Weekly Fiction Writing Workshop, daily longhand dialogue writing, and no answers!
Fiction Writing Class
I started a fiction writing class this week, a graduate-level writing workshop that is open to the community.
Our instructor, Professor Dan Barden, says we made it into the class because, from our writing samples, we all have what it takes to get past “writing crap” and be good writers. He sees himself as a coach, similar to an athletic trainer. He may not explain why we’re doing what we’re doing, he only knows it works.
Dialogue Writing Exercise
Our first, and probably continuing assignment, certainly falls into that category. We are to write “no less than 20 minutes, no more than 40” each day - longhand. Not freewriting per se, but a dialogue between two voices. Doesn’t matter which voices - any that we have running around in our heads. But only dialogue – no “he said,” no description, no action, not even names. Just Character 1 and Character 2.
The other part of the writing assignment is to tear out our pages each day, staple and seal in an envelope, put a return address and postage stamp on it, and bring them to class each week.
Purpose of Dialogue Practice
Why are we writing pages of dialogue each day? What will he do with them? What are we supposed to get out of it? Professor Barden won’t say. He may tell us later. He may not. I know the longhand writing assignment continues through the class, but he won’t say if it changes at all.
He did say that we will probably figure it out on our own. But he’s the coach, so we do it his way.
Today I will write my third session of dialogue. Stay tuned for my reaction to it!
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