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Winter 2004 Workshops at Writers & Books
Boutique Éclectique
 Literary Agent Speaks Out
- One Saturday, January 10, 9 am–Noon
- $36 W&B members / $40 general public
- Instructor: Pattie Steele-Perkins [ bio ]
Here’s your opportunity to talk with a literary agent and get her uncensored point of view about the publishing industry and how it works.
Pattie will discuss and answer questions on the current state of books and why an author needs an agent to sail through today’s turbulent literary waters. Other topics will include making the transition from writer to author, what’s hot and what’s not, the market versus the muse, does your agent have to live in NYC, and “My mother likes my book, why won’t anybody buy it?”
This informational course will benefit anyone looking for an agent, thinking about an agent, or those curious to know more about publishing.
Writing the Ten-Minute Play
- One Saturday, February 21, 10 am–3 pm
- $40 W&B members / $45 general public
- Instructor: Paula Marchese [ bio ]
The short-form play is currently enjoying great popularity.
In this workshop students will learn how to write a one-act play of approximately ten minutes in length, using the building blocks of plot, characterization and structure. Focus will be on character, point of view, objectives, conflict, relationships, dialogue and action.
Morning session, 10 am – Noon , includes exercises, dramatic structure, choosing characters. Afternoon session, 1–3 pm, includes rewriting and presentation. Brainstorming Tactics & Techniques
- Four Mondays, April 12 – May 3, 6–8 pm
- $72 W&B members / $80 general public
- Instructor: Len Messineo [ bio ]
Germinate those genius ideas! Writing, whatever your genre, is ultimately about the imagination. This workshop will offer participants a catalog of right and left brain techniques to enhance inventiveness and increase productivity.
Besides creating a conceptual understanding of how the creative process works, the instructor will lead students in hands-on practice with a tool shed of imagination enhancers such as:
- free writing,
- looping,
- clustering,
- stratals,
- lotus blossom,
- Aristotle’s questions,
- scratch outlining,
- story boarding,
- PMI,
- incongruities,
- metawriting,
- immersion learning,
- pRAM, and
- other brain games.
After using these techniques in class, participants will have the opportunity to develop and share their manuscripts. (Breaking the Block also recommended.) Memoir: Finding Meaning in Your Life Story
- Six Tuesdays, February 24 – March 30, 7–9 pm
- $108 W&B members / $120 general public
- Instructor: Anaïs Salibian [ bio ]
Do you want to write a memoir but don’t know how to start or what to write about?
This workshop is designed for the experienced or inexperienced writer interested in memoir. The instructor will begin with exercises that help students discover the themes and conflicts in their lives that may eventually take shape on paper. (Students should be prepared for new insights into themselves and their experiences.)
The instructor will help participants mine their memories and organize them into meaningful stories. Topics will include the basics of story structure, ways to structure memoirs, and how to craft dramatic scenes that will bring their major themes to life. (Journaling & Its Sources also recommended.)
Weaving Life Tapestries: Autobiographical Writing for Older Adults
- Six Wednesdays, January 21 – March 3, 1–3 pm
- No class February 18
- $108 W&B members / $120 general public
- Instructor: Jean Coco [ bio ]
Do you want to write your life story but feel overwhelmed by the task?
This thematic course will guide participants through the process by providing in-class writing topics that will help people discover meaning and purpose in their lives. The topics will cover the following aspects:
- family,
- health,
- education,
- major lifework,
- socioeconomic status, and
- loves and hates
Besides producing a treasured archive for younger generations, students will reap the benefits of autobiographical writing—a renewed sense of purpose, improved cognitive functioning, and a deeper understanding of the tapestry of life. Writing for Personal Growth & Healing
- Two sessions, Thursday January 22 7–9 pm & Saturday January 24 10 am–1 pm
- $45 W&B members / $52 general public
- Instructor: Karen vanMeenen [ bio ]
A practice of personal writing can be helpful in exploring ingrained behaviors, attitudes and beliefs, can assist in the processing of experiences and feelings, and can lead to personal healing on many levels.
Participants will experiment with writing exercises in various genres designed to address important emotional and cultural issues as well as free up the writing process. Everyone will be encouraged to share what they write during the sessions, but it will not be required.
Exercises will be suggested for completion between the Thursday and Saturday sessions. Appropriate for all levels of writing experience.
(This is not a critique workshop and is not intended as a substitute for primary therapy.)
Breaking the Block
- Two Saturdays, March 20 and 27, 10 am–Noon
- $36 W&B members / $40 general public
- Instructor: Robbi Hess [ bio ]
In this two-session course the instructor will discuss the “myth” of writer’s block—the fear of the blank page/screen—and explore ways to overcome it.
Writing prompts, exercises, and other means of jumpstarting the elusive Muse will be explored. For those writers who have ever been stuck in a project (or might be stuck right now), this workshop will offer ways to write through the block and get that story moving again. Participants will come away with a better understanding of their own creative process.
Be prepared for in-class assignments, homework, and fun. (Brainstorming Tactics & Techniques also recommended.) Wisdom Tales for Women: Change, Creativity, and Courage
The ancient Sumerian myth of Inanna Queen of Heaven and Earth was celebrated over 4,000 years ago as an honoring of the birth-death-rebirth cycles of life. This sacred myth has much to teach modern women as they move into their “Wise Woman” years.
With the guidance of the instructor, participants will reenact the myth in five parts:
- celebrating personal glory;
- opening their ears to the great below;
- descending through the seven gates of loss;
- reciting poems and songs of self-compassion;
- finding treasures in darkness.
Women will write about their experiences of honoring what Carolyn Myss calls, “the seven stages of power and healing.”
Wear comfortable clothes and bring a bag lunch and a journal. Also bring three things made of silver, stone and wood that represent your “gifts” or values.
What Lies Beneath
- Four Thursdays February 5–26, 6–8 pm
- $72 W&B members / $80 general public
- Instructor: Nancy Caronia [ bio ]
The winter months provide a stellar opportunity for writers of all kinds to look inward. In this workshop, students will tap into the “subconscious artist” for ideas that have been waiting for an opportunity to emerge.
The instructor will offer in-class writing exercises to jumpstart creativity and also give students “creative challenges” for outside of class. Writing generated in and out of each session may be shared and critiqued.
Whether students have a story, poem, or personal experience they’d like to write about, this workshop is designed to help them dig down deep beneath the layers of snow to find their chestnuts. Screenwriting
- Six Tuesdays, January 20 – February 24, 6:30–8:30 pm
- $108 W&B members / $120 general public
- Instructor: Paula Marchese [ bio ]
Have you ever wanted to,
- write a screenplay?
- learn how to plot and plan your film?
- demystify all of the elements of drama that unfold on the big screen?
Once a hero’s journey is underway, obstacles met, conflict resolved and antagonist defeated, then it’s time to really get to work! Structure, moral argument, character building, conflict, plot points, dialogue, “visual writing,” the list goes on. Class will focus on these and many more issues including marketing.
Helpful to those at any stage of the writing process, from thinking about it to having a finished screenplay. All levels of writing experience are welcome. You are here > Home > Winter 2004 Seminars, Courses & Workshops > Boutique Éclectique
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