↓
 
  • Quarterly LitMag
    • All Issues
    • Issue 40 December 2022
    • Issue 39 September 2022
    • Issue 38 June 2022
    • Issue 37 March 2022
    • Issue 36 December 2021
    • Issue 35 September 2021
    • Issue 34 June 2021
    • Issue 33 March 2021
    • Issue 32 December 2020
    • Issue 31 September 2020
    • Issue 30 June 2020
    • Issue 29 March 2020
    • Issue 28 December 2019
    • Issue 27 September 2019
    • Issue 26 June 2019
    • Issue 25 March 2019
    • Issue 24 December 2018
    • Issue 23 September 2018
    • Issue 22 June 2018
    • Issue 21 March 2018
    • Issue 20 December 2017
    • Issue 19 September 2017
    • Issue 18 June 2017
    • Issue 17 March 2017
    • Issue 16 December 2016
    • Issue 15 September 2016
    • Issue 14 June 2014
    • Issue 13 March 2016
    • Issue 12 December 2015
    • Issue 11 September 2015
    • Issue 10 June 2015
    • Joke Issue
    • Issue 9 March 2015
    • Issue 8 December 2014
    • Issue 7 September 2014
    • Issue 6 June 2014
    • Issue 5 March 2014
    • Issue 4 December 2013
    • Issue 3 September 2013
    • Issue 2 June 2013
    • Issue 1 March 2013
    • Preview Issue
  • Writing Workshops
    • Writing Workshops
    • Cleaver Clinics
    • Faculty
  • Bookstore
  • Archives
    • All Issues
    • FLASH ARCHIVES
    • VISUAL NARRATIVES ARCHIVE
  • Other Features
    • Book Reviews
      • Cleaver Magazine Book Reviews
      • Alphabetical Index
    • Interviews
    • Craft Essays
      • Poetry Craft Essays
      • Fiction Craft Essays
      • Nonfiction Craft Essays
    • Ask June
  • About Us
    • Masthead
    • Emerging Artists
    • Subscribe
    • Opportunities
    • Contact
    • Submit
      • Submittable Portal
      • How to Submit or Suggest Book Reviews
      • How to Submit Craft Essays

Cleaver Magazine

Fresh-Cut Lit & Art

 
 

Category Archives: Fiction Workshops

A GREAT START: Your Novel’s Opening Pages, taught by Lisa Borders | April 11 – May 9, 2021

Cleaver Magazine Posted on January 31, 2021 by thwackFebruary 8, 2021

A GREAT START
Your Novel’s Opening Pages

Taught by Lisa Borders

4 weeks
April 11 – May 9
Asynchronous with an introductory Zoom meeting April 11 at 2 pm ET

Register Now$200
Class limit: 12
Questions: [email protected]

Off to a Great Start: Your Novel’s Opening Pages

Many agents and editors say they will not read on if they are not hooked by a novel in the first five pages. Yet writers often get wedded to an opening that was the easiest entry point into the novel’s first draft, but may not be the most dynamic place for the book to begin. How does a writer decide where a novel should start? What strategies do novelists use to hook readers – including agents and editors – from the first sentence, paragraph, page, scene?

In this class, we’ll read essays about openings and examine narrative strategies used in a variety of novels; study the basics of plot and do exercises to help you discover your novel’s best opening; and provide feedback on your novel’s first 5 – 6 pages (up to 1800 words). The class will be mostly asynchronous, with discussions and workshops taking place online. We’ll start with a Zoom class to get to know each other better before sharing our pages.


SCHEDULE

Week 1: Novel openings overview: understanding structure and finding your point of attack

Week 2: Types of Openings | Worshop 1

Week 3: The First Sentence |Workshop 2

Week 4: Novel openings analysis | Workshop 3

“Lisa Borders is a wonderful teacher. She understands craft so well.”

“Lisa knows her stuff, she is also very positive and encouraging. The course was also well organized on Canvas.”

“Lisa is an EXCEPTIONAL teacher—her advice was phenomenal, and she created a culture which facilitated other writers in giving great feedback as well. ”

“The other participants were really dedicated and gave wonderful responses and insight during the workshops. The readings selected by Lisa, and her framing/introduction of various techniques, was both interesting and helpful.”


Lisa Borders’ second novel, The Fifty-First State, was published by Engine Books in 2013. Her first novel, Cloud Cuckoo Land, was chosen by Pat Conroy as the winner of River City Publishing’s Fred Bonnie Award, and received fiction honors in the 2003 Massachusetts Book Awards. Lisa’s short stories, essays and humor have appeared in The Rumpus, McSweeney’s, WBUR’s Cognoscenti, Post Road, Washington Square and other journals. She has received grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, the Somerville Arts Council and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and fellowships at the Millay Colony, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Hedgebrook and the Blue Mountain Center. Lisa also teaches at Boston’s GrubStreet, where she founded the Novel Generator program and co-founded the Novel Incubator program. More information on Lisa is available at lisaborders.com.


Write Where you are

 

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on January 31, 2021 in Fiction Workshops, Spring 2021 Workshops, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

TRANS (Is Not An Abbreviation), a Workshop taught by Claire Rudy Foster | January 4 to 25, 2021

Cleaver Magazine Posted on September 20, 2020 by thwackSeptember 20, 2020

text image trans is not

TRANS (Is Not An Abbreviation)
Writing Transgender Characters through the lens of the body
taught by Claire Rudy Foster

4 Zoom Sessions
January 4, 11, 18, 25, 8-10 pm ET
$200
Class limit: 12
Questions: [email protected]

Register Now

This workshop will discuss how to write about transgender characters through the lens of the body. Transgender bodies are vilified, objectified, fetishized, and punished. How do we write about trans joy, pleasure, and freedom? Writers will generate body-specific pieces of imagined or experienced memoir and learn about how to create transgender characters that avoid cliched, harmful tropes. Cisgender students are asked to read a sensitivity statement before attending.

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on September 20, 2020 in Fiction Workshops, Winter 2020 - 2021 Workshops, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

WEEKEND WRITING with Andrea Caswell | Ongoing Sunday Morning Series

Cleaver Magazine Posted on September 19, 2020 by thwackNovember 29, 2021

WEEKEND WRITING
for practice and inspiration
open to all levels and genres|Taught by Cleaver Editor Andrea Caswell

Three-week sessions, Sundays 10:30 am – 12:00 pm ET
Session 1: September 12, 19, 26
Session 2: October 3, 17, 24
Session 3:
November 7, 14, 21
Session 4: December 5, 12, 19
Cost: $100 per session
Class limit: 12
This class can be repeated monthly (re-registration required).
Questions: [email protected]
Register NowWEEKEND WRITING is a generative writing session for writers of all levels and genres. Enjoy this 90-minute writing retreat as we read and discuss short prose, experiment with optional prompts during in-class writing time, and nurture a personal writing practice rooted in curiosity and creativity. Whether you want to build structure into your writing week or simply play in your notebook, you’ll enrich your weekend with other writers in a motivational and supportive setting.

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing.” ~Annie Dillard, The Writing Life

The class can be repeated as many times as you like.

What you’ll get from this class:

– Real-time meetings with your instructor and fellow writers

– Reading and discussion of short inspirational texts

– Dedicated in-class writing time in each meeting

– Optional prompts that invite experimentation and discovery

– Consistency in building a personal writing practice

– A safe and supportive writing community

“I found Andrea’s creation of a ‘gentle accountability,’ as she once put it, very effective.”

“I really appreciate writing in community without the pressure of sharing or workshopping. For me, it’s most important to get my butt in the seat and keep it there, and this 90 minutes each week feels sacred and protected.”


Andrea Caswell ‘s writing has been published widely in print and online. Her work appears or is forthcoming in Tampa Review, River Teeth, The Normal School, Columbia Journal, Atticus Review, and others. She holds a master’s from Harvard University and an MFA from the Bennington Writing Seminars. She’s a fiction editor for Cleaver Magazine, and is the founder of Lime Street Writers, a monthly workshop north of Boston. In 2019 she was a fiction contributor at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference. A native of Los Angeles, Andrea now lives and teaches in Newburyport, Massachusetts. Contact her at www.andreacaswell.com.

Write Where you are

 

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on September 19, 2020 in CNF Workshops, Fall 2021 Workshops, Fiction Workshops, Poetry Workshops, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

THE ART OF FLASH, Workshop in Fiction and Nonfiction, taught by Cleaver Flash Editor Kathryn Kulpa | January 3 to February 7, 2021 SOLD OUT

Cleaver Magazine Posted on September 17, 2020 by thwackDecember 7, 2020
Neon Lightning Bolt

THE ART OF FLASH

A Workshop in Fiction and Nonfiction

Taught by Cleaver Flash Editor Kathryn Kulpa

5 weeks
SOLD OUT
Class limit: 12
Questions: [email protected] 

Register Now

Flash is a genre defined by brevity: vivid emotions and images compressed into a compact form. We most often see flash fiction, but flash can also encompass prose poetry, micro memoir, lyric essays, and hybrid works.

In this class, we will take a close look at different styles and forms of flash fiction, as well as flash nonfiction, hybrid, and experimental works. Each week, we will read and discuss one or more example-works and generate new work from prompts. Students will share their work for peer and instructor feedback, then will choose one story to revise for the final class.

This workshop has weekly deadlines and assignments to help motivate you to write, but the work can be done at your own pace and on your own time—there are no required meetings (although we may have an optional Zoom pop-up or two and bonus prompts for those who are interested). We welcome both new and experienced writers looking for motivation, structure, and constructive criticism.


Kathryn Kulpa was a winner of the Vella Chapbook Contest for her flash chapbook Girls on Film (Paper Nautilus) and has had work selected for inclusion in Best Microfiction 2020 (Pelekinesis Press).  Her flash fiction is published or forthcoming in Jellyfish Review, Monkeybicycle, Smokelong Quarterly, and Wigleaf, and she serves as flash editor for Cleaver Magazine. Kathryn has been a visiting writer at Wheaton College, and has led writing workshops at the University of Rhode Island, Stonecoast Writers Conference at the University of Southern Maine, Writefest in Houston, Texas, and at public libraries throughout Rhode Island.


SYLLABUS

Topic One: Time and Place

Time constraints in flash fiction—handling transitions—telling a larger story through a selected moment—zoom lens or wide angle?—creating a vivid setting in few words

Topic Two: Voice, Character, and Point of View

Choosing a lens—whose story?—first, second, and third-person—single or multiple points of view—speed dating: shorthand character reveals

Topic Three: Where Prose Meets Poetry

Borrowing poetic techniques to create brilliant flash—image is everything—white space and stories in stanzas—the right sound—the power of repetition

Topic Four: Flash Frontier: Experimental and Hybrid Forms

Prose poetry—lists, recipes, and want ads: hermit crab stories—lyric essays—ekphrastic flash—using found objects to tell a story

 

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on September 17, 2020 in Fiction Workshops, The Art of Flash, Winter 2020 - 2021 Workshops, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

AFTERBURN A Workshop on the Art of Flash Revision Taught by Cleaver Flash Editor Kathryn Kulpa | November 15 to December 12, 2020

Cleaver Magazine Posted on September 17, 2020 by thwackNovember 27, 2020

Dandelion on fire with title After Burn Kathryn KulpaAFTERBURN
A Workshop on the Art of Flash Revision
Taught by Cleaver Flash Editor Kathryn Kulpa

3 weeks
November 15 to December 12, 2020
$175
Class limit: 12
Questions: [email protected]

Register Now

Flash fiction may be born in a lightning flash of inspiration, but crafting works of perfect brevity requires time and patience: sometimes cutting, sometimes adding, and sometimes starting all over again. In very short stories, every word must work, and revision is as much a part of writing flash as it is of writing longer prose. In this hands-on workshop, we’ll practice the art of revision. Flash fiction writer and editor Kathryn Kulpa will share first drafts, revisions, and published versions of her own work and that of other flash and short fiction writers. Students will learn different revision strategies and how to apply them to their own work. We will create new flash together and work on taking it through several revisions, and students will also have the chance to bring existing stories to the workshop to revise with a goal of publication.


Kathryn Kulpa workshop leader photoKathryn Kulpa was a winner of the Vella Chapbook Contest for her flash chapbook Girls on Film (Paper Nautilus) and has had work selected for inclusion in Best Microfiction 2020 (Pelekinesis Press).  Her flash fiction is published or forthcoming in Jellyfish Review, Monkeybicycle, Smokelong Quarterly, and Wigleaf, and she serves as flash editor for Cleaver Magazine. Kathryn has been a visiting writer at Wheaton College and has led writing workshops at the University of Rhode Island, Stonecoast Writers Conference at the University of Southern Maine, Writefest in Houston, Texas, and at public libraries throughout Rhode Island.

 

 

Typewriter writing Cleaver Workshop and cleaver logo

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on September 17, 2020 in Fall 2020 Workshops, Fiction Workshops, Sold Out, The Art of Flash, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

THE ART OF THE SCENE, a Workshop in Fiction and Creative Nonfiction, taught by Lisa Borders | January 3 to February 5, 2021

Cleaver Magazine Posted on September 16, 2020 by thwackSeptember 17, 2020

The art of the scene cover image

THE ART OF THE SCENE 
A Workshop in Fiction and Creative Nonfiction
Taught by Lisa Borders

5 weeks
January 3 to February 5
introductory Zoom meeting at 2 pm ET on Sun Jan 3

Register Now$225
Class limit: 12
Questions: [email protected]

The writer Sandra Scofield describes a “pulse”—that spark that makes the story come alive— as a vital element to all scenes. This pulse is especially crucial for opening scenes, as many agents and editors report that if they are not hooked on a manuscript within the first five pages, they will not read on.

But what is a “pulse,” and how can a writer ensure that each scene—not just the opening— has one? How can we write in such a way that our characters come to life, that a scene breathes emotion and urgency, while moving the plot forward and keeping tension taut?

In this class we’ll look at opening scenes, pivotal scenes and transitional scenes in published novels and memoirs, analyzing them for a “pulse”—that spark that makes the story come alive—and for the ways in which they hook the reader, introduce the characters, and (for opening scenes) signal the book’s scope. We’ll define the elements of a scene and discuss techniques for writing scenes that breathe emotion and urgency while moving the plot forward and keeping tension taut.

We’ll also workshop an opening scene from your novel or memoir in progress of no more than 1800 words in length, applying a checklist to help you determine whether your book’s opening passes the “pulse” test—and if not, strategies for creating a first scene the reader can’t put down. You will then revise these scenes, or submit a new opening scene for instructor feedback.

This class will have one synchronous meeting: an introductory Zoom meeting on Sunday, January 3 from 2 – 3:30 pm EST. Writers will receive a schedule for submitting scenes to be workshopped in Weeks 2 – 4 as part of the Week 1 lesson.

Readings will include scenes from works by Rishi Reddi, Hanya Yanagihara, Joan Didion, Elizabeth Strout and Piper Weiss, among others.


SYLLABUS

Week 1: Introduction

  • What is a scene?
  • Scene elements
  • Creating tension within a scene
  • Readings

Week 2: Types of Scenes – Part I

  • Opening Scenes
  • Pivotal Scenes
  • Readings
  • Four scenes workshopped

Week 3: Types of Scenes – Part II

  • Flashback Scenes
  • Transitional Scenes
  • Readings
  • Four scenes workshopped

Week 4: Scene vs. Exposition

  • Definitions
  • Debunking “show don’t tell”
  • Pacing
  • Readings
  • Four scenes workshopped

Week 5: Scene CPR

  • Checklist for revision
  • Revise workshopped scene or submit new scene to instructor

Lisa Borders’ second novel, The Fifty-First State, was published by Engine Books in 2013. Her first novel, Cloud Cuckoo Land, was chosen by Pat Conroy as the winner of River City Publishing’s Fred Bonnie Award, and received fiction honors in the 2003 Massachusetts Book Awards. Lisa’s short stories, essays and humor have appeared in The Rumpus, McSweeney’s, WBUR’s Cognoscenti, Post Road, Washington Square and other journals. She has received grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, the Somerville Arts Council and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and fellowships at the Millay Colony, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Hedgebrook and the Blue Mountain Center. Lisa also teaches at Boston’s GrubStreet, where she founded the Novel Generator program and co-founded the Novel Incubator program. More information on Lisa is available at lisaborders.com.


 

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on September 16, 2020 in CNF Workshops, Fiction Workshops, Winter 2020 - 2021 Workshops, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

EMBRACING UNCERTAINTY II: A Workshop to Jumpstart Your Creativity, Taught by Tricia Park | Nov 7 to Dec 12, 2020

Cleaver Magazine Posted on August 8, 2020 by thwackNovember 27, 2020

EMBRACING UNCERTAINTY Part 2 of 2
A Workshop to Jumpstart Your Writing
open to all levels and genres
Parts 1 and 2 may be repeated or taken out of order
taught by Cleaver Editor Tricia Park

5 weeks
Nov 7, 14, 21, Dec 5, 12 (Note: No class Thanksgiving weekend, Nov 28)
5 Zoom classes, Saturdays 2-4 pm Eastern Time
$200
Class limit: 12
This class can be taken on its own or as a continuation of Part I
Questions: [email protected]

Register Now

EMBRACING UNCERTAINTY is a five-week online generative writing course for writers of all levels and genres. In these days of uncertainty and rapid change, it’s difficult to know what to hang onto. And social distancing leaves us struggling to maintain our mental wellness during this undetermined period of isolation.

But what if we can use this time to develop a skill; start a new project; follow a passion?

What if this sudden surplus of time is an opportunity for experimentation?

What if we embrace our vulnerability and take a deep dive into the unknown?

What might we discover about ourselves?

For many of us, the challenge is not getting to the writing desk but knowing what to do with ourselves once we’re there.

What does it mean to develop a writing practice? How do we create momentum from where we are right now? What if destabilizing ourselves as writers could move us forward in our work if experimentation and play catapulted us into our best writing?

As a classically trained violinist, I spent years looking for the “correct” way, endlessly seeking the most efficient path, setting myself upright if I began to wobble. The truth of the matter is that all of us—writers, artists, musicians—enter into the creative process from a place of instability. Our objective should not be to straighten up and fly right, but to embrace that physics and allow our work into it.


What you’ll get from the classes:

  • Once a week, real-time meetings with your instructor and cohort.
  • Gently intriguing prompts to jumpstart your creativity.
  • Reading and discussion of texts by inspiring writers.
  • A safe and supportive environment to cultivate your writing.
  • Small, clearly defined weekly assignments to keep you motivated.
  • New writing that you can continue to nurture and grow at home.

 


Tricia Park Author PhotoTricia Park is a concert violinist and writer. The recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, she has appeared in concert on five continents. Tricia is the producer/host of a podcast called “Is it Recess Yet? Confessions of a Former Child Prodigy.” Tricia is a graduate of The Juilliard School and received an M.F.A. from the Writing Program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her writing has appeared in Cleaver Magazine, Alyss, and F Newsmagazine. She has also been a finalist for contests in C&R Press and The Rumpus. Currently, she is a Lecturer and Artist-in-Residence at the University of Chicago. Tricia has taught creative writing online and at the University of Iowa.

In this class, we won’t try to fix what isn’t broken. We’ll hold our vulnerability and begin creating from where we are. We’ll give ourselves permission to commence, no matter how fragile the surface under our feet feels. Together, we will enter and engage with the work as it begins to speak to us, and we’ll allow ourselves to follow that uncertainty and see where it takes us.

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on August 8, 2020 in CNF Workshops, Fall 2020 Workshops, Fiction Workshops, Poetry Workshops, Sold Out, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

THE ART OF THE SCENE: A Workshop in Fiction and Creative Nonfiction taught by Lisa Borders | August 2 – September 4, 2020 [SOLD OUT]

Cleaver Magazine Posted on May 21, 2020 by thwackSeptember 17, 2020

The art of the scene cover image

THE ART OF THE SCENE 
A Workshop in Fiction and Creative Nonfiction
Taught by Lisa Borders

5 weeks
August 2 – September 4
introductory Zoom meeting at 2 pm ET on Sun Aug 2
SOLD OUT
$200 early bird / $225 regular
Class limit: 12
Questions: [email protected]

The writer Sandra Scofield describes a “pulse”—that spark that makes the story come alive— as a vital element to all scenes. This pulse is especially crucial for opening scenes, as many agents and editors report that if they are not hooked on a manuscript within the first five pages, they will not read on.

But what is a “pulse,” and how can a writer ensure that each scene—not just the opening— has one? How can we write in such a way that our characters come to life, that a scene breathes emotion and urgency, while moving the plot forward and keeping tension taut?

In this class we’ll look at opening scenes, pivotal scenes and transitional scenes in published novels and memoirs, analyzing them for a “pulse”—that spark that makes the story come alive—and for the ways in which they hook the reader, introduce the characters, and (for opening scenes) signal the book’s scope. We’ll define the elements of a scene and discuss techniques for writing scenes that breathe emotion and urgency while moving the plot forward and keeping tension taut.

We’ll also workshop an opening scene from your novel or memoir in progress of no more than 1800 words in length, applying a checklist to help you determine whether your book’s opening passes the “pulse” test—and if not, strategies for creating a first scene the reader can’t put down. You will then revise these scenes, or submit a new opening scene for instructor feedback.

This class will have one synchronous meeting: an introductory Zoom meeting on Sunday, August 2 from 2 – 3:30 pm EST. Writers will receive a schedule for submitting scenes to be workshopped in Weeks 2 – 4 as part of the Week 1 lesson.

Readings will include scenes from works by Rishi Reddi, Hanya Yanagihara, Joan Didion, Elizabeth Strout and Piper Weiss, among others.


SYLLABUS

Week 1: Introduction

  • What is a scene?
  • Scene elements
  • Creating tension within a scene
  • Readings

Week 2: Types of Scenes – Part I

  • Opening Scenes
  • Pivotal Scenes
  • Readings
  • Four scenes workshopped

Week 3: Types of Scenes – Part II

  • Flashback Scenes
  • Transitional Scenes
  • Readings
  • Four scenes workshopped

Week 4: Scene vs. Exposition

  • Definitions
  • Debunking “show don’t tell”
  • Pacing
  • Readings
  • Four scenes workshopped

Week 5: Scene CPR

  • Checklist for revision
  • Revise workshopped scene or submit new scene to instructor

Lisa Borders’ second novel, The Fifty-First State, was published by Engine Books in 2013. Her first novel, Cloud Cuckoo Land, was chosen by Pat Conroy as the winner of River City Publishing’s Fred Bonnie Award, and received fiction honors in the 2003 Massachusetts Book Awards. Lisa’s short stories, essays and humor have appeared in The Rumpus, McSweeney’s, WBUR’s Cognoscenti, Post Road, Washington Square and other journals. She has received grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, the Somerville Arts Council and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and fellowships at the Millay Colony, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Hedgebrook and the Blue Mountain Center. Lisa also teaches at Boston’s GrubStreet, where she founded the Novel Generator program and co-founded the Novel Incubator program. More information on Lisa is available at lisaborders.com.


 

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on May 21, 2020 in CNF Workshops, Fiction Workshops, Sold Out, Summer 2020 Workshops, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

EMBRACING UNCERTAINTY, a Workshop to Jumpstart Your Writing, taught by Tricia Park | September 19 to October 17, 2020 [SOLD OUT]

Cleaver Magazine Posted on May 12, 2020 by thwackSeptember 21, 2020

A road

EMBRACING UNCERTAINTY, Part 1 of Two
A Workshop to Jumpstart Your Writing
open to all levels and genres
Parts 1 and 2 may be repeated or taken out of order
taught by Cleaver Editor Tricia Park

5 weeks
Sept 19, 26, Oct 3, 10, 17.
5 Zoom classes, Saturdays 2-4 pm Eastern Time
$200
Class limit: 12
Questions: [email protected]

[This session is sold out. Consider Session II, starting Nov 7. Sessions can be repeated and can be taken out of sequence.]

EMBRACING UNCERTAINTY is a five-week online generative writing course for writers of all levels and genres. In these days of uncertainty and rapid change, it’s difficult to know what to hang onto. And social distancing leaves us struggling to maintain our mental wellness during this undetermined period of isolation.

But what if we can use this time to develop a skill; start a new project; follow a passion?

What if this sudden surplus of time is an opportunity for experimentation?

What if we embrace our vulnerability and take a deep dive into the unknown?

What might we discover about ourselves?

For many of us, the challenge is not getting to the writing desk but knowing what to do with ourselves once we’re there.

What does it mean to develop a writing practice? How do we create momentum from where we are right now? What if destabilizing ourselves as writers could move us forward in our work, if experimentation and play catapulted us into our best writing?

As a classically trained violinist, I spent years looking for the “correct” way, endlessly seeking the most efficient path, setting myself upright if I began to wobble. The truth of the matter is that all of us—writers, artists, musicians—enter into the creative process from a place of instability. Our objective should not be to straighten up and fly right, but to embrace that physics and allow our work into it.


Syllabus:

Week One: Freewriting and Playfulness

Elizabeth Gilbert writes, “I made a decision long ago that if I want creativity in my life—and I do—then I will have to make space for fear, too.” We’ll find ways to move through resistance as we approach our writing with playfulness and curiosity. We’ll dive into freewriting and whimsical exercises/prompts.

Week Two: Using our Senses 

Maya Angelou reminds us that “once you appreciate…one of your senses, your sense of hearing, then you begin to respect the sense of seeing and touching and tasting, you learn to respect all the senses.” Sensory details infuse our writing with richness and dimension. We’ll respond to prompts that encourage us to take in our surroundings and connect with our senses.

Week Three: Walking Down Memory Lane

Lois Lowry says, “I’ve always been fascinated by memory and dreams because they are both completely our own. No one else has the same memories. No one has the same dreams.” We’ll delve into our unique memory banks to mine our past and present, generating writing that is bound to surprise us.

Week Four: Following our Obsessions

Ralph Waldo Emerson writes, “a man is what he thinks about all day long.” In this week’s class, we’ll discover ways to follow our obsessions and redirect our mind’s tendencies to fuel our writing.

Week Five : “Gaming” our Writing 

In the last class we will explore ways we can “game” our writing, approaching it obliquely with a light-hearted touch. We’ll see how prioritizing “play” through constraints and rules can, paradoxically, free up our writing.

What you’ll get from the classes:

  • Once a week, real-time meetings with your instructor and cohort.
  • Gently intriguing prompts to jump start your creativity.
  • Reading and discussion of texts by inspiring writers.
  • A safe and supportive environment to cultivate your writing.
  • Small, clearly defined weekly assignments to keep you motivated.
  • New writing that you can continue to nurture and grow at home.

 


Tricia Park Author PhotoTricia Park is a concert violinist and writer. The recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, she has appeared in concert on five continents. Tricia is the producer/host of a podcast called “Is it Recess Yet? Confessions of a Former Child Prodigy.” Tricia is a graduate of The Juilliard School and received an M.F.A. from the Writing Program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her writing has appeared in Cleaver Magazine, Alyss, and F Newsmagazine. She has also been a finalist for contests in C&R Press and The Rumpus. Currently, she is a Lecturer and Artist-in-Residence at the University of Chicago. Tricia has taught creative writing online and at the University of Iowa.

In this class, we won’t try to fix what isn’t broken. We’ll hold our vulnerability and begin creating from where we are. We’ll give ourselves permission to commence, no matter how fragile the surface under our feet feels. Together, we will enter and engage with the work as it begins to speak to us, and we’ll allow ourselves to follow that uncertainty and see where it takes us.

Thwack this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
Published on May 12, 2020 in CNF Workshops, Fall 2020 Workshops, Fiction Workshops, Sold Out, Workshops. (Click for permalink.)

SUPPORT CLEAVER

Cleaver is an independent magazine funded through the generosity of its staff and voluntary supporters. Cleaver Magazine is free to all subscribers and readers—please consider a donation! You can donate directly via PayPal:



Submit to the Cleaver!

submit

GET READY: Cleaver 2023 Poetry Contest Judged by Diane Seuss

Happy 10th Birthday, Cleaver! Read Issue No. 1, March 2013

Who won Cleaver’s 2022 Flash Contest?

UPCOMING CLASSES

BREAKING UP WITH FORM: Experimental Essays, taught by Cleaver Editor Tricia Park, February 5 - March 5

BREAKING UP WITH FORM: Experimental Essays, taught by Cleaver Editor Tricia Park, February 5 – March 5

CLEAVER CLINICS!

Cleaver Clinics

Cleaver Clinics

Celebrate Emerging Artists

Ask June!

Cleaver’s in-house advice columnist opines on matters punctuational, interpersonal, and philosophical, spinning wit and literary wisdom in response to your ethical quandaries. Write to her at today!

ASK JUNE: November 2021 Pandemic Purge and the Ungracious Griever

ASK JUNE: November 2021 Pandemic Purge and the Ungracious Griever

Dear June, Since the start of this pandemic, I have eaten more and exercised less, and have gone from a comfortable size 10 to a tight size 16. In July and early August, when the world seemed to be opening up again, I did get out and move around more, but my destinations often included bars and ice cream shops, and things only got worse. I live in a small apartment with almost no closet space. I know part of this is in my mind, but it often seems that my place is bursting at the seams with “thin clothes.”  ...
Read More...
November 18, 2021

Top Ten Today on Cleaver:

  • Issue 40 December 2022
    Issue 40 December 2022
  • FORM AND FORM-BREAKING POETRY CONTEST 2023
    FORM AND FORM-BREAKING POETRY CONTEST 2023
  • CLEOPATRA AND FRANKENSTEIN, a novel by Coco Mellors, reviewed by Stephanie Fluckey
    CLEOPATRA AND FRANKENSTEIN, a novel by Coco Mellors, reviewed by Stephanie Fluckey
  • BEING THE MURDERED ACTRESS by Cathy Ulrich
    BEING THE MURDERED ACTRESS by Cathy Ulrich
  • LIES I TELL MY STUDENTS, a creative nonfiction craft essay by Liz Stephens
    LIES I TELL MY STUDENTS, a creative nonfiction craft essay by Liz Stephens
  • Submit
    Submit
  • All Issues
    All Issues
  • Issue 39 September 2022
    Issue 39 September 2022
  • MAKING THE READER FEEL SOMETHING. PLEASE. SHOW AND TELL,  A Craft Essay by Shuly Xóchitl Cawood
    MAKING THE READER FEEL SOMETHING. PLEASE. SHOW AND TELL, A Craft Essay by Shuly Xóchitl Cawood
  • THE RESTAURANT AT THE END OF THE WORLD by Sarah Freligh
    THE RESTAURANT AT THE END OF THE WORLD by Sarah Freligh

Issue 41 Countdown!

March 30, 2023
7 days to go.

All Issues Archive

CURRENTLY

SCENE OF THE CRIME, a novel by Patrick Modianom, reviewed by Jeanne Bonner

SCENE OF THE CRIME, a novel by Patrick Modianom, reviewed by Jeanne Bonner
SCENE OF THE CRIME by Patrick Modiano translated by Mark Polizzotti Yale University Press, 157 pages reviewed by Jeanne Bonner I write down all kinds of little snippets of thought because otherwise they will float ... Read More
February 24, 2023

ON AUTOBIOGRAPHIA: YOURS, MINE, AND OURS, a craft essay by Ian Clay Sewall

ON AUTOBIOGRAPHIA: YOURS, MINE, AND OURS, a craft essay by Ian Clay Sewall
ON AUTOBIOGRAPHIA: YOURS, MINE, AND OURS by Ian Clay Sewall 1. Writing stories and essays about the people I remember and the people I know requires stretching out moments, staring through a square piece of ... Read More
February 17, 2023

RIGHT THIS WAY, novel by Miriam N. Kotzin, reviewed by Lynn Levin

RIGHT THIS WAY, novel by Miriam N. Kotzin, reviewed by Lynn Levin
RIGHT THIS WAY by Miriam N. Kotzin Spuyten Duyvil, 339 pages reviewed by Lynn Levin They say it can be done, but it is hard, very hard, for most betrayed wives to regain trust and ... Read More
February 15, 2023

A conversation with Nancy Ludmerer, author of Collateral Damage: 48 Stories by Kathryn Kulpa

A conversation with Nancy Ludmerer, author of Collateral Damage: 48 Stories by Kathryn Kulpa
FLASH-WRITERS: TRUST YOUR READER: a conversation with Nancy Ludmerer, author of Collateral Damage: 48 Stories (Snake Nation Press, 2022) by Kathryn Kulpa I had the pleasure of interviewing Nancy Ludmerer, a student in one of ... Read More
February 14, 2023

A conversation with Christopher M. Hood, author of The Revivalists by Hannah Felt Garner

A conversation with Christopher M. Hood, author of The Revivalists by Hannah Felt Garner
I Tell My Students All The Time, "Your Job Is to Make Art. Your Job Is Not to Explain Shit," a conversation with Christopher M. Hood, author of The Revivalists (Harper 2022) by Hannah Felt ... Read More
January 30, 2023

FROM DRAWER TO BOOKSTORE IN JUST TWENTY-FOUR YEARS: The Long and Worthy Journey to Publication by Ona Gritz

FROM DRAWER TO BOOKSTORE IN JUST TWENTY-FOUR YEARS: The Long and Worthy Journey to Publication by Ona Gritz
FROM DRAWER TO BOOKSTORE IN JUST TWENTY-FOUR YEARS: The Long and Worthy Journey to Publication by Ona Gritz The oldest version of my forthcoming middle-grade novel that I can access on my computer is dated ... Read More
January 25, 2023
    View more recent reviews...

Emily Steinbergs’s Comix

The writer, a middle-aged woman with long grey hair, is driving in car with her dog. She narrates: Since the end of February I've been watching the war on TV. CNN Breaking: "Russia Invades Ukraine. Ukraine strikes fuel depot. Putin pissed off."... And obsessively doom scrolling on Twitter. War Crimes! Odessa bombed! It simultaneously feels like 1939 and right now. Totally surreal.

WAR AND PEACE 2.0 by Emily Steinberg

MEN O PAUSE by Emily Steinberg

MEN O PAUSE by Emily Steinberg

Visual Narratives

DESPINA by Jennifer Hayden

DESPINA by Jennifer Hayden

From KENNINGS, Visual Erasures by Katrina Roberts

From KENNINGS, Visual Erasures by Katrina Roberts

VISUAL NARRATIVES ARCHIVE

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
♦ © Cleaver Magazine ♦ [email protected] ♦ ISSN 2330-2828 ♦ Privacy Policy
↑
 

Loading Comments...