11/13 What Am I Trying to Say? Discovering Meaning in Story
11/13 What Am I Trying to Say? Discovering Meaning in Story
As writers of fiction, non-fiction, and memoir, we have stories we want to tell. Maybe it’s about a unique character, or a fantastic series of events, or an incredible locale. But our stories need a transformative arc — a message that will move readers on deeper levels. As writer / teacher Vivan Gornick says: "The situation is the context or circumstance, sometimes the plot; the story is the emotional experience that preoccupies the writer: the insight, the wisdom, the thing one has come to say." Sometimes the real story can elude us for many drafts and years. In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore tools and prompts for finding our “why” for telling and excavating the meaning from our stories.
By the end of this workshop, writers will…
Excavater meaning in their work through three different techniques
Discover possible deeper layers and directions
Generate new story or essay seeds based on additional themes they’d like to explore
Cultivate a deeper appreciation for meaning in their creative work
Benefit from a variety of prompts, strategies and practical tips to increase their skills
Who is the Instructor?
Blair Glaser, MA, was the internet's first actor-advice columnist, "Ask Blair," for Playbill.com, where she also wrote profiles of theater artists and regional productions in the 90s. As a creative arts therapist and leadership consultant, she has more than 20 years of experience helping leaders of all sorts stand in their authority and find, or make, deeper meaning with their lives through coaching, workshops and writing prompts. She co-led the course, Women Writing to Change the World with Amy Ferris for two years at the renowned Omega Institute, where she also guided many women to write their own monologues in her popular The Vagina Monologues Workshop. Her work has been published in Longreads, Oldster, Insider, Yes!, Quartz, Greatist, HuffPost, The Muse, and literary magazines such as Brevity, The Mantlepiece, and Rain Taxi. Her memoir, This Incredible Longing, about living in an ashram in the 90s, will be published by Heliotrope in February. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their dog-ter, Vanna White. More about Blair: www.blairglaser.com
When is this class offered?
This class is offered Thursday, November 13 from 6:30 p.m. EST to 8:30 p.m. EST. This workshop is open to writers of all levels.
Interested in the class but the date does not work for you? Don’t despair. All registrants will receive a recording of the class within three business days of the course.