Hello, friends! I wanted to let you all know that I’m teaching a couple of classes this fall–one online, for LitReactor, and one in Portland, OR, at the Corporeal Writing Center.
One participant called the first class, Final Draft, “a finishing school for writers, distilled into just four weeks.” I call it the class I wish I’d had in the years (years!) when I had a complete manuscript on my hard drive but knew it wasn’t “there” yet–and had no idea how to get it there, despite the fact that I had an MFA.
In this class, I’ll be helping writers really nail down the opening of their WIP, and help them think strategically about both publishing and establishing a career as a writer. The aim is help people who’ve put in their 10K hours with the craft break through with their first book deal or major byline. Final Draft starts Sept. 24 and lasts four weeks. You’ll find more about it here.
The second class is in Portland, at Lidia Yuknavitch’s Corporeal Writing Center. It’s billed as “Alt. Architectures,” with a solid dose of feminist literary theory, but is really just a class in long-form storytelling, period. It’s appropriate for anyone with a novel that’s a WIP–from just an idea to a second or third draft–and would likely be useful to anyone working in memoir or hybrid forms as well.
My aim here is to give writers the tools to create an effective, compelling structure that really fits their project, rather than trying to shoehorn their novel into one that may not be ideal (and may unconsciously reflect some problematic patriarchal biases, as per Western civ). The class starts Nov. 7 and lasts three weeks, meeting Thursday evenings; you’ll find more info here.
About me, in case you’re new to my work: In addition to being an author, I’ve been a freelance editor and book coach for the last ten years, and I’m passionate about helping emerging writers launch their careers–especially those from historically marginalized communities, and those whose stories have the potential to disrupt toxic narratives in our culture. You’ll find more about my work as an editor and a book coach on my editing page.
Interested in one of these classes? Know someone who might benefit from this type of support with their writing? Feel free to drop me a line with any questions you may have: susan [at] susandefreitas [dot] com.
