Second Chances 2024 – Craft Essentials
December 10, 2024 - January 1, 2025
$59.00
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Welcome to the WLT Second Chances sale! From now until December 31, 2024, all of our Fall 2024 class recordings are available to purchase. From learning how to begin (and finish!) a book-length project to the ins and outs of researching, interviewing, experimenting with form, writing detailed imagery, and editing your own writing, these classes are essential tools for ANY writer’s toolbox.
To find our Business of Writing classes, click here.
To find our Craft Deep Dives, click here.
NOTE: This is not a live class registration. When you register, you’ll be receiving access to previously recorded classes taught for a live audience. Registration includes access to any handouts, readings, and slides the instructor originally shared with students. The videos will be available for viewing immediately upon purchase, and will expire on January 31, 2024.
Descriptions for each class recording can be found below. To purchase access to the recordings, all you need to do is add your preferred tickets to your cart and check out. You’ll then receive an email with a link to the class recordings and any class materials.
“The Long Haul: How to Begin (& Finish) Your Book”
with Samantha M Clark
Writing a novel or memoir can be daunting. But never fear, this class will show you how to get started, how to not lose steam in the middle, and how to revise effectively after you’ve finished the first draft.
So many words! So many chapters! So much information to plug in! And what do you do with that muddy middle? These are just a few of the reasons why the vast majority of people who have a book idea never begin, and why the majority of those who start, quit after the first few chapters.
It can be really daunting to start and complete a project as big as a novel or memoir, but the guidelines shared in this class will help writers work with such a large story without getting lost, intimidated, and giving up. You’ll learn how to begin your book, so that you’re setting yourself up to write a successful draft all the way to those wonderful words, THE END.
What students had to say about the class:
- “Samantha led us through a great combination of examples and exercises that combined to be highly motivational.”
- “This was terrific. It reinforced a bit of what I’d been researching and starting to put into practice, which was one thing I hoped to get out of the class – a “gut check” that I was on a good path. Samantha is very encouraging, patient, approachable.”
“A Writer’s Guide to Research”
with Chris Barton
No matter the project you’re working on, effective research isn’t just about finding what you need — it’s also about wielding what you find.
In this class, participants will learn to identify potential sources of information — including types of resources they might not have previously considered — for their particular projects. Attendees will also develop practical plans for collecting what those sources have to offer. And the class will offer tips and tricks for putting those research materials to use, including ways to organize and document those materials in order to save time and frustration throughout the life of the project.
What students had to say about the class:
- “Chris was very open, personable and knowledgeable about the subject. This class could have been incredibly boring if it had been handled a different way. Chris made it fun and interesting.”
“On Interviewing: Tips for Storytellers”
with Margaret Juhae Lee
Do you want to incorporate interviews into your writing?
Interviews, especially with family members, can greatly enrich any writing project across any genre—memoir, fiction and nonfiction. However, many writers are unsure how to conduct them, especially with subjects who might be uncomfortable speaking about the past and recounting what might be painful memories.
In this class, participants will learn about the process of interviewing—from types of interviews, how to prepare, conducting the interview itself, and transcription options. We will also brainstorm creative ways to approach reluctant interviewees and consider communication styles, environment, comfort level, and different methods of conducting interviews. The class will also include a discussion of oral history, the collection and study of historical information gathered through interviews.
What students had to say about the class:
- “Left me with so much to think about. How I would want to rearrange the content, interview new people. Really helpful for generating new approaches to an old topic for me.”
“Shape Shifting: Experimenting with Form in Fiction and Nonfiction”
with Kimberly Garza
If you think writing crafted in strange shapes is something only poets can do, think again.
A novel chapter told entirely as a textbook on post-apocalyptic wildlife; an essay made up of one meandering, pages-long sentence. In these examples and more, prose writers hold their own with poets, breaking from the standard sentence-paragraph layout in surprising ways. So how can fiction and nonfiction writers bring new forms and structures into their work? And more importantly, why should they?
This class will discuss the risks and rewards of writing prose in experimental forms, spotlight published work playing with shape, and share strategies for finding and choosing structures. Ultimately, writers will leave with an appreciation for the many shapes prose can take, forms that still show—and tell—our stories.
What students had to say about the class:
- “This was the perfect balance of instruction, examples, writing time, and discussion. Kim is an exceptional instructor.”
- “Kimberly’s ease with sharing thoughts and information made the class interesting and accessible. It was clear that she is passionate about exploring form in writing and is a student herself—the best teachers!”
“From Begun to Done: How to Edit Your Own Writing”
with Sara Kocek
Before you invest in professional editing, you can and should put your manuscript through the wringer on your own, using the same tried and true techniques that professional developmental editors use.
Writing to the end of your first draft exposes all the problems with your dazzling beginning—underdeveloped characters, loose ends in the plot, weaknesses in the world-building, and clunky, stilted dialogue. That’s when you need to hire an editor, right? Wrong. (That comes later.) Before you invest in professional editing, you can and should put your manuscript through the wringer on your own, using the same tried and true techniques that editors use.
This fun, fast-paced class, geared primarily toward beginner & intermediate writers, will use a combination of lecture and writing exercises to cover common revision issues such as scene construction, pacing, dialogue, point-of-view, and the eternal problem of too-much exposition. No matter your genre, learn how to read and revise your own work the way a professional editor would: by scrubbing it clean of the top ten problems afflicting most first drafts.
“It’s All in the Details: Tapping into Visceral Imagery”
with Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton
Whether you’re writing fiction, memoir, or poetry, the Devil is in the details.
In this course with award-winning writer, director, performer, critic, and Houston Poet Laureate Emeritus Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton, you will practice honing in on and heightening your voice by curating new details. Learn how to write more engaging and emotional narratives and more moment-capturing poetry, memoir, and fiction, all by focusing on the smallest things.
What students had to say about the class:
- “Deborah Mouton is fantastic in giving directions and excellent examples. Gave me excellent tools for working with my novel better.”
Before purchasing, please read all policies as noted below and on our Accessibility and Policies page.
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Class & Event Registration Policy
Once a purchase has been made, registrations are not refundable and cannot be transferred to a different class or event. No exceptions will be made. If you purchase a registration and then find you cannot attend the class or event, someone else can attend in your stead. Simply contact us at wlt@writersleague.org and let us know the name and contact information for the person who will be using the registration so that we can update the class or event roster.
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Anti-Harassment Policy
The Writers’ League of Texas is dedicated to providing harassment-free spaces for everyone, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race, age, or religion. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Violating these rules may result in expulsion from WLT programs without a refund at the discretion of the WLT staff.
Harassment includes, but is not limited to:
- Comments that reinforce social structures of domination (related to gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race, age, or religion);
- Sexual images not appropriate for the specific subject of the public discussion;
- Deliberate intimidation or stalking;
- Harassing photography or recording;
- Sustained disruption of discussions or other events;
- Unwelcome sexual attention;
- Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.
Enforcement
Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately. If a participant engages in harassing behavior, event organizers retain the right to take any actions to keep the event a welcoming environment for all participants. This includes warning the offender or expulsion from the event with no refund. Event organizers may take action to redress anything designed to, or with the clear impact of, disrupting the event or making the environment hostile for any participants. We expect participants to follow these rules during all events and event-related social activities.
Reporting
If someone makes you or anyone else feel unsafe or unwelcome, please report it as soon as possible. Reports can also be made via email at wlt@writersleague.org. We’ll handle any and all reports as respectfully as possible. You won’t be asked to confront anyone, and we won’t tell anyone who you are.
Accessibility Policy
Closed captioning is available for all online classes and special events.
The WLT is committed to making its programs & services accessible to all writers. Please contact us at wlt@writersleague.org or at 512-499-8914 for more information or to discuss accommodations you may need.
Credit Card Transaction Handling Fee Policy
All credit card transactions will incur a 4% handling fee. If you’d prefer to pay by check for membership, a class, or an event, you can use the provided forms on the membership or event pages and mail to: WLT, P.O. Box 14355, Austin, TX, 78704.
Writers’ League of Texas classes and workshops are also funded in part by the Texas Commission on the Arts – Investing in a Creative Texas. For more information, go to www.arts.texas.gov.