Local author to talk about her work at MHCC

Local author Megan Kruse will discuss her craft and her award-winning 2015 novel “Call Me Home” at the upcoming Mouths of Others speaker series event at MHCC.

The reading and forum will run noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday in the Visual Arts Theatre.

A Pacific Northwest native, Kruse teaches fiction at Eastern Oregon University’s Low-Residency MFA program (only two weeks of residency are required). Call Me Home is “a story of a family that’s being torn apart,” said Michele Hampton, MHCC English instructor who helped arrange her visit.

The novel features an abusive father “and an impoverished mother on the run dependent upon him, so she’s always struggling to make ends meet,” Hampton said.

Kruse will put her teaching experience to work after the presentation, joining one of the Fiction Writing classes and leading a student workshop.

These MofO workshops “are great for students to get their own writing done with a writer they’ve just heard,” said Hampton.

The initial reading and discussion is open to anyone interested.

Hampton noted that Kruse excels at “handl(ing) so many points of view in her writing. She has a lot of strengths as a writer, but that’s (a big) one for me. I think I will learn a lot… in how she is able to see the same instance from multiple perspectives and have very defining voices for each of her characters. Point-of-view is so tricky.”

Hampton emphasized that the reading is for students of all types, not just those who enjoy writing: “Any time you encounter somebody who’s living their dream and being an artist it taps into your creative side, no matter what your creative side is.

“It shows you, you should put your attention there, too. I think when writers come (to Mt. Hood) they’re so energetic and positive about living life, practicing their art… that’s a big inspiration across the board, no matter what.”

Students who wish to suggest local artists for the MofO series are encouraged to contact Hampton, or any faculty member in the English Department.