An
anonymous workshop for published writers—for nourishment, recommitment,
reinvention and support.
Start date: June 16,
2008*
Length: 8
weeks
Price: $200
To
reserve your place, email me.
(As always, I am happy to make
arrangements for payment, and there will be two scholarships awarded. If you would like to be considered for a
scholarship, simply email me .)
BACKGROUND
Over
and over, I have heard tales of frustration from writers who have been in the
game a long time, sometimes a very long time, who wanted to have the freedom to
talk about their problems and concerns in a safe environment.
This
will be as anonymous as it is possible for any gathering to be. I can’t make any
guarantee that no one will ever guess your identity, but as a teacher, I will
protect your privacy as carefully as a priest(ess). Only I will know who you are. You will join the class through me, but then
you will take a new email address under whatever name you like, and join the
group email list in that name. In this
way, writers can feel free to talk about the challenges of life as a working
writer without fear of repercussions.
Each
week, I’ll post topics for discussion, and perhaps exercises, and then help
facilitate discussion. It’s is meant to be a give and take—your experiences and
ideas are important to the process. The
goal is to help each writer renew and recommit to writing.
Some of the subjects for discussion
are:
Self-esteem: how do you keep your sanity in a business
like this? Burn-out, exhaustion, and
disaster—tricks to manage the pitfalls.
Clearing the decks: remembering the
original lure into the writing business. What to keep? What to cast to the seas?
Particulars: individual
challenges.
Celebration: really, it’s a great life
in a lot of ways (as I’m sure everyone tells you as much as they tell me).
Developing a habit of gratitude and awareness.
Pressure: business pressure, family
issues, juggling outside influences.
Staying in the game: Flexibility,
reinvention, and disaster.
Manifesto and connection: honoring
yourself and your passions while also honoring the need to make money.
*I’ve settled on these dates in particular so that those
writers attending the RWA conference in July will have a bridge, before and
after, to help navigate what can be both exhilarating and crushing, depending on
what happens.
Questions? Concerns? Email me.
Flickr Creative Commons photo by Angela7Dreams