Nature in Her Words

Central Michigan University student Jane Amstutz, a double major in French and English and a junior from Manistee, has won the coveted Pierce Cedar Creek Institute Creative Arts Fellowship. She is the sixth CMU creative writing student to win this award in recent years.

An environmental education center located ten miles south of Hastings, the Pierce Cedar Creek Institute offers a competitive creative fellowship program that lets student artists and writers spend five weeks at the institute, immersed in Michigan’s breathtaking natural environment. Fellows are given opportunities to work with mentors and be inspired by the beauty around them. 

As a young writer, Jane Amstutz understands already that the opportunity to have time and space to practice one’s craft is crucial, and to be supported financially is a bonus.

“An English major is encouraged to be adaptable and marketable, which means we are often asked to use our skills in non-creative fields,” she said. “It is extremely difficult to find internships that are solely dedicated to the act of creative writing. Winning this fellowship is significant to me because it will provide me with a space where I can receive financial and academic support for my creative endeavors. I can hone my skills without being asked how those skills will be applicable outside of a creative environment.”

At Pierce Cedar Creek, not only will Amstutz have a Creative Writing mentor and peers, but she’ll also learn to see the landscape through the lens of other Pierce Cedar Creek fellows in visual arts and environmental studies.

“This fellowship will provide me with a creative community, where feedback and collaboration is encouraged, something that can be hard to find outside of the creative writing classroom,” said Amstutz.

Department of English Language and Literature faculty member Robert Fanning, who teaches “Wonder and Wander,” an annual Creative Writing course at the CMU Biostation on Beaver Island, was thrilled to hear the news that Jane had been awarded this fellowship.

“Jane will gain so much from this time alone with her words. Being in solitude, learning to be present and to practice deep attention, these are vital aspects of being a writer, and there’s no better place than being alone in nature to reconnect with those skills,” said Fanning. 

Amstutz is aware that solitude is a necessary component, but a writer’s job is also to be in community, and to serve the community.

“I am looking forward to a slower pace of living at Cedar Creek,” said Amstutz. “The time spent outdoors and engaging with other fellows will be much needed and welcomed after the completion of my junior year at CMU. I am also looking forward to volunteering and engaging with the public that utilizes the trails at the research institute.” 

Check out the Department of English Language and Literature website to learn more about CMU’s educational opportunities for scholars of English. The Department also offers a Certificate in Creative Writing, a Creative Writing Minor, and a Master of Arts in Creative Writing.