I’ll be teaching an online class in January. It runs 5 weeks because there was so much I wanted to cover. It incorporates Book in a Week, of course, but it’s much more than that. It’s about aspects of writing from the perspective of: What works?
As you know, if you’ve ever heard me speak, I believe there is one fundamental rule in writing: If it works, it works and if it doesn’t, it doesn’t.
The other piece of what I do is focus on how writing can be easier and more fun because I believe deeply that when we like what we’re doing, when we’re having fun, we do it better and faster and are far less likely to procrastinate.
There’s no wrong way to write a first draft. It will be whatever it is—for YOU. Later comes all the polishing and work to make it into a publishable final draft. Some writers manage it on their first draft, most of us don’t. They key is to find out what works for YOU and then go with it because you will write better and faster if you do. This class is designed to help each writer figure that out for himself or herself.
It’s an experiment for me, offering it this way, instead of through a website that provided online classes to community colleges. I hope this makes it affordable and accessible to many more people.
If you’re interested, here’s the official release on the course:
**Permission to Forward**
OUTREACH INTERNATIONAL is pleased to announce our CAMPUS online workshop for the month of January.
DATE: January 7 – February 8, 2008
TITLE: Book In A Week
INSTRUCTOR: April Kihlstrom
LEVEL: Beginner to Intermediate
COST: $20 Outreach Member/Others $30
Deadline to receive application and payment: January 4, 2008
Course Description:
In this 5 week class, multi-published author April Kihlstrom will show you how to write faster and better than you ever thought possible—and have fun doing so! As part of the online class, she will take you through the steps, from start to finish, of writing a book. She will talk about planning and plotting, practical writing issues, revisions and self-editing. She will share techniques she has found useful in getting past writer’s block and in crafting a novel that others want to read. There will also be one week of intensive writing where class members write as much as they can, as fast as they can, and try to complete the first draft of a book in one week. If that sounds overwhelming, April says not to worry—there is no way to fail at this experience!
Goal:
To make writing more fun and more productive. To discover how, when, where, what one writes best and how to do more of that. To create the first draft of a book in a short span of time.
Topics covered include:
Weeks 1-3: Preparing to write the first draft of a book in one week
Creating compelling characters and/or how to write about real people in nonfiction
Planning plot elements or structure in a nonfiction book
Significance of names
Effective paragraph and sentence structure
Using imagery and sensory detail to add impact
Writing effective dialogue
Creating a productive writing environment
Enlisting the support of those around you
Mentally gearing yourself up to write faster (and better) than you thought you could
Week 4: Intensive Writing Week
Week 5: Evaluating the writing experience itself
Making revisions
Sending out material
Bio:
Although her background is in mathematics, (including a masters degree in operations research), April Kihlstrom is an award winning author of 31 published romance novels. She believes Book in a Week is a way to recapture the joy of writing and write faster and more effectively at the same time.
Always a slow writer, April was lured into attempting Book In A Week by a group of writers on Genie. Much to her surprise, she discovered it was a technique that worked well for her and she really could write the first draft of a book in a week! Since she began using the book in a week method, Romantic Times has called her a “rising star” and a “diamond of the first water”.
April offers coaching to fellow writers as well as classes and workshops in writing to both romance and non-romance writers and has spoken at many conferences including: the RWA national conference (romance) and the East of Eden conference (non-romance).
CAMPUS workshops encompass the RESEARCH and CRAFT aspects of writing. The workshops are conducted via email only, no real-time or live chats, on a private list. Participants will be subbed to the list for the month of the workshop then unsubbed when it's over. Each workshop includes lectures and Q & A sessions. You don't have to be an RWA member to take these workshops; they are open to everyone with email capability who wishes to participate.
Check out the OUTREACH INTERNATIONAL website at Outreach International, you can find out more about becoming a member of OUTREACH INTERNATIONAL ROMANCE WRITERS Chapter and signing up for the course (online campus).
Please pass on this information to anyone you think might be interested.
