Welcome to Instant Separation

Since 2011, UCSB has offered an ongoing creative writing workshop for student veterans and military dependents.  Instant Separation makes the writings of the workshop participants available to the public, as a way of sharing stories that reflect the diverse life histories and experiences of this remarkable group of UCSB students.

Beginning in June of 2015, veterans have participated in the annual University of California Student Veterans Summer Writing Workshop. This intercampus program is designed for UC veterans who seek to build bridges of communication between themselves and their communities through their writings. For five days, veterans from the ten campuses of the University of California come together to study the writer’s craft, to create personal narratives about their military service, and to share their experiences with their peers. In a culminating public event, the participants read their work to local community members.  On Instant Separation, you can read some of the extraordinary stories our UC student veterans have told.