Virtual Writing Workshop Series
The following is from Exponent II incoming Editor in Chief Rachel Rueckert.
http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collecti...Dear Exponent II Community:
I am thrilled to announce that Exponent II will be launching a virtual Writing Workshop Series on the first and third Tuesday of every month from 9pm-10pm EST. Craft Writing Workshops will focus on teaching specific writing skills, and Generative Writing Workshops will create a low-stakes, supportive space to make new writing.
We’re all busy. We know our individual lives feel difficult right now, and we also acknowledge the constraints on everyone’s time and creative capacities. Yet, we feel a yearning for community. This series, aligned with the Exponent II mission, will keep all of this in mind. We hope to cultivate solidarity, share and gather concrete writing skills, underscore the wonderful work already happening, and empower you to tell your stories.
There are two kinds of workshops offered in the series:
Craft Writing Workshops
The world is not divided into “writers” and “non-writers.” Humans are story-telling beings, and writing is a skill that can be honed like any other. Craft workshops will demystify some of the writing process by focusing on a specific writing skill each month.
Our first craft workshop will focus on deliberate descriptions. Writers are often taught the old rule of “show don’t tell” because scenes and sensory details using sight, sound, smell, and taste are surefire ways to bring writing to life. However, which details to include or omit is another matter. Poet Emily Dickinson once wrote, “Tell all the Truth but tell it Slant.” This workshop will focus on what nonfiction writer Brenda Miller calls “slant details.” How do our descriptions and choices about which details to include, or exclude, help imbue our writing with not only a satisfying sensory experience but also a heightened sense of the meaning we want to convey?
Register for our first Craft Writing Workshop on March 2nd at 9pm EST here.
Generative Writing Workshops
Rather than a critique group (which focuses on giving critical feedback to improve writing), this workshop will be devoted to generating new material while showing solidarity and support. These will be working meetings with no time for perfectionism. Following the same routine every workshop, participants will have a chance to freewrite on a choice of given prompts. At the end, there will be an optional opportunity to share what people wrote in a safe, fun, and low-stakes setting. You don’t have to read or prepare anything in advance to get involved. All writing levels and genre interests are welcome.Register for our first Generative Writing Workshop on March 16th at 9pm EST here.
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These workshops will all be free to attend. However, if you are able, we would welcome and appreciate donations at paypal.me/ExponentWomenCo and new magazine subscriptions (which can also be ordered as gifts). All proceeds will go toward the sustainability of the magazine and organization.
By registering for each workshop, you will get invitations to forthcoming series events. Don’t feel pressured to attend every one—drop in whenever you can. We hope to see you there!
Rachel Rueckert
Incoming Editor In Chief, Exponent II Magazine
