Bravery. Skill. Awareness. Clarity.
There is a natural truth and luminosity to the raw creative material within us. Our task, as writers, as human beings, is to uncover and reveal what is under the compost heap of rhetorical weakness and emotional confusion.
One of the best ways to do this is in a sophisticated and focused group of like-minded people.
Are you a Diamond Cutter? Wondering if this course is for you?
Do any of the following apply to you?
• You have begun something that you want to continue and you don’t know how/where/what to do exactly
• You would like to work toward a finished personal essay or article of writing that you could submit somewhere and that is possibly from a larger work
• You’re tired of writing groups that don’t move you forward
• You feel like you would grow from some professional input
• You would like an intimate group of writers that you share work with and give and receive feedback
• You are really ready to take your work and yourself as a writer to the next level
• You’re part of the 21.5.800 community
How we will mine, cut, and polish your diamond:
1. We will work together for 4-6 weeks in a band of 4-6 writers. Each week, one manuscript of any length up to 40 pages, will be emailed to the Diamond Cutters. We will each read the work and email written feedback to the author (you’ll be cc’ing me on your feedback).
2. We will have a weekly one hour group call to discuss the work for 30 minutes—voice, structure, action, passivity, rhetorical choices, etc. etc. For the last 30 minutes, we will free flow on what ever issues have come up around the work for everybody in the group in a Q & A fashion.
3. I will be giving individual assignments that may or may not be unique to each participant—from poems, to music, to writing excersises, to physical activity for each participant as a juicy comprehensive method to build skills as a Diamond Cutter.
4. I will be giving guidance as to what exactly a writing critique is, and how to do it effectively as well as how to listen or not listen, and ultimately how to put it to use. There is a power in the creative critiquing process that is under-utilized and generally mistaugt or never taught! I’ll give guidance as to effective critiquing and receptivity, boundaries, transference and ultimately how to put the critique to use to strengthen your own voice, direction and self-knowledge as a writer.
Catching the Light
Confidence comes from a sense of safety. When you feel supported and accepted, you can write with full internal permission. You can write with passion and technique, and that’s what makes great art. So that’s what we are going to do– create a closed container where people can take risks in how they want to shape their diamonds and how they want to reveal the material. Then we are going to strengthen the indivual rhetorical frames. Diamonds sparkle because of their cuts.
Writing is an intimate act with oneself and with the world.
Expect to be pushed. Be prepared to really devote and hone your craft.
I will offer you my full treasure chest of emotional and literary knowledge to spur you on to produce what you truly want to produce. Whether you put it out for publication, or release it on your blog, or use it to keep crafting your bigger work, is up to you.
The Diamond Cutters is a course where you will really step into the light of your own ability and bring forth what is begging to shine and be fully expressed.
What you will receive:
• A 30-minute one-on-one creative coaching call with me where you can ask me questions of a more private nature.
• Reading recommendations from poetry to pop culture to ancient boring important stuff along the way as they arise
• An opportunity to really uncover your own luminosity and to shape the truth of your experience through your prose.
The next sessions begin Thursday November 11th, 2010
The proposed time is 7pm EST to allow for US, Australia & New Zealand, and UK & Europe people to all get on the call. You can work out the exact meeting time for your own timezone with this handy converter from The World Clock.
Time of sessions will be grouped and determined by the international nature of the participants to allow for everyone to get onto the call.
REGISTER NOW
Places are limited and will fill up quickly, so sign up now to avoid disappointment!
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{ 4 comments }
This is brilliant (see how I took the diamond metaphor and ran with it there?)
I’ll be encouraging everyone I know to sign up.
.-= Marianne´s last blog ..Advice for writers- on finding agents- community and social media =-.
For my writer friends, the Diamond Cutters course is WONDERFUL. Check it. http://bit.ly/dZWPkE
RT @MeganMatthieson: For my writer friends, the Diamond Cutters course is WONDERFUL. Check it. http://bit.ly/dZWPkE
Writers: polish ur writing with @binduwiles' Diamond Cutter's workshop next month. http://bit.ly/dZWPkE