About this event
If you have the urge to write, this is an opportunity to develop your essential skills. Following our previous very successful courses, we shall continue to explore the fundamental techniques of writing. In the creative atmosphere of Books on the Hill’s reading room, we will discover the best ways to express and convey stories.
In these well-structured sessions, tutor, Clare Hobba, will also provide starting points - prompts to launch you on your own writing journey. There will be the opportunity to share and review one another’s writing in class.
The course will take place over five sessions which will last 2 hours each, taking place on Tuesday mornings from 10am to 12pm. The first session will take place on 31st October and will continue weekly until our last session taking place on 28th November 2023**.
To book your place please click here.
The shape of each session will be:
· Cover this week’s topic – handouts, discussions, exercises
· Writing exercise based on this week’s topic
· Read writing aloud – positive review of one another’s work, moderated by Clare
The week course structure~
1) Creating pictures in the reader’s mind. How to immerse our reader in the story – using the essential technique of ‘show not tell’.
2) Sharp descriptions. Descriptions can convey much more information than at first sight – we learn how to include clues and connotations.
3) Lifelike characters. The characters are what make a story compelling – we look at more ways to give our characters depth.
4) Dialogue. Dialogue brings a story to life – we explore good practice in writing dialogue.
5) Shaping stories An introduction to the essential elements which contribute to a satisfying story.
About Clare ~
Clare Hobba is a local writer and teacher with over ten years of experience tutoring creative writing classes and workshops. She has written numerous short stories which have been published by Writers Rebel and performed at the Greenbelt Festival, St Albans Literary Festival and on Radio Verulam. Her novels have been runner up for the Winston Graham Prize and longlisted for the MsLexia and Cinnamon Prizes. She has also published over forty non-fiction articles and regularly reviews books for the St Albans Podcast.
*The course will not run if numbers are insufficient, and a refund will be provided.
**This course is intended to be face-to-face, but if external factors change (e.g. a Lockdown), some or all sessions may be held online, using Zoom.
During the event, the team may ask if we can take pictures of the event to promote future events held in store. By purchasing a ticket you are consenting to the team using these pictures for our social media channels but you are able to withdraw your consent at any time during the event