.
Five participants were selected based on the publishing potential of their writing, commitment to their writing projects, and clearly expressed desire to publish their work.
Malesso’ Magic
In CHamoru, the word songsong means village. Songsong Stories was inspired by the magic of Guåhan’s unique villages and how village life permeates our stories both in written and more traditional oral forms. Guåhan has nineteen villages, each boasting their own rich history, distinct beauty, and layered stories.
The writing retreat took place in the idyllic southern village of Malesso’. Five authors and three facilitators spent the weekend writing and revising their manuscripts. Between four-hour writing sessions, the group shared their work, provided each other with feedback and immersed themselves in the beauty and history of the village. They hiked to Fåha’, a historical site where one of two violent massacres of the CHamoru people took place at the end of the Japanese occupation of Guåhan during World War II. The group also paid their respects to author Jose Torres, whose book Massacre at Atåte recounts this violence that occurred in the village during the war and the heroic response from a group of brave CHamoru men who liberated the village from the Japanese. They also recited poetry at the gravesite of Guam’s late Poet Laureate Frederick B. Quinene, who authored the poetry collection, An Islander’s Voice.
We are excited to launch Songsong Stories with a series of excerpts of work created during the retreat.
Si Yu’os Ma’åse’ to Market Deli Guam and Asiga Cafe for fueling our writers with delicious treats and meals throughout the retreat. We would also like to thank Merizo Seaside BnB for providing the perfect location for our writers to be inspired and create in. And lastly, we want to especially thank the people of Malesso’ for allowing us to experience the magic of your songsong and comfort of your food, particularly C&J Hamburgers and Hotdogs for their delicious empanada, Mary McDonald for her famous tamales gisu’ and Daniel Quinata for his sweet tuba.
For more information about the University of Guam Press please visit our website: www.uog.edu/uogpress
