Fall 2008 Classes

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Going to the Elephant: A Creative Writing Class

Someone once said, "Writing is the easiest job in the world: all you have to do is stare at a blank piece of paper until blood comes out of your forehead." This class breaks through the myth of writer's block. Silence your inner critic in a safe, encouraging environment designed for those who have always wanted to write but never followed through--or who used to write, but have stopped making time to do so. We will experiment with timed writings, monologues, and dream journals. Give me your best, and you will come away a better writer. You'll also find out what the title means.

6 sessions, Sept. 15-Oct. 20
Mondays 7:00-10:00
Studio School, 2nd floor conference room
Enrollment limit: 10

Going to the Elephant: A Creative Writing Workshop

1 session, Oct. 4
Saturday 10:00am-4:00pm
Studio School, 2nd floor conference room
Enrollment limit: 10

Writing the Shadow

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross said that before we can find the Mother Teresa within us, we must first acknowledge the Hitler who is there as well. Each of us has a dark self, what Carl Jung called the "shadow" part of our psyche. Sometimes we glimpse it in dreams; sometimes it appears in dark imaginings. In this class we'll experiment with timed writing, dream journals, guided imagery, and Active Imagination. Our goal will be to draw the shadow out, recognize it for what it is, and see what we can learn from it--and what it can bring to our creative writing. This class is not therapy, but it can be very therapeutic.

6 sessions, Oct. 27-Dec. 1
Mondays 7:00-10:00pm
Studio School, 2nd floor conference room
Enrollment limit: 10

The Studio School is located at 2911-15 Grove Avenue (across the street from VMFA) at the corner of Shepard Street. For information call Mary Holland or Frank Saunders at 367-0816, or go to http://www.vmfa.state.va.us/.



The Visual Arts Center (Formerly The Hand Workshop)

The Creative Spark

Clarissa Pinkola Estes writes about "el duende," the "goblin wind" within us which can breathe our creative spark into creative fire. The ember may be a story, a poem, a confession, a play. It may not even know what it is, or wants to be--but it's there. So we'll experiment. We'll use timed writings, dream journals, guided imagery, Active Imagination, and anything else we can think of to get you in touch with the stories you want or need to tell--and those wanting or needing to be told. Come with an open mind. Be open and brave. You'll come away not only a better writer, but with a better understanding of your self.

6 sessions, Sept. 16-Oct. 21
Tuesdays 6:00-9:00pm
Enrollment limit: 10

Flying Off the Page: Part 1

What's involved in adapting a short story into a film? What do you keep, and what do you leave out? Does adding a love interest raise the stakes, or muddy the plot? In this mini-film festival we'll watch movies based on short fiction, and explore the craft of adaptation. Stories and films may include An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Rocking Horse Winner, The Most Dangerous Game, and The Killers. You'll come away from this class with a fresh appreciation for writing fiction and films.

3 sessions

Tuesday Oct. 29 6:30-9:00pm, and Saturday Nov. 1 9:30am-12:00pm, 1:00-3:30pm

Enrollment limit: 10

Flying Off the Page: Part 2

Stories and films may include A Rose For Emily, The Snows of Kilimanjaro, Don't Look Now, The Curse of the Demon, and The Birds. You'll come away from this class with a fresh appreciation for writing fiction and films.

3 sessions

Tuesday Nov. 4 6:30-9:30pm, and Saturday Nov. 8 9:30am-12:00pm, 1:00-3:30pm

Enrollment limit: 10

Dysfunctional Families in American Theatre

Why do America's greatest playwrights--Eugene O'Neill, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, Edward Albee, Sam Shepard, August Wilson, Lillian Hellman, etc.--write about dysfunctional families? As Steppenwolf's Ed Sobel says, "When people write about families that tend to be just functional, there's not much drama in it." In this workshop, we'll look at dysfunctional families in specific plays--talk about the roles and coping mechanisms adopted by the members of such families--and write scenes and monologues based on this understanding of your own (real or invented) characters' backgrounds. No particular knowledge of theatre (or dysfunction) is required.

1 session

Saturday, November 15

Enrollment limit: 10

Writing Monologues

A monologue is one person talking: to himself or herself, to another character, or directly to the audience. Like a play, a monologue can startle us with emotional truth and can have its own arc. In this creative writing workshop, we'll start with the personal--because that's where the energy is. We'll read a couple of the instructor's monologues (and perhaps one or two others), to learn how to move from what is personal towards the creation of other characters. And then we will begin to create characters. They might be based on people we know, or they might be entirely fictional. What is of the utmost importance is that they ring emotionally true. Some interest in life on the planet is required.

1 session

Saturday, Nov. 22

Enrollment limit: 10

The Visual Arts Center is located at 1812 Grove Avenue. For information call Malinda Collier at 353-0094, or go to http://www.visarts.org/.