Dear writers,
a year ago I set off for wonderful Maui/Hawaii to participate in the wonderful writing workshop of Rebecca Walker. This year she will come to Vienna, to the writers´studio and teach her wonderful 5 day intensive seminar The Art of Memoir. I am proud and excited, so please spread the word. The early registration fee ends already on February 1!
Dear writers, dear native speakers, dear English lovers, liebe Birgit Sch.,liebe Schreibende,
some of you wonder, is this workshop right for me? Some have asked various questions, so here are the “FAQs”. Before let me say, that Rebecca is a really cool, yes wonderful woman, strong and yet soft, outspoken and yet calm, inspiring and yet giving the freedom a writers´ mind & heart needs. I have profited immensely from her seminars, her spirit and model.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ:
1. Do I need to have started a Memoir Project before the seminar?
Yes and no. You need to have at least an idea about which personal experience/topic you want to write. If you don´t have any pages (in English) yet, please start writing (Freewritings) about the central experience, your ideas for the project, some scenes. Everybody who signs up will be asked to send in a few pages of writing in English in late April 2012 (20 pages max). Rebecca will send out some writing prompts (exercises) in March, you can also send what you wrote for these exercises.
On the other hand if you are in the middle of a book or have already a finished first draft you will profit from the seminar all the more.
2. What kind of experiences do people write about in a Memoir Seminar?
Rebecca says: “Memoir is a unique genre different from traditional autobiography. It gives a voice to anyone, at any juncture in their life, offering a way to transform the weight of the past into the freedom of the future.” The American genre Memoir is also becoming more and more popular in Europe. A Memoir author typically writes about specific experience or topic in one’s life (not about the whole life!) and often shows the way out of a difficult situation. (See my blog entry Warum mitten im Leben ein Memoir schreiben?) Rebeccas Memoir Books are about 1. growing up in a mix-race family (“Black, white & Jewish”) and 2. Her pregnancy after decades of ambivalence about motherhood (“Baby Love”). Her third Memoir will be about a year she spent in Africa when she was in her early 20ies (not yet published). Rebeccas motto is “Write your truth. Change the world”.
3. How much previous writing experience do I need?
This is definitely not a seminar for complete novices or someone who feels still very insecure about writing processes. It would be good to have participated in a couple of seminars before. On the other hand in Maui an American woman showed up in the seminar who had never written before and it worked out fine for her. She had a very interesting story to tell and a naturally strong voice & character, so that helped ;-)
4. Non-native speakers have asked: How good does my English have to be to attend this seminar?
Your English doesn’t have to be perfect, but you should feel comfortable writing, reading, and speaking in English. Many non-native speakers , like myself, even find it liberating to write in a foreign language, especially about touchy topics ;-) The seminar will be taught in English only, all the texts for the seminar must be written in English. I found it easy to transfer my new knowledge, ideas and texts into my German writing project after the seminar.
5. What if I can´t make it to Rebeccas seminar but would like to write in English?
Come to Flash Fiction with the Australian teacher Syliva Petter (free info evening: Jan, 25th; start: Feb.2012) or “Cultural Journalism” with the journalist Dardis Mac Namee, originally from the US. If your English is rusty & dusty I recommend “Writing Professional English” with Eva Kuntscher, she will lift you up for sure …
I can´t wait to see the writers´studio crowded with people from all over Europe, the US and Austria writing in English, soaking in the true writing spirit of the English speaking countries.
You will be inspired, moved, refreshed. The power is in your hand.
So long
Judith Wolfsberger
Writers studio
Aktuelll im writers´studio:
Restplätze:
One-Day Writers´Retreat: Schreibsonntag auf der urbanen Insel: 22. Jänner 2012
Beauty Case. Texte sprachlich stylen ohne ihre natürliche Schönheit zu zerstören. Start: 23. Jänner 2012
The Art of Memoir with Rebecca Walker: Early registration fee only through Febuary 1st, 2012!
Infoabende:
Mi, 25. Jänner, 19 Uhr: Flash Fiction (In Englisch), Start: Feb. 2012
Di, 24. Jänner, 19 Uhr, 1×1 des Journalismus für Nicht-JournalistInnen: Professionelle Artikel & Presseaussendungen schreiben, Start: Feb. 2012
Do, 26. Jänner, 19 Uhr: Memoir Writing. Ein autobiographisches Schreibprojekt entwickeln. Seminar in deutscher Sprache mit Ana Znidar. Start: Februar und Juli 2012
Fr, 3. Feb, 20 Uhr, Info-Schreibnacht zu Schreibmarathon: 80 Seiten in 8 Wochen. Start: März 2012
Schreibtreffs im writers´studio: Einfach kommen. Keine Anmeldung nötig:
Schreib-Fabrik mit Feedback: Enormer Output & stärkende Rückmeldungen. Jeden ersten Montag im Monat, 18-21 Uhr.
Schreib-Café mit Yoga: Move your ass and your pen will follow. Jeden letzten Donnerstag im Monat, 9-12 Uhr
Schreibnacht: Fun-Workshops für Neugierige & Schreibfans. Jeden 1. Freitag im Monat. Jedes Monat ein anderes Thema, angekündigt auf unserer Website.