Spencer Lane Jones

can we get a new rap with nani in gracie mansion though

The @weilsociety.bsky.social is hosting its annual colloquy at Texas A&M in April '26, as well as an online conference. This group was invaluable for me during my MFA program and thesis-writing process as I read work by and about Simone Weil. Register, and as Weil would say, attend.

The Book Talks, Vol. 6 Middle School Teacher Adam Current on Wendy Mass's A Mango-Shaped Space (2003)

I really enjoyed this interview with Adam Current! A Mango-Shaped Space is a fantastic novel and Adam’s new cohort of eighth graders are lucky to read it this year! open.substack.com/pub/spencerl...

Assoc or Full Professor, MFA Program Director - HigherEdJobs Jobs in higher education. Faculty and administrative positions at colleges and universities. Updated daily. Free to job seekers.

My MFA program, the Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa, is hiring a new Director. Check it out.
www.higheredjobs.com/details.cfm?...

The Top 10 Books I Read in My MFA Program That I'd Teach to High School Students And a couple of honorable mentions...

I’m a proponent of teaching lots of classics *and* lots of contemporary literature to high school students. In case you’re looking for some contemporary (or at least mid-late 20th century) additions to your high school curriculum, check out this list!
open.substack.com/pub/spencerl...

I finished my MFA! Quite excited about spending a *fourth* year at the University of Iowa as a Visiting Assistant Professor of English! I'll be teaching Introduction to Rhetoric and Advanced Nonfiction Writing to English majors! Looking forward to Year 11!

I wrote an academic paper about the Trojan Horse Affair's fantastic model of journalism. It's out now in Radio Journal. More journalists should take notes from @brihreed.bsky.social and Hamza Syed.
intellectdiscover.com/content/jour...

What are the best book stores in Salt Lake City?

Extremely grateful to be recognized in this way by @weilsociety.bsky.social, especially after writing about Weil as a schoolteacher for the past three years. Thank you so much!

The Book Talks, Vol. 4 High School Teacher Mark Sibley-Jones on Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman (1949)

“Tragedy implies more optimism in its author than does comedy…its final result ought to be the reinforcement of the onlooker’s brightest opinions of the human animal...it is curious, although edifying, that the plays we revere, century after century, are the tragedies.” The Book Talks, Vol. 4.

The Book Talks, Vol. 3 University of Iowa Associate Professor of Rhetoric Annie Sand on Viktor Frankl's "Man's Search for Meaning" (1959)

Loved this interview with @anniesand.bsky.social, on Frankl's "Man's Search for Meaning." The Book Talks, Vol. 3 on Substack now.

The Book Talks, Vol. 2 High School Teacher Peter Shull on Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon (1977)

"I get the sense from both sides of the political spectrum that I should perhaps be keeping my head down and teaching a "safe" class...Many parents would rather their children be credentialed than educated today."

Read my interview with Peter Shull now, on teaching Morrison's "Song of Solomon."

Told my boyfriend about my Lent challenge for this year (not wearing headphones except for in the gym) and he got sassy

The Book Talks, Vol. 1 5th Grade Teacher Adrian Neibauer on Natalie Babbitt's Tuck Everlasting (1975)

Check out The Book Talks, Vol. 1: My interview with 5th grade teacher Adrian Neibauer on teaching the 1975 children's classic, "Tuck Everlasting." open.substack.com/pub/spencerl...

My dad gets really confused by the term "creative nonfiction" and his brain trips it to "non-creative fiction"

Just going to throw out that "I don't want to" in response to "encouragement" to "synthesize AI use into your classroom and pedagogy" is a perfectly fine response

5Q Interview: Spencer Lane Jones, an MFA candidate in the Nonfiction Writing Program "I became an early bird writer because I had to be, and it hasn't really left my body."

Honored to be featured this week on University of Iowa's 5Q interview series! writinguniversity.org/news-archive...

What if the Attention Crisis Is All a Distraction? From the pianoforte to the smartphone, each wave of tech has sparked fears of brain rot. But the problem isn’t our ability to focus—it’s what we’re focussing on.

I disagree with a lot of this but it makes compelling points near the end. Makes for a powerful rebuttal to the Postman, Carr, and now Hayes claims. Worth a read (and a teach if you have anything related on your syllabus).

www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

In case anyone was interested in Simone Weil’s thoughts on how to do the next four years

Why Schools Should Assign Books In the Schoolhouse, Vol. 9

On sabbatical this semester. To stay connected with fellow educators and celebrate their work, I am launching "The Book Talks," an interview series in which I will talk to teachers about their favorite books to teach. Join me!
open.substack.com/pub/spencerl...

I’m thrilled to share that part of my MFA thesis was selected by John Jeremiah Sullivan as the runner-up essay in the 2024 nonfiction contest @ The Sewanee Review!
thesewaneereview.com/contest

Greeting a cold, cold America again today. Thanks for the weekend, PR.