Yahoo News Finding your voice(s): A one-day creative writing masterclass with Professor Jem Poster and Dr Sarah Burton
The writer of a work of fiction is a kind of ventriloquist, giving voice to a variety of different characters in dialogue, and establishing an appropriate voice – sometimes a number of different voices – for the narrative.
In this wide-ranging new masterclass Dr Sarah Burton and Professor Jem Poster, co-founders of Cambridge University’s master’s programme in creative writing, return, online, to the one-day format of their pre-pandemic classes, offering a new fiction-writing class suitable for all aspiring writers, including those who have attended their classes before.
Through practical exercises and supportive feedback from the tutors, you will be guided through the varied voices of fiction and the ways in which, while giving a voice to others, you can discover your own voice as a writer. This workshop is an unmissable learning opportunity for all aspiring writers of fiction, including beginners seeking guidance and experienced writers looking to energise their practice.
You will be sent a link to the webinar 2hrs before the start time of 10am (GMT).
Course content
Who is telling the story? First- and third-person narratives
Voices in dialogue
Narrative voices
Author and narrator
This course is for…
Beginners looking for a foundational understanding of how to approach their writing
More experienced writers with a desire to refresh their practice
Anyone who wants to learn more about the uses of voice in fiction
Tutor profiles
Jem Poster is emeritus professor of creative writing, Aberystwyth University, and co-founder, with Sarah Burton, of Cambridge University’s master’s programme in creative writing. He is the author of two novels, Courting Shadows (Sceptre, 2002) and Rifling Paradise (Sceptre, 2006), as well as a collection of poetry, Brought to Light (Bloodaxe, 2001). He edited volume III of the six-volume Oxford University Press Edward Thomas: Prose Writings (OUP, 2018) and is co-author, with Sarah Burton, of a handbook for fiction-writers, The Book You Need to Read to Write the Book You Want to Write, due out from Cambridge University Press in early 2022.
Sarah Burton’s publications include two biographies, Impostors: Six Kinds of Liar (Penguin, 2000) and A Double Life: a Biography of Charles and Mary Lamb (Penguin, 2003, shortlisted for the Mind Book of the Year award); a children’s book, The Miracle in Bethlehem: A Storyteller’s Tale (2008); and a page-to-stage guide, How to Put on a Community Play (2011). Her novel, The Strange Adventures of H (Legend Press, 2020) has been an Amazon historical fiction bestseller. With Jem Poster, she co-founded Cambridge University’s master’s programme in creative writing and is co-author of The Book You Need to Read to Write the Book You Want to Write, due out from Cambridge University Press in early 2022.
You will be sent a link to the webinar 2hrs before the start time of 10am (GMT).
Details
Date: Tuesday 6 November 2021
Times: 10am – 4pm (GMT)
Price: £149 (plus booking fee)
10am GMT | 11am CET | 3am PT | 6am ET
This masterclass is available globally. If you are joining us from outside the United Kingdom, please use this time zone converter to check your local live streaming time.
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