Fat Oyster Writing Workshops

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Saturday, January 23rd, 2016
10:00 AM to 5:00 PM

3 Fat Oyster Writing Workshops  $25 each or 3 for $60 Hey Baby…. Yeah, I mean you, gorgeous.

10:00 – 12:00 You need a seductive line, paragraph, and first chapter, to lure a reader in -- and that’s difficult enough -- but how do you know what the beginning of your story really is? Often, upon revision, a writer will discover the good stuff doesn’t start until page 17. 

The workshop Hey Baby will address both of these issues, first from the perspective of wrestling with the entire narrative – and then in making the opening lines irresistible; grab that reader by the lapels and shake!

Presenter: Bernice Friesen’s third book The Book of Beasts was a finalist for the Rogers Writers Trust of Canada Fiction Award, was a Globe and Mail’s top 100, and won the Saskatchewan Book Award for Fiction in 2007. Her awards include the Vicky Metcalf Award for best young adult short story in Canada. She’s the executive editor of Rhubarb Magazine.She writes an exhibition blog called Revisionary at https://bernicefriesen.wordpress.com  

The Monster Children of Prose Poetry 1:00 – 3:00 Charles Simic says that prose poetry is “the monster child of two incompatible strategies, the lyric and the narrative.” I think it’s the tension between those impulses that energizes prose poems, which are basically poems without the line breaks, written as short blocks of text. This form can allow writers to follow a thread of thought more directly, without particular regard for simile, metaphor or other poetic conventions. I liken them to small windows that frame a part of a day, or daydream. The instructor (me) will bring prompts to stimulate writing, and I ask participants (you) to bring a children’s picture book with a small mystery in it that you would like to explore. (Go to the library and hang out in kids' books!) We’ll write prose poems together, share fragments of text to discuss, and write some more.  

Presenter: Cornelia Hoogland has published 6 books of poetry. Woods Wolf Girl, was one of five finalists for the Relit Best Book of 2011 Award. “Sea Level” was short-listed for the CBC Nonfiction Literary Awards. Robert Wiersma awarded Hoogland 1st place in the Nanaimo Arts Council fiction contest in 2013. Her local activities include Poetry* Hornby Island, which is also where she lives with her husband and dog.   Breathe Life into Characters 

3:00 -5:00 Character is the life force from which springs the narrative in both fiction and creative non-fiction.  A well-drawn character lingers in the mind of the reader after the book is closed. Think Jay Gatsby, Miss Havisham, Ebenezer Scrooge. We’ll look at ways to find characters, to know them well and to convey them in a compelling way. Characters drive story and if you want your reader along for the ride, learn to imbue your characters with the energy needed to bring the story home. Come with pen and paper and a character in mind.

Presenter: Judy LeBlanc has been published in a number of literary magazines.  She recently won the Islands Short Fiction contest and in 2013 was longlisted for the CBC short story prize. She won The Antigonish Review’s 2012 Sheldon Currie Fiction contest. and has a collection of short stories coming out with Oolichan Press in Fall, 2016. Judy is the co-founder and coordinator of the Fat Oyster Reading Series and lives in Fanny Bay. She teaches writing at North Island College.