Authors Nisi Shawl and Cynthia Ward will make their workshop "Writing the Other: Bridging Cultural Differences for Successful Fiction" available to the general public for the first time on Saturday, September 27, from noon to 4 p.m., at the Good Shepherd Center in Seattle. "Writing the Other" proved highly popular among attendees of the Potlatch, WisCon, and Westercon conventions earlier this year. Shawl and Ward use exercises, lectures, and discussions to teach participants how to write convincingly about characters of diverse backgrounds and cultures.
Suzy McKee Charnas, author of Walk to the End of the World and My Father's Ghost calls "Writing the Other: Bridging Cultural Differences for Successful Fiction" a "lively, entertaining, and above all stimulating experience, proving yet again that even the examined life benefits by being re-examined from time to time, all the more so in the case of writers."
"We've had fantastic feedback on the workshop, so we're sure it'll be helpful to anyone who comes. Both established pros like Suzy McKee Charnas, Elisabeth Vonarburg, and Mary Rosenblum, and up-and-coming writers like David D. Levine tell us they've benefited," Shawl says.
Ward emphasizes the safe, supportive atmosphere that "Writing the Other" provides. "Writing about people whose race, religion, abilities, gender, or sexual orientation differ from our own is hard but necessary work," she explains. "In this workshop, authors can experiment, explore, and learn which techniques actually work."
This session of "Writing the Other" will be limited to 15 participants. Students are encouraged to bring a current short story or novel chapter to use in some of the exercises (exercise results will not be shown to the class). Advance registration costs $68, with a postmark deadline of September 13. After that, registration is $88. Payment options include Paypal, checks, and money orders. Those interested in taking the workshop should contact Nisi Shawl at 206-720-1008 or at nisis@aol.com. They may also visit the workshop's Web site at www.writingtheother.com, where further endorsements appear.
SUMMARY: Writing the Other: Bridging Cultural Differences for Successful Fiction
Saturday, September 27, 2003, 12 - 4 p.m.
Good Shepherd Center, Room 223
4649 Sunnyside Ave. N. (Wallingford neighborhood), Seattle, WA 98103
$68/$88
Limit: 15 students
CONTACT: Nisi Shawl, 206-720-1008, nisis@aol.com
WEB SITE: www.writingtheother.com
