DOUGLAS BOND 

Sample OCWMC Daily Schedule:

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Friday (23): Meet at Heathrow/London Terminal 2 12:00 (approx.); drive together to Oxford; Martyr's Monument; English Church history for context; history of Oxford; bishop's martyr's; Baliol College (Wycliffe), Hall and Chapel; evensong at Merton College Chapel; dinner at King's Arms; drive to Banbury Hill Farm, our Cotswold cottages north of Oxford.

Saturday (24): St. Michael's Tower; Ashmolean Museum (if it rains, subject to weather); punting on the Cherwell; Addison's Walk; Magdalen College; evensong at chapel 6:00 pm; dinner at The Quad Restaurant on High Street.

Sunday (25): Drive to Elstow Abbey for 10:00 service at Bunyan's church; explore Elstow, Moot Hall; drive to Olney and St Peter's and St Paul's, Newton and Cowper; drive back to Oxford for 6:30 worship service at St Ebbe's, Glenn Nesbitt preaching from Hebrews 2:14-17

Monday (26): Keble College (Lewis's billet in OTC WW I) and Oxford Movement; Tolkien's Oxford walk, seeing some of the houses he lived in and Merton College; St Mary the Virgin University Church, Cramner final sermon, 1555, Lewis's Weight of Glory message; writing and discussion in gallery; climb tower (if time); Bodleian Library/Divinity School

Tuesday (27): morning tutorial and critique at cottage; see what we didn't get to the day before! Stop at Winston Churchill's grave; Dinner at Eagle & Child; JS Bach organ service at Christ Church College Cathedral 7:30

Wednesday (28): morning tutorial and critique at cottage; drive to Stratford-upon-Avon, tour Shakespeare's birthplace town, Holy Trinity where he is buried; great place to do some shopping, if you care to; dinner at The Gerrick, oldest pub in town; Macbeth at Royal Shakespearean Theatre RST

Thursday (29): Kilns tour at 3:00, Holy Trinity Headington Quarry where Lewis worshiped and is buried; Shelly's Pond, Shotover Hill where Lewis liked to go for walks; dinner back in Oxford center; choral evensong at Cathedral 7:30

Friday (30): Good Friday breakfast and final time together before loading up and driving back to London and home

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Flights and logistical details:

--Pack for volatile spring weather, some rain, some sun, chilly mornings and evenings

--Pack lightly, layer clothing, sweaters, etc. We will be eating out and going to the Royal Shakespearean Theatre and church services and evensong services, so plan accordingly. You don't, however, want to be lugging around an enormous suitcase. Europeans are not obsessed with wearing a different outfit every day, as are some Americans.

--Wear comfortable walking shoes. We will be on our feet a fair bit.

--Bring your favorite writing implement, paper pencil pen, laptop, goose quill, hammer and chisel! 

--Plan also to bring some samples of your writing. We will be doing some writing prompts on location as well. But we will have numerous times to read and critique one another (I usually write something original on each class, and may share it with you, depending on how it goes)

--Bring Passport, phone charge cord, some granola bars for when we fudge a bit on the time of a meal (because we've gotten so engrossed in Oxford and writing), any medicine or vitamins you need, coat, umbrella or hat, if you prefer.

--Check your phone plan and add global service if needed. Plan to text with loved ones, as that is usually free on most plans.

--A debit card will be your best way to access cash, but let your bank know you are traveling in the UK. Maybe bring a backup card too.

--Some important arrival/departure logistics:

We will meet on our opening day by 1:00 so don’t book flights that arrive after about mid morning on that first day. I will meet all of you at Cafe Nero terminal 2 Heathrow/London/arrivals (not departures) at 1:00. We will load up together and make our way to Oxford. On our last day of the master class we will arrive at Heathrow late morning around 11:30 so don’t schedule flights that leave before afternoon on the last day. My flights usually depart around 3:00 back to US airports. I’m flying with Norwegian Air on this trip but usually fly with British Air, Iceland Air, sometimes Virgin Atlantic. Watch flights closely especially on Tuesdays the cheapest day to buy flights.

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There will be a clean-up and food preparation assist roster for our in-house breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, so be prepared to pitch in--"Many hands make light work," as the saying goes.

All you've heard about the English being cuisine challenged--it's all rot! Don't believe a word of it! We will share hearty meals together daily--English breakfast to fortify us for the rigors of creative writing, mid-morning tea and crumpets, a plowman's lunch at Lewis's Eagle and Child during the tutorial week, steak and ale pie, Cornish pasties, and other truly English delicacies, washed down with Earl Grey tea or a variety of English ciders (or other beverages to suit your tastes, preferences, or convictions), my favorite being Thatcher's Gold.

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READING LIST (Partial)

JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis's fictional works (we will be reading and discussing a number of shorter pieces on writing from both of these authors, as well as Solzhenitsyn, Churchill, Jane Austen, and others)

*Shakespeare (play de jour for the tour; we've most recently seen Macbeth)

Evan K Gibson's CS Lewis Spinner of Tales

Dorothy Sayers's Mind of the Maker

Steve DeWitt's Eyes Wide Open

Shawn Coyne Story Grid

Jan Morris Oxford

Robert Newton Peck's Secrets of Successful Fiction

*Flannery O'Connor's Mystery and Manners

*Strunk & White's Elements of Style

Gary Provost's Beyond Style

*Surprised by Oxford, Carol Weber

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Testimonials from past writing students of Douglas Bond

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Not only academically in knowledge, theories, and writing skill did your classes greatly enhance my life, but moreover in worldviews, philosophy, critical thinking, and fundamental paradigms of life. So much of how I view the world and understand differing perspectives is thanks to the time spent learning from you in and out of class. Thank you so much for everything. Donald Kimball

I just wanted to say that though I did email you during my college years, I gave a prayer of thanks for you much more often. If I had emailed you every time something you’d taught me came in handy, your inbox would have been flooded.

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Douglas Bond was hands down the best teacher I had in high school. He always pushed his students to excel, and worked to the best of his abilities to ensure that they understood the methods and mechanics of excellent writing. Mr. Bond not only taught the history and meaning behind literature, but also emphasized the importance of good writing. Through his class, I was able to gain the experience and knowledge needed to excel in courses at the college level. Having taken multiple English classes at the University of Washington, I can attest to the practicality and usefulness of Mr. Bond’s literature and writing class. Not only were these college classes made easier, but much of the literature used in his class were also used at the college level. All in all, Mr. Bond’s literature and writing classes were some of the most useful classes I have ever taken, and the care and effort he puts into his class and students is bar none. Joel Kim

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I have the highest respect for your teaching ability and your commitment to bringing out the best in your students. I learned an immense amount during my time in your classes at Covenant. In fact, the material we learned is still with me. I've been reading Paradise Lost these last few weeks and had forgotten that we memorized part of it in high school. And then I came across the lines "Speechless he stood and pale, til thus at length, first to himself he inward silence broke..." and I immediately remembered what followed. Amazing how your instruction sticks with me (1999 graduate). Patrick Connely

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