SEATTLE WRITING CLASSES
Each quarter I offer a Seattle-based writing class in Creative Nonfiction and Fiction. The emphasis varies from class to class, but all of the courses provide detailed, constructive criticism of your stories and book chapters. The four classes form a sequence, introducing you to all the essential elements of creative nonfiction and fiction writing: dramatic scenes, scene by scene construction, character sketches, research and interviewing, and publishing strategies.
Class reading assignments focus on contemporary masters of creative nonfiction like Annie Dillard, Tom Wolfe, John McPhee, Norman Maclean and Joan Didion. In addition, I schedule individual conferences to advise students about their writing and how to take it to the next level.
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Every class requires that participants write a story or book chapter, revise it, and prepare it for publication. This focus on honing and perfecting the prose and finding a suitable outlet for it has resulted in my students making real breakthroughs in their work. Many have gone on to publish their stories in national magazines like Newsweek and the New York Times Magazine and sell their books to prominent publishing houses worldwide. (See reviews page).
The Seattle writing classes take place Wednesday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. in the historic Good Shepherd Center in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood (4649 Sunnyside Avenue North). Enrollment is limited to 15. The classes usually fill several weeks prior to the starting date. Please feel free to contact me if you have more questions and are interested in signing up.
Sincerely,
Nicholas O’Connell
206.284.7121
2010 SEATTLE WRITING CLASSES
Winter - Follow the Story - Genres of Creative Nonfiction - Wednesday evenings Jan. 13 to Feb. 17 and Monday evenings Jan. 25 and Feb. 1. $525.
Spring - Scene and Structure - Building Blocks of Narrative Writing - Wednesday evenings 7 to 9 p.m. from Mar. 24 to May 5th, and Monday evenings Mar. 29 and April 12. $525. (See description below.)
Summer - Stalking the Nonfiction Short Story - Dramatic Structure of Fiction and Nonfiction - Wednesday evenings 7 to 9 p.m. from June 16 to August 4th. $525.
Fall - Revising Your Life - Research and Writing of Fiction and Nonfiction - Wednesday evenings 7 to 9 p.m. from Oct. 13 to Dec. 1, $525.
Revising Your Life: Turning True Events into Compelling Stories
It may happen in the shower. On the way to work. Taking a crowded elevator. Suddenly a story idea seizes you. You must write it down! You find a pen and piece of paper, plunge into the story, and write nonstop until you finish a first draft. You put it aside. A day goes by. Two days. You pick it up again. Sure there’s some good stuff there, but the rest of it is, well, less than perfect.
If you’re like most writers, you put the material in the drawer and hope some day to get around to finishing it. How do you push beyond the messy first draft most writers produce to craft a compelling story or book chapter? This eight-week class in nonfiction and fiction will show you how to make that happen. You’ll learn essential techniques of research, interviewing, writing scenes, character sketches, structuring, revision, and how to put the finished manuscript into the hands of the right editor.
The course will run Oct. 13 to Dec. 1 on Wednesday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. in Room 221 of the Good Shepherd Center in Wallingford (4649 Sunnyside Ave. N.)
There will be six assignments, including a 100- to 250-word story idea, a 250-word scene, a 500-word profile, a 750-word first person story, a revised 1,000-word profile or first person story, and a 250-word cover letter. In addition to the classroom work, I will schedule individual conferences with each student. This will give me a chance to go over your work with you one-on-one and suggest ways to improve it.
Texts: Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird, and Best American Essays of the Century edited by Joyce Carol Oates. Both titles are available at the Elliott Bay Book Company.
To enroll, please send me check for $525 to 201 Newell St., Seattle, WA 98109. Enrollment is limited to 15. For more information, contact me at nick@Thewritersworkshop.net or 206-284-7121.