He\u2019s tried the East Coast. He\u2019s tried the West Coast.<\/p>\n
But Liam Callanan, an associate professor of English, is firmly ensconced in the \u201cmid-coast.\u201d<\/p>\n
Callanan, who came of age in Los Angeles, allows that the weather is warmer there but, now enjoying his 12th winter in Milwaukee, he loves his snowblower.<\/p>\n
Callanan, who call himself an \u201cevangelist\u201d for Milwaukee, is given to such observations as \u201cMilwaukee is the new Seattle.\u201d He\u2019s even given the city a cameo in his forthcoming novel, \u201cParis by the Book,\u201d which is scheduled to publish April 3.<\/a><\/p>\n Callanan, is the author of three novels and a collection of short stories, but he\u2019s also a highly regarded teacher who won the Distinguished Undergraduate Teaching Award last fall. He teaches in the graduate Creative Writing program and has served as the program\u2019s coordinator, as well as the English department\u2019s chair.<\/p>\n He says he was bitten by the teaching bug when working on his master of fine arts in writing at George Mason University, where he also began teaching.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was fascinating to work with undergrads who, like me, were working on their writing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He doesn\u2019t adhere to the \u201cfeet of the master\u201d style where the great one reveals all, but rather thinks of himself as a more of a personal trainer. He offers his own training for a marathon as an analogy.<\/p>\n \u201cI asked a running coach to watch me run to see if I was doing anything wrong,\u201d he recalled. \u201cHe said, \u201cI\u2019m not going to change the way you run; you run how you run.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cPeople write how they write; I don\u2019t want to take away anyone\u2019s voice. I want to help them get to the point they want to get to.\u201d<\/p>\n His students clearly appreciate it.<\/p>\n \u201c[He\u2019s] personable to the students and obviously enthusiastic about the material, which is infectious,\u201d one wrote in an evaluation. \u201cHe is very intelligent, but never condescending \u2026 The most enjoyable professor I\u2019ve ever had.\u201d<\/p>\n