By Ben Hulsey ’22
Woodberry has been lucky enough to host Mr. David Huddle, an American writer and professor. Mr. Huddle and his wife have been on campus for the past few weeks. He has been present in several English classes, helping students with their writing and particularly poetry. I was able to learn more of his life story and values during an interview with Mr. Huddle, conducted by Sebastian Gibb ‘22 and Johnny Russell ‘22.
Mr. Huddle was born in rural Virginia and attended the University of Virginia. He continued his education and took graduate courses at Hollis College. Later, he served as an enlisted man in the 1960s, serving in both Germany and Vietnam as an intelligence specialist. After his career in the military, he turned towards his writing. Mr. Huddle says he started with short stories and poetry. Much of the writing was inspired by his small-town background. However, his writing later developed into pieces about nature and particularly birds. Mr. Huddle says that the best writing he has encountered is writing that comes out of the soul.
As a writer, Mr. Huddle’s biggest challenge is having to put pieces aside that simply aren’t working. However, he advises students to put the piece away, wait about half an hour, and come back to it with new ideas and motivation. Advice like this has been incredibly useful to students and faculty alike. We have all benefited from Mr. Huddle’s presence on campus.
Categories: Spotlight
The Woodberry Oracle 