***SOLD OUT***
Please get in touch to be added to the wait list.
Led by an experienced editor, this day-long masterclass is designed to help writers develop the editorial intuition that will help them improve their works-in-progress. Using discussion, exercises and practical advice, it should be of interest to writers of fiction and narrative nonfiction who have either complete drafts or manuscripts in development. You’ll leave with fresh insights as well as plenty of resources and recommendations for new things to try out in your writing. The day will also include a Q&A on the working life of an editor with Faiza S Khan of Bloomsbury Publishing.
Program for the day
10.00–10.45: Reading as an Editor: Types of editing and approaches to drafting and revising
10.45-11.30: Creating a World: Digging deeper with genre, character and situation to clarify your intention and find the heart of your story
11.30–11.45: Break (tea, coffee and cake provided)
11.45–12.45: Crafting Your Storytelling: How perspective, structure and voice give your story focus and edge
12.45–14:00: Lunch (we can offer recommendations for places to find lunch nearby at London Bridge and Borough Market)
14.00–14.30: Crafting the Page: Refining voice and style: paragraphs, sentences, words
14.30–15.00: Feedback Exercise: A chance to get editorial feedback from another writer in the group after sharing a brief synopsis or writing sample
15.00–15.30: Connecting with Readers: Seeking and handling feedback, and preparing your work for submission and publication
15.30–15.45: Break (tea, coffee and cake provided)
15.45–17.00: Industry Speaker: Q&A with Faiza Khan of Bloomsbury Publishing
Preparation
We’ll contact you a couple of weeks before the workshop with a brief preparatory exercise and reading recommendations. One of the texts we might discuss is Zoë Heller’s Notes On A Scandal, should you want to read ahead; it won’t be necessary for taking part in the class, but you might want to take a look at its opening.
Workshop Leader
Andrew Wille is a book doctor and writing teacher with over three decades of experience in publishing. At Little, Brown and as a freelance editor he has published and edited many bestselling and critically acclaimed works of fiction and nonfiction. After studying and later teaching at Naropa University’s Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics in Boulder, Colorado, he introduced contemplative and holistic approaches to creativity into his work. He writes fiction and nonfiction, and also blogs and offers resources on writing and publishing at www.wille.org.
Industry Guest
Faiza S Khan is an editor, columnist and critic. She is a consulting publisher at Bloomsbury Publishing in London. She has previously been based in South Asia, and worked as editor-in-chief of Bloomsbury India. Her writing and criticism has appeared in The Daily Beast, The New Republic, Caravan Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, India, The Financial Times, and The Guardian.