Where to Start and Where to Go : How to Shape Your Story

Sometimes we have a story we’re dying to write, but we quickly become overwhelmed when we try to figure out how best to start it or how to structure it so that the story flows and remains compelling. This hands-on workshop will focus on some nuts-and-bolts elements of the craft of writing. Whether you’re working on fiction or nonfiction, it will illuminate important aspects of shaping a narrative. Through a lively discussion with short reading and writing exercises, participants will learn several essential writing skills and get a clearer sense of how to approach writing a short story, a novel, or a memoir.

Tricks of the trade : Making Your Writing Come to Life

Whether you’re writing flash fiction, a novel, or a full-length memoir, there are “tricks of the trade” that can help writers bring their stories more vividly to life.  Taught by New York Times bestselling memoirist and novelist Susan Jane Gilman, this workshop will offer a lively crash course on essentials for good creative writing.  There will be instruction, short writing exercises to help participants grasp techniques themselves, and Q & A. Please bring an old-fashioned notebook, a writing instrument, enthusiasm, and the caffeinated beverage of your choice.

Playing with Structure

Fiction: «What to Leave out»

The Narrative Arc in Memoir

Non-fiction Writing Workshop: ‘Writing Effective Memoir’

Fiction Writing Workshop: ‘Showing Not Telling’

Fiction Writing Workshop: ‘Perfectly Flawed Characters’

Writing Life Stories

Creating Tension in Fiction