Workshop Appearances

Once upon a time, I was a starving graduate student in a fantastic creative writing MFA program. As such, I was obligated/blessed to teach a certain number of undergraduate English courses each semester. I was a meticulous planner back then and managed to keep all of my lectures and notes (including student feedback on the material). Over the years as I pursued my own joy in a writing career, I’ve adapted many of these lectures into fun, interactive workshops that I get the privilege to present from time to time.

Here’s my 2011 outlook so far:

“The Heroine’s Journey”

Have you ever read a romance with a dashing, redeemed hero? The perfect man who starts out flawed only to be rescued by the love of the perfect maiden? Ever met a perfect maiden? Me either.

In the “Heroine’s Journey,” author and editor Megan A. (w/a Harper Bennett) takes the classic monomyth (“the hero’s journey”) and transforms it into a practical, highly-effective tool that will shake up the world of your heroine and transform her into a multi-layered, complex creature who goes through her own journey in the course of your novel.

“The Heroine’s Journey” is a four-week class targeted to all levels of writers. It includes handouts and assignments with feedback from the instructor.

Dates:

October 2011: Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal Chapter RWA


“Character Building with Jane Austen”

Elizabeth Bennett, Elinor Dashwood, Anne Elliot…nobody could capture the agony or the ecstasy of a young woman’s romance quite like Miss Jane Austen. Her characters were nuanced, they had depth, they waged silent, intelligent wars against rivals, society, and the occasional misbehaving rogue when need be.

This two-week course will delve deep into Austen’s methods of characterization and how to apply them to your own writing—the many tiers of a heroine, the depths and drive behind heroes. It will explore crisis and conflict as a character and the methods behind successfully pitting your characters against the “setting” for maximum conflict and goal realization.

Dates:

October 2011: Dunes and Dream RWA
April 2012: Savvy Authors