Prose Workshops

Fiction | Creative Nonfiction | Memoir | Tutorials

Fiction

Finishing Your Novel
   There is a $75 surcharge for this workshop, which is limited to 5 participants.
Stuck? This workshop is for writers who are mired in a long prose piece and need a spark to advance. Exercises, analyses, and thoughtful encouragement will help you continue. Be ready to submit a portion of your novel by Dec. 15--up to 20 pages plus a 2 page synopsis. The workshop leader and participants will read each manuscript beforehand. (Led by Carol Plum-Ucci)

Beginning Your Novel - NEW WORKSHOP!
   Limited to 9 participants
This workshop will help you begin the novel you've always wanted to write. Come with ideas and notes, and develop a plan for writing a must-read book. Learn how to structure your plot, develop your characters, explore different points of view and improve your dialogue-writing skills. Discussions, writing prompts and supportive feedback will get your big project off to an energized start. (Led by Michelle Cameron)

Visions and Revision - NEW WORKSHOP!
   There is a $75 surcharge for this workshop, which is limited to 5 participants.
This workshop will help you polish and focus your novel, short story or creative nonfiction piece. You will receive detailed feedback and encouragement to determine what will keep an editor reading, and what needs to be revised. The workshop will include writing time for you to get started on your next draft, and if the schedule permits, you will get feedback on that as well. Be ready to submit your manuscript by Dec. 15--up to 20 pages plus a 2 page synopsis if needed. The workshop leader and participants will read each manuscript beforehand. (Led by Robbie Clipper)

Writing and Publishing New Fiction
   Limited to 8 participants
This workshop will play with the fundamentals of fiction—plot, structure, voice, point of view, character development and dialogue—to get you writing. On Saturday and Sunday mornings, you will receive inspiring prompts which you can use as the starting points for two new stories or a weekend-long project. In the afternoons you will receive generous and helpful feedback. Monday morning will be full of insider information and advice on where and how to submit your work for publication. (Led by Rich Weems)

Writing for the YA & Crossover Markets - NEW WORKSHOP!
   Limited to 8 participants
Does your teen protagonist belong in a young adult or adult story, or both? This workshop will explore what distinguishes crossover books from those written strictly for one market. Discussion, writing exercises and constructive feedback will help you focus on the key elements of young adult literature. Topics will include choosing the right setting, crafting an engaging plot, developing complex characters and writing convincing dialogue. Works in progress welcome. (Led by Joyce McDonald)

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Creative Nonfiction

The Art & Craft of Creative Nonfiction
   Limited to 8 participants
We all have true stories to tell about worlds we know well and new worlds we discover daily. This workshop will show how to capture both, using the power of voice, storytelling, memory and grace of language to make your nonfiction writing come alive. Working from in-class exercises, we'll explore strategies for turning fragments of memory and/or observation into personal essay, profiles or narrative journalism. This workshop will help you advance whether you already have work in progress or are just getting started. (Led by Tom Peele)

Visions and Revision - NEW WORKSHOP!
   This workshop is listed above under the fiction heading, but is geared for creative nonfiction too. Read the description.

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Memoir

Turning Memory into Memoir
   Limited to 9 participants - Ideal for those who are getting started
Learn to transform your life experience into well-crafted literary prose. Open your senses, dig into memory and use the tools of language, voice, pacing, image and structure to help you write vivid, meaningful memoirs. We'll talk about questions of authenticity, memory, truth-telling and the ethics of writing about living people. (Led by Anndee Hochman)

Reimagining Memoir
   Limited to 8 participants - Ideal for those who have work in progress
What's the best way to tell your story? Using your own memoir-in-progress as a springboard, this workshop will explore the options that scene, summary and reflection provide for writing your life story. Be ready to submit 5 pages that are "definitely not finished" by Dec. 15. The workshop leader and participants will read each submission beforehand. (Led by Mimi Schwartz)

Prose Tutorials

Tutorial in Prose
   There is an additional $100 fee for this one-on-one session.
An individual twenty minute feedback session with one of the faculty in which you will receive a constructive critique on a manuscript, essay or story that you are not sharing in your workshop. Be ready to submit your piece by Dec. 15--up to 15 pages (double-spaced, 1" margins, with 12 pt font) and a 1 page synopsis. The workshop leader and participants will read each manuscript beforehand. (Led by members of our Faculty)

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