In partnership with Arizona Humanities, Phoenix Public Library at South Mountain Community College, Tohono O'odham Community College, and the Labriola National American Indian Data Center, Dr. Manny Loley hosted a free four-part creative writing workshop program open to writers, storytellers and community members. Each poetry workshop took place at a different location and included an online option.
About Dr. Manny Loley
Dr. Manny Loley is 'Áshįįhi born for Tó Baazhní'ázhí; his maternal grandparents are the Tódích'íi'nii and his paternal grandparents are the Kinyaa'áanii. He holds a Ph.D. in English and Literary Arts from the University of Denver, and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing-Fiction from the Institute of American Indian Arts. Dr. Loley is an inaugural Indigenous Nations Poets Fellow, a founding member of Saad Bee Hózhǫ́: Diné Writers' Collective, and the editor for Leading the Way: Wisdom of the Navajo People. Since 2018, he has served as director of the Emerging Diné Writers' Institute. His work has found homes in Poetry Magazine, Pleiades Magazine, the Massachusetts Review, the Santa Fe Literary Review, Broadsided Press, the Arkansas International, The Gift of Animals, Nihikéyah: Navajo Homeland, and the Diné Reader: an Anthology of Navajo Literature, among others. His writing has been thrice nominated for Pushcart Prizes. Dr. Loley is at work on a novel titled They Collect Rain in Their Palms. He is from Tsétah Tó Ák'olí on the Navajo Nation.
Inspiration and Theme for Seeds of Language, Seeds of Stories
In her poem “‘Álastsii Dah Deidijaa’”, Nia Francisco writes: ‘álastsii’ dóó nínit’i’ii niidlįh / seeds that does not cease we are. These seeds are language and stories. These seeds, carried in the palms and hearts of our ancestors, have sustained and inspired generations of Diné storytellers and cultural knowledge holders. With these seeds, we continue storytelling traditions that have supported our people through adversities. As we continue to live, we plant these seeds in the hearts and minds of the next generation. In this way, the stories continue. Never-ending and always growing.
In honor of this legacy, the program “Seeds of Language, Seeds of Stories” features multiple creative writing sessions centering Indigenous language and storytelling. Led by Diné writer and educator Manny Loley, the four sessions took place throughout February 2026, culminating at the Blue Corn Festival on Saturday, March 7, 2026 at Arizona Humanities in downtown Phoenix, Arizona.
Nitsáhákéés (Thinking Creatively) Session 1
Date: Thursday, February 12
Time: 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Location: South Mountain Community Library and Online (7050 S 24th St, Phoenix, AZ 85042)
"To think about how we build a relationship with our languages, this initial session will focus on a single word—naadą́ą́’ (simply translated as corn). We will be thinking about our relationship with naadą́ą́’ (and in extension planting) to generate ideas about how we can expand our thinking about and engagement with language. How are we looking at our languages on a deeper level? How can we create a deeper understanding? What are the philosophies present within words in our languages? What can these ideas teach us about being human and about our relationship with the physical spaces we inhabit? While we will be looking at a Diné conceptualization of the word “corn,” participants are encouraged to also work from the word for 'corn' in their ancestral/heritage language. This initial meeting will focus on creativity and generative writing exercises and discussion."
In the beginning, it is this way.
"Naadáá."
The word is a world in itself. The rough translation from Diné Bizaad to English of Naadáá is corn. Corn. In English, we are taught about identifying a person, place, or thing. In this context, corn is understood as an object. Objectifying something means disconnection: to objectify something is to establish no relation. However, the Navajo word Naadáá feels different, feels familiar. One participant says the word is soft. My tongue taps the roof of my mouth, breath to throat: Naadáá. Movement and time. Naadáá embodies movement and time. A large majority of the in-person audience were Indigenous people residing in Phoenix, Arizona: Pueblo, Zuni, Diné, Lakota, and O'odham. Most everyone was interested in finding a connection to Diné language learning, exploring cultural stories about corn, and participating in a framework of exercises that can support their creative writing journey.
Writing exercises to try:
Draw a picture. Label the things you see within the picture you drew. For example, if you drew a sun, write sun next to it. Now describe the sun. Is it hot? Warm? Orange? Use this exercise when feeling uncertain on where to begin with writing a poem.
Nahat’á (Framework or Guiding Principles) Session 2
Date: Thursday, February 19
Time: 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Location: Phoenix Indian Center and Online (4041 N Central Ave, Building B, Phoenix, AZ 85012)
"Building off of ideas discussed in session one, this follow-up session will focus on materials (ex: poems, excerpts from longer works, ancestral stories, family stories, songs, etc.) centering naadą́ą́’ (simply translated as corn), planting, growth, and creativity. We will engage with materials written/created/passed down by other Indigenous writers, thinkers, and elders to deepen our understanding of language and storytelling. What have other people written or said about these concepts? What are some existing frameworks and ways of thinking about these concepts? How is our thinking fitting into this conversation? What are some new ways to approach these ideas? This session will be a practice in honoring pre-existing knowledge while finding our own voice and creating new material. This second meeting will involve discussion, writing exercises, group activities, and sharing."
At the Phoenix Indian Center in downtown Phoenix, Arizona, Manny Loley led the second session to the Seeds of Language, Seeds of Stories series on Thursday, February 19, from 3 to 5 p.m. The Phoenix Indian Center is a historical site for Urban Indigenous peoples in Phoenix, Arizona. The Phoenix Indian Center,
"is the oldest American Indian non-profit organization of its kind in the United States. The Center was formed in 1947 as an outgrowth of Native people moving to urban Phoenix not only to sell their crafts and goods but as a result of U.S. Government Public Policy. The Federal Government’s Indian Relocation Act (PL 959) created a mass migration of American Indians from rural reservation settings to large scale cities across the United States during the 1950-1960s. The Act was an attempt to assimilate American Indians into the prevailing non-Indian city life culture and remove their practice of Native culture and traditions through the break-up of reservation systems. As a result, several Indian Centers were formed in the major “relocation” cities across the country. These Centers were crucial in providing a place for American Indians to connect and socialize with other Indians and to receive various necessary services as they were removed to live city-life. Phoenix was designated as one of the original 'relocation cities.'"
In the room where the second session was held, Loley propped open the door, letting in the shifting afternoon light. The wall to the south side of the room in the Phoenix Indian Center event space was covered by a large painting that depicted the hardships Native people in the Southwest region endured. The session focused on building strategies in reviewing a poem. The first component was to practice by listening. By listening first without a printed copy or webpage with the poem, we experienced the poem as it is read. By listening again with the physical paper or web version, we circled sounds and words that gave a feeling or reaction in our bodies. We practiced this several times. I appreciated that we first began first with listening. Being from an oral culture, the exercise emphasized how sound makes us feel. We reviewed Nia Francisco's ‘Álastsii’ Dah Deidiijaa’, some of Rex Lee Jim's poetry, and ended the workshop with Amber McCrary's Blue Corn Woman.
Iiná (Living or Embodied Knowledge) Session 3
Date:Thursday, February 26
Time: 4 to 5 p.m.
Location: Hayden Library, Labriola Center and Online (300 E. Orange Mall, Tempe, AZ 85281)
"In this third session, expand on ideas from the first two sessions and move toward the physical and embodied aspect of language and storytelling. We will physically handle corn seeds and objects in some kind of way. This could look like creative exercises using physical corn seeds or corn objects, learning from a traditional knowledge holder and planting, or another kind of engagement activity. The idea is that we’ll be putting our ideas and writing about corn, planting, and growth into action through physical engagement with these materials. How does our understanding of language and storytelling change when we engage in physical action? What can this teach us about the connection between language/stories, knowledge, and our physical bodies? This third meeting will involve some physical aspect of engaging with the ideas we’ve discussed thus far, discussion, and potential writing exercises. Participants are also invited to share their creative work at an Indigenous Open Mic held at the ASU Library’s Labriola Center later in the evening."
Siihasin (Reflection and Thinking Ahead) Session 4
Date: Saturday, March 7
Time: 3 to 4 p.m.
Location: AZ Humanities and Online (1242 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85004)
"The final session of this series will take place at the Blue Corn Fest on March 7, 2026. In this final session, we will reflect on what we’ve learned in previous sessions and think about creative ways we can pass on this knowledge. Now that we’ve thought about corn, planting, and growth, what are some ideas that we’ll take away from this experience and how can we incorporate those ideas into our living? What are some creative ways that we can pass on this knowledge? What are some bigger ideas or epiphanies we’ve had in this process? Participants will create some kind of object to pass on ideas from this series. We will brainstorm and work together to create these objects in our time together."
Reflections:
The final session took place under a shaded canopy on the lawn of the Historic Arizona Humanities in downtown Phoenix. Dr. Loley gave out sticky notes where we were asked to describe what we think language is. Some answers were "bright fire," "my grandparents' love," and connection to land and its people. Participants were asked to fold up our definitions and place them into a bag. Everyone drew a sticky note card and read it aloud. Following, Dr. Loley asked us to write a response to the definition. Some responded with a poem, other responded with drawings to express their reactions. Dr. Loley closed the session with a small piece of a traditional corn song, and encouraged us all to take care of the land, our environment, and extend tenderness to our community, which includes human and non-human relatives.
-Written by Yitazba Largo-Anderson
Reading Resources in ASU Libraries and Labriola Center Special Collections
Saad lá tah hózhóón = a collection of Diné poetry
Format: Physical book
Synopsis: Author Rex Lee Jim weaves language and culture into contemporary landscape creating a collection of poetry that teaches readers about himself, his people, his land, and his language. Written in Diné Bizaad (Navajo Language) and translated into English, this collection contains 30 poems that will catch the imagination of the reader and the heart of those who know the land’s language.
Blue corn tongue : poems in the mouth of the desert
Format: Ebook and Physical book
Synopsis: "Blue Corn Tongue is a mixtape from a thirty-something Diné punk girl with tracks about love and friendship as well as environmental destruction and language loss."
The Diné reader : an anthology of Navajo literature
Format: Physical book
Synopsis: "The Diné Reader developed as a way to demonstrate both the power of Diné literary artistry and the persistence of the Navajo people. The volume opens with a foreword by poet Sherwin Bitsui, who offers insight into the importance of writing to the Navajo people. The editors then introduce the volume by detailing the literary history of the Diné people, establishing the context for the tremendous diversity of the works that follow, which includes free verse, sestinas, limericks, haiku, prose poems, creative nonfiction, mixed genres, and oral traditions reshaped into the written word."
Format: Ebook and Physical book
Synopsis: "This anthology of essays offers perspectives of the Navajo homeland, nihikéyah, highlighting Diné examinations and understandings of the land. While various books have investigated Native American reservations and homelands, this book is from Diné individuals’ experiences, observations, and examinations. Poets, writers, and scholars frame their thoughts on four key questions: What are the thoughts/perspectives on nihikéyah/Navajo homeland? What challenges does nihikéyah face in the coming generations, and what should all peoples know about nihikéyah? And how can nihikéyah build a strong and positive Navajo Nation for the rest of this century and beyond?"
This blog post was written by Yitazba Largo-Anderson, Program Coordinator at the Labriola National American Indian Data Center.