News: 'Experiments in Narrative Ekphrasis' Workshop at The Loft
I am really looking forward to being a teaching artist at The Loft in March. My class is six weeks, purely generative, all online, asynchronous, and open for adult writers of all levels of experience. It is part of The Loft’s new Sense of Adventure course series.
Description:
Gallery View—Experiments in Narrative Ekphrasis
Ekphrasis—the literary response to visual art—often takes the form of poetry, but this class will be geared toward generating narrative prose and/or hybrid texts. Participants will receive prompts in the form of specific artworks (to be viewed online) and methods for translating the art into fiction, memoir, or other narrative forms. These exercises will be followed by analysis of writing by John Keene, A.S. Byatt, Don DeLillo, Tyehimba Jess, or Ali Smith, all created in response to the same artworks. Techniques might include imagining an instance of seeing the work, imagining the life of the work’s subject or artist, or letting the work trigger associations and memories.
All levels of experience are welcome; the goal is to think like a beginner, take risks, and discover new approaches to the page. Sharing creative work with the class is optional; the teaching artist will offer private, supportive feedback on all exercises, with an emphasis on the uniqueness of each writer.
Time commitment will be 40% writing/rewriting, 30% reading, and 30% analysis and (asynchronous) discussion. There will be a week-long break March 8–14.
Click here for enrollment info.
Here’s a YouTube interview with Savannah Brooks at The Loft where I discuss the class, my idea of adventure in COVID times, budget travel, armchair travel, and virtual galleries and museums.